Douching Side Effects: Is Douching Good or Bad?





Douching Side Effects: So your boyfriend likes to go down on you and, because you want to make the experience more pleasant for him, you are now thinking of douching the vajayjay. Should you or shouldn’t you? What are the side effects, if any, of vaginal douching? Are there long term negative health effects that women should be aware of?

Well, curious internet friend, douching is BAD, BAD, BAD for you. Don’t do it! There’s no benefit in douching (unless you think a false sense of cleanliness is beneficial) and there’s a lot of health risks involved with the practice.

douching side effects - good or bad to your health

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Here’s what the Office of Women’s Health of the US Department of Health is saying about dangerous douching side effects:

Most doctors and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommend that women don’t douche. Douching can change the delicate balance of vaginal flora (organisms that live in the vagina) and acidity in a healthy vagina. One way to look at it is in a healthy vagina there are both good and bad bacteria. The balance of the good and bad bacteria help maintain an acidic environment. Any changes can cause an over growth of bad bacteria which can lead to a yeast infection or bacterial vaginosis. Plus, if you have a vaginal infection, douching can push the bacteria causing the infection up into the uterus, fallopian (fuh-LOH-pee-uhn) tubes, and ovaries.

Our friend Irene discovered one of the negative side effects of douching when, after two months of “cleansing” herself, she developed a very bad yeast infection. Turns out that all that “cleansing” was flushing out the good bacteria which was keeping Candida albicans. For those of you wondering, Candida albicans, is what causes yeast infection.

Want to learn more about douching side effects? Here’s a very helpful FAQ prepared by womenshealth.gov:

What is douching?
The word “douche” means to wash or soak in French. Douching is washing or cleaning out the vagina (birth canal) with water or other mixtures of fluids. Most douches are prepackaged mixes of water and vinegar, baking soda, or iodine. You can buy these products at drug and grocery stores. The mixtures usually come in a bottle and can be squirted into the vagina through a tube or nozzle.

Why do women douche?
Women douche because they mistakenly believe it gives many benefits. Women who douche say they do it to:

  • Clean the vagina
  • Rinse away blood after monthly periods
  • Get rid of odor
  • Avoid sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
  • Prevent pregnancy

How common is douching?
Douching is common among women in the United States. It’s estimated that 20 to 40 percent of American women 15 to 44 years old douche regularly. About half of these women douche each week. Higher rates of douching are seen in teens, African-American women, and Hispanic women.

What are the dangers linked to douching?
Research shows that women who douche regularly have more health problems than women who don’t. Doctors are still unsure whether douching causes these problems. Douching may simply be more common in groups of women who tend to have these issues. Health problems linked to douching include:

  • Vaginal irritation
  • Bacterial vaginosis (vaj-uh-NOH-suhs) (BV)
  • STIs
  • Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)

Some STIs, BV, and PID can all lead to serious problems during pregnancy. These include infection in the baby, problems with labor, and early delivery.

Read more about douching side effects after the jump.