While vaginal odor is quite common and normal, excessive odor can imply an imbalance in the vaginal bacterial flora. Consume vitamin C-rich citrus fruits, Indian gooseberry, cranberry juice, turmeric milk, and probiotics like yogurt to maintain vaginal acidity and bring back the bacterial balance.
If you are experiencing a foul-smelling discharge from your vagina, do not panic, It is pretty common among women. However, it might sometimes be embarrassing. Much like your feet or breath, your vagina too has a smell mainly because of an overgrowth of bacteria or yeast.
There are vaginal creams and feminine washes that claim to remedy this situation and leave your vagina smelling like flowers and dewdrops and all things naturally fragrant. But these often disturb the acidic and bacterial balance in your vagina, making it dryer and more prone to infections. More dangerously, these may make conception difficult too. Your best bet is to use home remedies to get rid of vaginal odor.
Ideally, you don’t need a vaginal wash because a healthy woman’s vagina is perfectly capable of keeping itself clean and maintaining an acidic pH of 3.5 to 4.5. The healthy bacteria or vaginal flora thrives in acidic environment. But menstruation, sanitary products, antibiotics, and too much sugar in the diet can all create an imbalance in the vaginal acidity or the bacterial balance, leading to recurring infections.
- 1. Drink More Water: If you stay hydrated, it will help flush out bacteria from all parts of your body, including the vagina. The ideal amount for women is about 1.8 liters (about 0.5 gallon) of water per day. Women who are overweight or those who live in tropical climates should drink even more!
- 2. Eat and Apply Yogurt: Probiotics such as yogurt are effective agents for the treatment and/or prevention of bacterial vaginosis – an infection of the vagina. Consuming yogurt regularly helps reduce cases of vaginal odor. However, you may also apply it topically to get rid of the odor really fast.
- 3. Eat Citrus Fruits: Citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C and other antioxidants that inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria inside your vagina. Thus, consuming citrus fruits really helps reduce the vaginal odor. However, we wouldn’t advise applying citrus fruit pulp down there. The fruit sugars may contribute to fungal growth.
- 4. Wash with Baking Soda: Sodium bicarbonate, more commonly known as baking soda, is purported to remedy the pH imbalance that encourages bacterial growth inside your vagina.
There are a couple of ways you can use baking soda to eliminate bacterial vaginosis:
Mix 1 teaspoon baking soda into an 8 oz. glass of water and drink it daily.
You can also mix baking soda in water and use it as a vaginal wash.
