It’s 2 am and you just woke up with severe vaginal burning and itching.
“I seriously cannot have a yeast infection right now!” you think to yourself as you jump out of bed, panicked.
Oh, but you can.
It may be the middle of the night, but like most women who suffer from an acute onset of a vaginal yeast infection, you’re prepared to use ANY and ALL means to get rid of the horrible symptoms! Whether you have vaginal itching, burning, thick discharge, or all three – you want relief, and you want it fast!
You grab your phone and google “natural yeast infection remedies”. Terms like garlic, yogurt and table vinegar solution douche pop up on your screen. Unfortunately, you don’t have any of those things in your house. Sighing, you throw on some clothes and head for the nearest 24-hour pharmacy.
Before you go any further, stop right there! While some of these natural yeast infection remedies are legitimately helpful, let’s discuss each in detail.
Fresh Clove Of Garlic
You may have seen some information on Google that there’s a compound in garlic (called allicin) that’s fungicidal. This is true. There’s also tons of research that shows consuming garlic in your diet regularly will indeed help with a recurrence of yeast infections. But DO NOT – and I repeat, ABSOLUTELY DO NOT – put garlic in your vagina! Doing so can cause severe burning and irritation to the delicate vaginal mucosa.
Yogurt
The truth is that yogurt probably wont do much in treating the yeast infection itself – but a cold and soothing application of yogurt might provide a temporary relief for that burning sensation. Of course, please don’t use any yogurt that has berries or additional sugars added.
Boric Acid
One remedy with a fair amount of data behind it is boric acid. Boric acid has been around since the 1860’s, and yes, it’s the same thing you use to get rid of cockroaches. It’s a very effective antifungal, and for some of the more resistant types of yeast infections it’s actually the first line therapy. But BEWARE, boric acid is poisonous if taken by mouth. It’s only effective when used vaginally. The most common doses of boric acid vaginal suppositories can by found on Amazon and over-the-counter in pharmacies.
Once you get inside the pharmacy, you’ll quickly see that most non-prescription treatments are just as effective as prescription treatments. For example, over-the-counter Monistat is as good for an isolated episode as one pill of fluconazole (which is the standard for a single yeast infection episode). However, some patients prefer oral treatment due to “less mess”. More information about fluconazole available here: anti-fungal-med.com
In order to prevent yeast infections in the future:
- Don’t douche.
- Avoid scented or perfumed soaps and sanitary products.
- Use soap on your vulva, but do not insert soap into your vagina.
- Wipe from front to back to avoid wiping fecal matter into your vagina.
- Keep the area around your vagina dry.
- Wear cotton underwear.
- Wash your hands before touching your vagina.
- Never transition directly from anal to vaginal sex.
- Follow a low-carb diet
Besides these yeast infection remedies, what else can you do?
The best thing you can do for a yeast infection is to visit your GYN provider. He or she will take a culture to identify which type of yeast is causing the infection. In most women, it’s going to be Candida albicans, which is the most common cause of yeast infections in general and also the most common cause of recurrent yeast infections.
Here at Boruch Midwifery, Dr. Yuliya Boruch will create a personalized plan not only for yeast infection treatment, but also for the maintenance and prevention of symptoms in the future. Sometimes a long-term treatment (up to 6 months) is needed to treat and prevent recurrent vaginal yeast infection. Contact us today if you have questions or concerns about yeast infections or other women’s health issues.
Dr. Yuliya Boruch
Yuliya Boruch is a graduate of Hunter College Nursing Program and the SUNY Downstate Midwifery Program, where she received both Clinical and Academic Excellence Awards. Mrs. Boruch is nationally accredited by the American Midwifery Certification Board, and is a member of the American College of Nurse Midwives. She is also a certified Obstetrics and Gynecology Nurse Practitioner. Mrs. Boruch has been a Midwife since 2004, and has worked in a private practice settings as well as at Beth Israel Medical Center. Introduced to Midwifery in Brooklyn during her early student clinical Midwifery rotations at Coney Island Hospital, Mrs. Boruch has grown fond of the patient population she serves in Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan. She lives with her husband in Queens and is raising three wonderful children.
Get on the list!
Subscribe to our newsletter and stay in the know about health, sex, beauty and relationships!