Did you know that your body isn’t just you? Along with you, trillions of tiny living organisms reside on or inside you everyday. They aren’t invaders, they’re more like preventers or protectors for our body, from any harmful organism to come and reside on or in it. They are called ‘Normal Flora’, and they are present in any part of the body that is exposed to the environment, be it skin, respiratory tract, digestive tract, ears, eyes or even our vaginal area. Hence understanding this concept changes how you think about cleanliness and health, and know what’s actually normal for your body. This colonization could be by a fungi, bacteria or any other organism, which is specific for that region, and they help outcompete harmful pathogens for space and resources, leading to protection of our body. Our immune system is trained by them to recognise what is safe and what isn’t.
The vagina isn’t any different in this regard. There are a plethora of microbes thriving in that area to keep our vaginal health in optimal shape. This living ecosystem is called the ‘vaginal microbiome’ and is the reason why you’ve heard that vaginal products should be ‘pH-balanced’. Over the course of a woman’s lifetime, this ecosystem varies and fluctuates through different age groups and even during our menstrual cycle. Hence, it can be defined as a balanced garden, where when everything is balanced, it thrives, but any disruption in this balance can provide a premise for problems to start growing.
The most important bacterial species that resides in our vagina is the Lactobacillus species and their colonization is widely associated with good vaginal health. These species produce immunity-modulating and antimicrobial compounds that halt inflammation and help maintain a natural barrier to prevent colonization of any other pathogenic microorganism. The 2 key functions that this species performs is stabilization of vaginal pH and prevention of harmful growth. Both of these functions are interdependent, since maintenance of the acidic pH in
vagina by these species is what ensures that the bad bacteria isn’t moving in and taking over. How this works is that the Lactobacillus species secretes lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide, both of which help in maintaining the ideal acidic pH of the vagina. If the pH fluctuates outside the normal range, the protective barrier struggles, leaving the area prone to infection.
Maintenance of this pH is quite dependent on estrogen levels in our body. The estrogen directly controls production of a sugar from our vaginal cells that acts as food for the Lactobacillus bacteria to survive and thrive. This is why there is a difference in the vaginal pH of teens and adult women. Adult women are in their reproductive years, hence the estrogen levels are higher, producing enough food from the cells for the bacteria to maintain a strong population and barrier. But during the teen years, our body is still trying to stabilize the estrogen levels, causing frequent fluctuations and dips. So the barrier is less stable during those years and teens experience yeast infections and bacterial vaginosis due to that. A similar situation is also seen in women going through menopause, experiencing vaginal infections and dryness due to eventual decline in their estrogen levels.
When our protective bacteria decline, harmful bacteria and fungi like the Candida species can overgrow and cause infections like bacterial vaginosis, which increases risk of sexually transmitted infections and other serious health issues. Our vagina can even develop infections that increase risk of cervical problems and cancer, which is why these good bacteria are literally lifesavers. The vaginal microbiome is constantly changing during our cycle, when stressed or sick, and at different life stages. As a teen, the microbiome is still finding its groove, so protecting it now means fewer awkward infections and way better health down the road. Here's the thing though: stop douching, because it nukes all our good bacteria. Skip unnecessary products. And if someone is on antibiotics, don't be shocked if they get a yeast infection, since it happens because those meds kill the good bacteria too. Our vaginal microbiome is basically our body's silent superhero, working 24/7 to keep us safe. When we get what's actually happening down there, we can finally make choices that help instead of harm it. That's when our body can actually do what it's been designed to do.