10 Tips to Maintain Superb Feminine Hygiene

Here are 10 tips to help maintain a superb feminine and female  personal hygiene routine that you want to make sure you’re doing daily.  Be sure to add these to your daily hygiene routine checklist.

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Most of us were taught by the women in our lives how to maintain proper feminine hygiene but lately I have been hearing women doing certain things to themselves which could be inhibiting healthy lady bits. 

And to be quite honest, some of what we were taught and learned actually can cause more problems than we think.

First and foremost several of the tips I am about to share with you my gynecologist told me last year when I was doing my annual visit and was complaining about discomfort and frequent yeast infections partially as a result of taking antibiotics.

What she shared with me after I talked to her about that changed my perspective so I want to share it with all of you.

Before I run down that list, let me first say, our lady bits have a natural odor.  It shouldn’t be considered offensive or blow the room away when you remove underwear.  It naturally has a light musky smell.

Now, if yours has a strong pungent odor then you want to go see your gynecologist to get checked out.  Our vaginas also naturally discharge.  That is how it cleans itself.

The discharge should not have a strong odor and should be clear or slightly opaque.  If it has a strong odor, is heavier than usual or is discolored, go to your doctor and get checked out.

Since that is out of the way let me share the tips that were shared with me.

Stop wearing tight fitted clothing

Not only does it smother your body, it can limit movement and cause ingrown hairs where you shave.  Comfortably fitted clothing is best your “girl” can breathe.

Change out of wet clothes immediately

Whether your clothes are wet due to exercise or swimming, you don’t want to sit around in wet bottoms for an extended period of time.  For one it can start smelling moldy as well as harbor bacteria.  Bacteria thrives in warm, damp places.  Wash off and change into dry clothes as soon as you can.

Take a probiotic

This one was news to me.  There are feminine probiotics you can take to maintain a healthy vaginal environment.  They can also help reduce the incidence of yeast infections and helps balance everything out especially if your lady parts are going out of wack due to hormones.  I take Rephresh Pro-B daily and it is great.

Stop washing with perfumed soaps

This one right here.  I love Bath & Body Works like the next woman but I do not wash my body with their scented body washes.

It can be harsh on the skin and the lady bits are even more sensitive so you don’t want to wash it with harsh chemicals.

It can dry out your skin as well as aggravate and upset your natural pH balance there.  My nurse friend advised to ONLY wash it with plain warm water.

Don’t use soap on it at all.

Also, don’t use those feminine wipes and washes promoted by certain brands.  Keep it simple and remember your body cleanses itself throughout the day so harsh soap isn’t necessary.

Of course do wash your hind parts with a mild soap.  Let’s not get crazy.

Let your body breathe

This one was an eye opener to me because I was raised to always wear underwear.  My gynecologist advised that when I get home to immediately remove my panties, wear loose pajama shorts and let my body breathe.

I was floored!

She said she does it because the body needs to breathe especially if it has been covered up in underwear all day.  Let some air get to it to maintain a healthy environment.

She advised me to sleep without underwear.  I took her advice and she was RIGHT!  It also feels FREE.

Also, wear more cotton underwear which allows the body to breathe vs. man-made fabrics which tend to stifle the body.  Try it.

Maintain your annual gynecological exams

Once a woman begins menstruating and becomes sexually active it is imperative she begins to see a gynecologist annually.  Those health checks normally include a pap smear to check the cervix health as well as a well-woman check to make sure the vagina is disease free and healthy.

A lot can happen in a year so make sure you see your doctor at least once a year.

Listen to your body

If the condition of anything down there changes or becomes uncomfortable call your physician to get checked out.  Just like the previous tip, pay attention to your body and learn your body so you can potentially catch any issues before they become big health issues.

Drink copious amounts of water

I know this one may sound strange but you are what you eat and drink.  Water helps flush out toxins from your body and maintains a healthy pH balance throughout your body period, especially the vagina, so drink at least 74 ounces of water a day to keep everything copacetic.

Stop douching

This is one of the lessons many of us learned from older women which can be detrimental to vaginal health.  Douching can be harmful and is unnecessary because as previously mentioned, your body cleans itself and douching washes away all of the good bacteria your vagina needs to maintain good health.

Douching can increase the chances of yeast infections and bacterial vaginosis.  Not good.

Stop doing it all together.

Reduce the amount of acidic food you eat and drink

This one may sound strange too but I had a friend who started drinking shots of ACV to reduce body fat and her lady bits began to have a pungent odor.  Once she stopped drinking the ACV the issue went away.

You want to eat a balance diet so your body is balanced.  So slow down on the acidic foods and increase consumption of alkaline foods.  Your body will thank you for it.

These are the 10 tips I recently learned about over the past year that I wanted to share with you.

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Did anything in here surprise you? 

Which tip do you plan on incorporating into your hygiene routine? 

What tip did I miss?  Leave it in the comments below.