Does Yogurt Help For Vaginal Yeast Infection?

Vaginal yeast infections are highly prevalent among women. They can hit the young girls as well middle age women both. A type of fungus that is commonly called yeast causes it. The scientific name of this enzyme is “Candida albicans.”

As you already know, there are several bacteria, which live inside our body. The growth of fungi or bacteria is never problematic unless they cause an infection. Such pathogens are called opportunistic pathogens and candida is one of them.

Candida is naturally a part of human body, it multiplies like anything and causes an infection of the vagina, which is sometimes called candidiasis. It is so prevalent that it is said, almost every woman gets a yeast infection once in her life.

This yeast infection is highly uncomfortable, itchy, and gives burning sensation. It makes your vagina secrete thick whitish discharge. In case you are wondering, no yeast infections are not sexually transmitted. They don’t fall into the category of Stds.

It is common to try home-based remedies to treat yeast infections. Fortunately, these home remedies heal many of them too. There are various over the counter antifungal creams, ointments, and sprays available, which are helpful.

If you prefer using safe treatment options like natural products, using a home-based solution for yeast infection is a better choice. One popular choice to treat vaginal yeast infection is through “yogurt, ”

How to use yogurt for yeast infection?

Yogurt is a safe choice to use against yeast infection. You can try any of the following methods.

Apply yogurt directly to the labia.
Put some yogurt in your vagina.
Add yogurt to your daily diet routine.

Another remedy tells that using a mixture of honey and yogurt is also helpful for vaginal yeast infection. Using probiotics is also beneficial because it’s the same nutrients as yogurt provides to the body.

Is yogurt safe for yeast infections?

Yogurt is 100% safe and reliable option to try for vaginal yeast infections. It has been a favorite remedy for years. Women all around the world have used it and verified its results.

Yogurt has nothing in it, which can harm your health. Applying it to the bacterially invaded region on vagina helps to kill the yeast cells. It works because it is rich in bacteria called lactobacillus. Lactobacillus is abundant in milk and yogurt.

It is one of the beneficial bacteria in the body. It is a regular part of our gut, stomach, urinary tract and genital area. Despite being bacteria, it doesn’t cause any harm, any damage or any infection in humans.

When the body is short on them, an oral intake of lactobacillus makes the functioning of the body better. Yogurt has lactobacillus in it. That is why eating and applying yogurt to the affected part helps to kill yeast cells.

More than that, using yogurt has several benefits for us. Such as,

It provides relief in diarrhea
It speeds up the recovery from rotavirus infections.
It aids in traveler’s diarrhea.
It provides help against irritable bowel syndrome.
It strengthens the digestive system.
It enhances the immunity.

The rich sources to get lactobacillus bacteria are;

Yogurts
Fermented foods
Dietary supplements/probiotics.

Is it proven by the research?

The benefits of Lactobacillus are proven to be helpful against yeast infections. The Natural Medicine Comprehensive Database rates yogurt to be possible effective against yeast infections in humans.

A recent study explains that the combination of honey and yogurt is a better antifungal treatment that the commercially produced chemical based antifungal creams. The mixture of honey and yogurt was tested on pregnant women for vaginal yeast infection. 87.8% of the women showed the highly positive result with this natural treatment. The natural antifungal cream showed 72.3% positive results in the same study.

How to use yogurt for a yeast infection?

The medical researches, which study the effects of yogurt on vaginal yeast infection, emphasized to use it topically on the affected area and eat it. Make sure that you are using a plain yogurt.

Take a sufficient amount of yogurt and apply it to clean, dry parts of the vagina. In case you want to insert some into the vaginal canal, try using a tampon applicator. You can fill the applicator with yogurt and enter into the vagina.

You can also try the applicator from your antifungal cream. But make sure to wash it with warm water before and after applying yogurt with it. For the better application, freeze the yogurt. It will build a solid mass, which you can easily insert into the vagina.

If you aren’t sure about how to use the tampon applicator or antifungal cream’s applicator, try to use it with clean fingers.

As eating yogurt in your regular diet is concerned, many people believe that it is not a direct approach to heal a vaginal yeast infection. It may or may not be true but eating yogurt has other benefits for the body too. If you don’t like the taste of yogurt, you can also take probiotic supplements. They are readily available online and from health stores.

Which type of yogurt helps for vaginal yeast infection?

It is a lie if someone tells you that you can try any yogurt for vaginal yeast infections. Not all types of yogurt have the same function. Some of the flavored or enhanced yogurt products don’t have sufficient amount of lactobacillus in them.

It is better to use unsweetened, unflavored, plain yogurt for vaginal yeast infections. If you plan to eat the remaining yogurt later, find the low-fat yogurt. The effect of yogurt is increased when you mix it with honey. This combination has best antimicrobial properties, which kill all the yeast cells rapidly.

Does yogurt start working right away?

No, you cannot expect yogurt to start working on one-time use or one day. Fungal infections need more time to heal than bacterial infections. Herbal remedies work, but their working is usually slower than the medicine.

The only reason to prefer yogurt to medicines is that it is inexpensive, easy to use and doesn’t have side effects. By using yogurt, the vaginal yeast infection will take one week or more to end.

Are there any risks to use yogurt for vaginal yeast infection?

There are no as such risks associated with the condition. The only danger that one may feel is that it doesn’t help much with the itching. Yogurt helps against inflammation, killing yeast cells but for swelling and itching, it is not very efficient. You may need to consult a doctor if you are suffering from an extremely itchy yeast infection.

Who should see a doctor?

The initial stages of yeast infection are totally under control with yogurt and other herbal remedies. If it is worse or an old disease, you should not waste time and consult a doctor as soon as possible.

The doctor you should visit for yeast infection could be any, i.e., primary health care doctor, gynecologist, family planning center, etc. You need to get this checked because sometimes the symptoms of yeast infections are similar to sexually transmitted diseases. In either way, it is better to get a proper diagnosis.

Make sure to get the infection diagnosed by the doctor when:

It is your first ever yeast infection.
You are not sure if it is a yeast infection or what.
You had unprotected sex.
Using over the counter anti-fungal cream is not working on you.
Yogurt application is not working on you.
Other symptoms are emerging, i.e., foul odor, fever, sores, ulcers, excessive discharge, etc.

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