buffer-overrun

I love yogurt and eat a ton of it, but I don’ think there’s a lot of evidence that the kind of Lactobacillus acidophilus you eat in yogurt is very good at repopulating the vagina.  You need specific strains of lactobacillus that can make peroxide.

As far as I understand it, the thing most associated with BV is douching. (Though I have heard a theory that some guys are “BV carriers”. – don’t know if the data ever panned out on that one.)

BV can move up into the fallopian tubes and cause scarring and sterility, so if in doubt, you should see a doctor.  And trichomoniasis has very similar symptoms, so self diagnosis is a lot harder than with yeast infections.

But both gardnerella (BV) and candida (yeast) can be in a vagina at low levels and not cause problems.  But if the vaginal flora gets disrupted (stress, douching, bad lube, or a lot of outside bacteria getting introduced) then you end up with bacteria or yeast growing out of control.  So the treatments may be different, but the prevention is the same.

I tried every crazy thing anyone recommended when I was dealing with constant recurrent yeast infections.  So, in my experience, garlic cloves didn’t sting.  I peeled them really carefully to minimize the burny garlic juice.  Which may have also been why it didn’t work.  I also tried boric acid, which actually made my labia burn, so I wouldn’t recommend that one.

You can try topical application of yogurt.  You can try using one of those vaguely syringe like things that are used for vaginal moisturizers or lube or miconizole or whatever.  Or you can use acidophilus pills, and just insert them with your finger.  None of that worked for me, though I did have a couple fits of hysterical laughter about the variety of tasty food products I was sticking up my snatch.  Basically the problem is that acidophilus is just not the lactobacillus strain that grows in healthy vaginas, because, um,  vaginas are not made of milk.  That being said, BV thrives in a vagina with neutral pH, and things like yogurt and vinegar that help bring the vagina back to its normal (very acidic) pH can help at the margins.

I just read an article where they found that in the lab, a bunch of lubes actually killed lactobacillus (they specifically looked at the peroxide-producing strains).  The worse culprits were Gynol II (spermicidal jelly for diaphragms), KY Jelly and Replens (more of a vaginal moisturizer than a lube, but something that my nurse practitioner specifically recommended to me when I was having a lot of problems with yeast infections, and it now seems, was actively making things worse).

Silicone lube is compatible with condoms and has been shown to 1) not kill vaginal strains of lactobacillus and 2) not damage cervical and rectal cells (in lab settings).

Avoid spermicides because in the lab they kill lactobacillus and damage cervical and rectal cells and they have been shown to increase HIV transmission in some studies.