About smelly discharge in women

Smelly discharge in women can sometimes be a cause for concern and this is largely dependent on the other symptoms which accompany it. Normal women have varying levels of vaginal discharge and mostly, it is no cause for concern whatsoever. Normal discharge ranges from clear-white in color and will have either no smell at all, or perhaps a slightly musky odor which is inoffensive. The color and consistency will vary depending on what stage of the monthly cycle a woman is at and, to a certain extent, their age.

If you have a clumpy white discharge which is similar in consistency to cottage cheese, this could indicate a yeast infection such as Thrush. Sometimes this is accompanied by an unpleasant smelly discharge in women, but it is not always very noticeable. Thrush can sometimes be difficult to eliminate and although it rarely leads to other problems, it can be extremely irritating and painful, with your vaginal area feeling tender, with a hot, burning sensation. You will certainly want to take steps to do something about it!

The most common cause of smelly discharge in women is bacterial vaginosis. This condition will affect around three quarters of women during their adult lives, whether sexually active or not. Although isolated outbreaks are not dangerous, women who have recurrent bacterial vaginosis are more likely to get pelvic inflammatory disease which can lead to infertility. In addition, women who regularly suffer are also more likely to contract the HIV virus if they are intimate with an infected partner.

Bacterial vaginosis causes an offensive smelly discharge in women which many describe as being "fishy". The discharge is gray or white in color and sometimes watery in consistency. More often than not, women will also experience itching and burning around the sensitive vaginal tissues.

If you suffer from recurrent outbreaks of any type of smelly discharge, then you will no doubt want to take steps to get rid of it, not only for the embarrassment factor but also because it could lead to complications, particularly in the case of BV.

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About early pregnancy discharge

In early pregnancy, discharge is quite normal. In fact some women notice this discharge before they even know they are pregnant and mistakenly believe it to be a yeast infection.  Vaginal discharge is one of the early symptoms that you are pregnant even before it is possible for the pregnancy to show up in a blood or urine test or in a home pregnancy kit. While you can expect to have some vaginal discharge all the way through the pregnancy, it is more so in the early weeks. This is because the walls of the vagina are becoming thicker and so some of the mucous leaks because of the turnover in the cells of the lining.

The lining starts to thicken because the brain starts producing more of the female hormone estrogen . This causes an increased blood flow to the vagina. This cervical mucous is also a sign later in your pregnancy that you are close to delivering the baby with an increase in the discharge around this time. This may come out as one lump, often referred to as the mucous plug, or you may just notice that your have more discharge than usual.

You do have to be careful with a discharge early in the pregnancy and at all times throughout the forty weeks. If you notice that the discharge has a foul smell to it or is discoloured, rather than being white, this is a symptom of a bacterial or yeast infection. The discharge is often accompanied by itching and burning. When you see your doctor about this problem, the results of a urine test can tell whether there are any yeast cells present. The doctor will prescribe a cream for you to use externally and cream or capsules that you can use internally by means of a special applicator. You can also purchase this type of treatment over the counter without a prescription and is safe to use during pregnancy.

Although having a yeast infection while you are pregnant will not harm the baby, it will make you feel really uncomfortable, especially at night. If you scratch this area too much, this can lead to a vaginal infection, which could spread to the uterus.  Another problem that you could encounter is that if you leave the yeast infection untreated, as the baby passes through the vagina during the birthing process, it could easily pick up the infection.

One way in which you can prevent a yeast infection from developing is to always keep the genital area clean and dry. You also have to keep in mind that yeast cells occur naturally in the body and can even bloom into an infection as part of your body reaction to foods or even scented soaps and lotions. Yogurt is especially effective in helping to treat and prevent a yeast infection and is part of a healthy diet whether you are pregnant or not.

If you are not sure whether the vaginal discharge you have early in your pregnancy is actually a symptom that you are going to have a baby, you can contact your doctor for a check up just to make sure.

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Yeast infection discharge treatment

Want to stop your yeast infection discharge fast and for good? Then you'll want to read this report. Vaginal yeast infection discharge is a horrible, highly embarrassing thing. But you can eliminate it pretty quickly if you know how. Here, you'll learn the causes and your treatment options.

First, let's go over the symptoms of a vaginal yeast infection discharge. The common symptoms are; red and inflamed vulva, chronic itching, thick white discharge like 'cottage cheese', pain when urinating, pain / difficulty having sex.

Note: the thick discharge has either no smell, or, it smells like baker's yeast or beer. If it smells differently, e.g. 'fishy', then it's probably a bacterial infection, so consult your doctor. This report deals with yeast infections not bacterial infections, e.g. bacterial vaginosis. In any case you should always consult your doctor.

Now for the cause. The cause is a yeast-like fungus called "Candida Albicans". Don't worry, you're not alone, it resides quite naturally in our bodies, without causing any harm usually. Your body's 'friendly' bacteria takes care of things by keeping the Candida fungus under control.

Sometimes, though, your good bacteria levels become depleted enough that the Candida can 'overgrow' into a yeast infection, sometime also called candida and candidiasis. The types of things and conditions that can help trigger this are; immune deficiency, diabetes, antibiotics, steroids, stress, medical conditions like HIV/AIDS and cancer, drug-taking, etc.

For your vaginal yeast infection discharge and the other symptoms, the following are some of the contributory factors; using perfumed pads, douches and feminine sprays; sexual intercourse with an infected partner; wearing tight non-breathable underwear; wearing damp sweaty underwear and sports wear.

Women with a yeast infection discharge usually go for over-the-counter or prescription topical creams and pessaries. These drug-based medications can be quite good at relieving your vaginal discharge over time. But many women keep getting recurring yeast infections of the vagina; perhaps you're the same. They use the medication - the symptoms disappear - the medication is stopped - the infection returns, and so on. Is this your experience?

Two reasons for this could be that the drug-based medications target the localized symptoms, but not the root cause and underlying conditions. Also, the Candid can build-up a resistance to the drugs rendering them ineffective over time. Could this be happening to you?

This is why so many women around the world are turning everyday to completely natural remedies to cure their yeast infections. They are way, way cheaper than drug-based treatments, and, without their negative side effects.

By using natural home remedies for their vaginal yeast infection discharge, and other simple things like dietary and lifestyle adjustments, they've been able to cure their yeast infections fast (even reports of 12 hours) and permanently.

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Cottage cheese discharge

"I have a cottage cheese-like discharge," says one young woman to another.
"I have a thin, grayish discharge," says another.
"I have no discharge at all," says an older woman.

Which woman is the healthiest?

Actually none of them! The first woman with the cottage cheese-like discharge most likely has a Candida infection.

Candida albicans is a yeast that normally lives in the vaginal flora. It also lives in the throat and in the gastrointestinal tract. However, when its numbers grow out of the normal range, the yeast essentially has a ‘hayday' no matter where it is. If the Candida is located in the vagina, it starts reproducing wildly. You'd think it was spring break in there! Okay, just a little humor is needed sometimes to offset a bad situation. Wouldn't you agree?

The second woman with the thin grayish discharge most likely has a bacterial vaginosis discharge.

A Bacterial Vaginosis discharge is not green. It's not yellow. And it's not white, like cottage cheese. And a BV discharge is not tinted with blood.

On the other hand, a BV discharge is thin and can be white or gray. It can and usually has a fishy odor. That's BV and sometimes you don't even have to get an official diagnosis – just use your nose! This discharge usually comes packaged with other symptoms such as irritation and burning with urination. There could also be pain with intercourse.

The third woman has no discharge at all and her vagina is ‘dry as a bone'. Again, I'm just trying to make the subject a little easier for you to read about! This dry vagina is not normal either! And it's not the same thing as a bacterial vaginosis discharge. It indicates that her estrogen levels have dropped to a very low level. You see, estrogen protects the tissues in the vagina. It keeps them plump … and juicy.

A vaginal discharge can be normal during the different parts of the menstrual cycle. At the beginning and end of the cycle, you could see a normal white discharge – but it won't have the symptoms associated with bacterial vaginosis discharge and it won't have the appearance of a Candida yeast infection discharge.

Remember – a Candida discharge and a bacterial vaginosis discharge are never normal!

At the end of the cycle, your discharge could be brown, just because it contains a little bit of blood. When your discharge is clear and appears to "stretch", it means you're fertile. Stay away from the men at this time! If it's ever yellow, green or fishy, get to the doctor!

Watch your discharge! If it's a bacterial vaginosis discharge or Candida one, do something!

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