Vaginal and urinary tract symptoms are so common in the perimenopause and menopause. We get so many women experiencing symptoms at one time or another, and it can be things like urinary tract infections, vaginal dryness, incontinence, and itchiness as well. But it will also maybe surprise you that these symptoms are not only due to hormonal changes, but can also be exacerbated by the type of underwear you are wearing.
So, in this blog, I outline a few things that you might be doing that you're not really aware of when it comes to your underwear, which can actually impact your symptoms. Plus, what you can do to help yourself.
Vaginal and urinary symptoms in perimenopause and menopause
Some of the symptoms you can experience include:
- Vaginal dryness
- Itchiness
- Increased UTIs
- Bladder weakness/incontinence
- Heavy periods in perimenopause
- Sweaty, irritated groin area
Underwear mistakes that are bad for these symptoms
A short while ago, I did a blog on what bras can do to irritate your symptoms, but bras are not the only underwear that could be causing you problems. Surprisingly, your choice of pants, knickers, or undergarments, (whatever you call them - we all have our own little words for them) is also important.
So, let’s take a look at a few mistakes that you might be making and why they can be impactful on your vaginal and urinary symptoms.
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Mistake 1: Wearing fabrics that aren’t breathable
This particular area it's what we call a mucous membrane area, which can be affected by falling oestrogen. It can become drier. So, the whole area, so that's the vagina and the urethra area around the bladder, can all be irritated. It can become dry. It can get really sore. It can get chafed. But also, the friendly bacteria in that area can change as well, and that can leave you more vulnerable to vaginal infections, such as thrush, and candida, and also repeat urinary tract infections.
So, the most important thing here is to make sure that the area is aerated, that air can move around it to keep it cool and to help the friendly bacteria to survive.
The most important thing here is to remember to wear cotton underwear. Unfortunately, man-made fibres, and even things like silk, can trap the air so the air can become very hot and that can create a big imbalance and also a hostile environment for your friendly bacteria; so, really try to wear cotton underwear.
If you must wear any synthetic fabrics, then at least make sure that the underwear has a natural cotton gusset inside, because that will at least help you sort of halfway. Bamboo fibres seem to be okay for this purpose, so that's another material you can use as well as cotton.
Mistake 2: Wearing ill-fitting underwear
I think, as women, we do tend to have a habit that if we have a lovely pair of pants that we've had for a long time, maybe matching with our bras, and we might have put on a little bit of weight or our shape has changed slightly, we don't want to throw them away! But this type of underwear, if it's ill-fitting, if it's too tight, it's going to stop the airflow and it's going to cause chafing, it's going to cause inflammation, and it's going to cause irritation, and maybe a rash.
And if you tend to get a little bit sweaty down there and you've got a rash, that is really going to sting. So just make sure that you buy new underwear regularly. I tend, on a whole, just to go for these multipacks that you can buy in supermarkets. They're not very expensive and, because of that, they're ones that you can change, throw out, and replace on a regular basis.
Mistake 3: Wearing thongs
Believe it or not, these can be so bad for causing urinary tract infections. The reason is that the thong bit that goes from your back right through to the front is very close, it's actually touching the skin from your bowel right the way through to the vagina.
So, bacteria from the bowel can use that little, thin strip of material as a bridge to drop from one area to another. And that's one of the easiest ways of getting things like cystitis. So, thongs really should be avoided at this particular point if possible.
Mistake 4: The type of detergent or fabric conditioner you are using
So, you could be doing everything else right: plenty of room, plenty of air, cotton pants, and you're still having problems. Remember, this area can get so, so sensitive, and if it's already dry and irritated, what you wash your underwear in can have a huge impact.
So, if you think about it, you’ve got all these chemicals in your washing powder. If you're using fabric conditioners as well, that's topping everything up. So, if you're having any vaginal issues, then just make sure that you use unscented, natural washing powders and also conditioners. And that can make a huge amount of difference, especially if you're getting repeat infections.
Mistake 5: The underwear you wear when going to bed
What do you wear when you go to bed? I have heard that some women just keep on the pants that they've been wearing all day, and sleep in them when they go to bed. This really isn't a good idea, especially if you're having a bit of vaginal discharge - it's going to be sitting there for basically 24 hours.
So, it's really important that if you wear anything when you go to bed, you make sure that it's clean and you make sure that there's plenty of room. Go for really baggy pyjama bottoms, pants, or even jockey shorts, or things like that. Especially if you are getting night sweats, you are going to get sweaty all over and that will include between the legs. You've got a duvet or cover on too, so there's going to be no nice, fresh air getting into that area.
So, I would say that if you're getting a lot of night sweats, sometimes going commando can be the best thing for you to do, both for your heat control and also for helping to keep your vagina nice and aerated.
Mistake 6: Wearing shapewear underwear
Are you wearing controlled pants such as spandex underwear most days? Yes, it improves your shape but, oh my goodness, it's going to put a lot of pressure on your bladder, so you might end up having to run to the toilet a lot more, which may make you more vulnerable to urinary tract infections, and you're also going to get no fresh air in that area at all.
So, if you need to wear this type of controlled underwear, keep it for when you're going to a party, or if you're going out and you want to look your best; but for general day wear, it really is best to avoid it.
Mistake 7: Not changing your underwear regularly enough
For those of you maybe who are sweating a lot, if you're getting a lot of vaginal discharge, if you're getting urinary tract infections, then your pants can get soiled quite a bit quicker than normal. So, in this case, maybe changing twice a day could be a lot better for you.
Another thing (and this was something I hadn't actually thought of before and it was one of these light bulb moments), if you go to exercise classes, especially if like me, you go first thing in the morning, you can get very sweaty between the legs and in the groin area. If you then don't go straight home, and you're not changing and showering, then that can have an impact because you're wearing sweaty pants for maybe two or three hours. And, if you're wearing leggings on top, you're not getting a lot of fresh air there, which can have an impact on vaginal health too.
So, I hope you found this one interesting. It was certainly a little bit of an eye-opener for me as well. You know, I just love doing things like this because I'm learning as I go along as well, so this was a really good one for me too.
If any of you have noticed any issues that have been a problem for you and what you've done to help yourself, then please do share that with us because we always love to know a good story.
And until then, I will see you next week for another edition of A.Vogel Talks Menopause.
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