"Washing makes you healthier"? Forget it! How many women don't understand these things? The more they wash, the more diseases they will suffer...

Expert of this article: Sun Yan, chief physician of Fujian Maternal and Child Health Hospital, master tutor of Fujian Medical University

Reviewer of this article: Wang Wenxiang, Professor and Doctoral Supervisor at Fujian Medical University

"Washing is healthier"? For many years, this sentence has been heard by everyone.

Many female friends don’t understand the problem themselves and only wash their hair once every few days, or use detergent to wash it every day.

So, do women's private parts need to be washed? When should they be washed? Do men need to wash them too?

Let’s explore the answer in this article…

Do women’s private parts need to be washed or not?

The female vulva has a special anatomical structure. The closure of the labia majora and minora can prevent external pathogens from invading the vagina. The vagina itself also has a self-cleaning function. There are different bacterial communities in it. Lactobacilli can maintain an acidic environment and inhibit pathogenic bacteria.

Under normal circumstances, women do not need to flush their vagina every day. Frequent flushing will cause changes in the pH value in the vagina, imbalance of flora, and lead to the occurrence of vaginitis.

However, since the vulva, vagina are adjacent to the urethra and anus, the area is moist and easily contaminated by menstrual blood, vaginal secretions, urine, and feces. In addition, wearing tight synthetic underwear and using sanitary napkins during menstruation can lead to poor local air permeability, which in turn causes the most common gynecological diseases - vulvitis and vaginitis.

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In addition, public places such as bathhouses, swimming pools, etc. are also one of the causes of pathogen infection.

In fact, not paying attention to hygiene is not the only cause of vulvitis and vaginitis. Women are also very likely to suffer from vulvitis and vaginitis when they are pregnant, have a weakened immune system, suffer from diabetes, or use a large amount of antibiotics.

Of course, keeping the female private parts clean is still an important means to prevent inflammation of the female reproductive system. It is particularly emphasized here that it is best to clean the vulva frequently, remember not the vagina.

How to wash? What to wash?

Some female friends blindly use gynecological cleansing liquid, soap liquid, etc. to clean the vulva and vagina, thinking that this will be cleaner, but this is not the case.

Gynecological cleansing liquid and soap liquid will not only irritate the vaginal mucosa, causing itching and stinging, but long-term use will also destroy the acidic environment of the vagina, allowing "pathogenic bacteria" to take advantage of the opportunity to enter, increasing the chance of infection, causing vaginal inflammation, and even leading to cervicitis, endometritis, salpingitis, etc.

Usually, you only need to wash the vulva with clean water and keep it dry. It is not necessary to wash it more often. There is no need to wash the vagina too frequently.

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Specific cleaning:

Number of cleanings: Normally once a day is sufficient. If you sweat a lot or during menstruation, you can increase the number of cleanings appropriately.

Cleaning method: It is best to take a shower and rinse with warm water. If there is no shower, you can use a basin instead, but it must be a dedicated basin.

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Cleaning order: Wash your hands first, then wash from front to back, first wash the labia majora and minora, then the vaginal opening, and finally wash the area around and anus.

Do I need to wash frequently if I have leucorrhea?

Leucorrhea refers to the viscous liquid in female vaginal secretions, and its formation is related to estrogen. Normal leucorrhea is white, thin, or egg white-like, viscous, small in amount, and has no fishy smell. It moisturizes the vagina and inhibits the growth of pathogens.

If a woman is infected with a gynecological disease, she is prone to abnormal leucorrhea. We can identify abnormal leucorrhea by its characteristics:

Transparent and sticky leucorrhea looks similar to normal leucorrhea, but the amount is significantly increased. Vaginal adenosis, ovarian dysfunction, etc. should be considered.

Yellow or grayish yellow foamy leucorrhea that is thin, purulent, and has a foul odor often indicates that women may have Trichomonas vaginitis.

Leucorrhea that is like tofu dregs or curds is usually caused by infection with Candida yeast, indicating that women have vulvovaginal candidiasis, accompanied by severe vulvar itching and burning pain.

Grayish white leucorrhea with a fishy odor generally indicates that women may have bacterial vaginosis, which is often accompanied by mild itching of the vulva.

Yellow or yellow-green purulent leucorrhea is sticky and has a foul odor. It is mostly caused by bacterial infection and is common in patients with gonorrheal Neisseria vaginitis, acute cervicitis, and endocervicitis.

Bloody leucorrhea, as the name suggests, is mixed with blood in the leucorrhea, and the amount of blood varies. It is common in cervical cancer, endometrial cancer, cervical polyps, etc. In addition, the placement of an intrauterine contraceptive device can also cause bloody leucorrhea.

Watery leucorrhea, which continues to flow out in a thin, watery or rice-like manner and has a fishy odor, is generally caused by advanced cervical cancer, vaginal cancer, or submucosal fibroids with infection.

Therefore, it is not necessary to clean every time leucorrhea appears. It is important to distinguish between normal and abnormal leucorrhea.

Once there is an odor to the vaginal discharge, a change in the nature of the vaginal discharge, or vulvar itching, what we should do is not to buy cleaning liquid to clean it ourselves, but to go to a regular hospital for examination, test the vaginal discharge, determine whether there is inflammation or bacterial infection, and then carry out targeted treatment.

Do men need to wash?

Compared with women, men often neglect the hygiene of their private parts. Inadequate cleanliness may increase the incidence of various male diseases, such as urethritis, balanitis, scrotal eczema, perianal inflammation, etc.

In addition, during sexual intercourse, bacteria and pathogens will be brought into the female vagina, causing women to suffer from a variety of gynecological diseases and affecting their reproductive health. Therefore, moderate cleaning of the male private parts is the key to ensuring male reproductive health and needs to be taken seriously.

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It is recommended that men wash once a day, and also wash in time after sexual intercourse, masturbation, and heavy sweating to keep the private parts dry.

The male reproductive organs are different from those of females, so the cleaning methods are also different. When men clean their reproductive organs, they must clean the entire genitals and turn over the foreskin to wash.

Men with phimosis or prepuce are more susceptible to infection by pathogens and should clean the glans and foreskin carefully every day.

The order for men to clean their private parts is relatively simple. First clean the reproductive organs, then clean the anus. The order for drying is the same. A special cleaning basin and special towel are required.

For daily cleaning, just use clean water, and use less or no soap. If itching, redness, peeling, etc. occur in the private parts, it is recommended to seek treatment under the guidance of a doctor.

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