What keeps Thrush away?
You can't always do much to stop an attack of thrush, as the Candida yeast is a determined little organism. However, there are some things that will help you keep the yeast at bay if you're prone to thrush, and after all, prevention is better than cure!
Lifestyle tips
The number one tip is to try and maintain a healthy lifestyle as this can reduce your susceptibility to thrush. Exercising regularly, eating healthily, and reducing your stress levels can all help to prevent it. Your immune system is one of the things that helps to maintain the balance 'down below' so keeping that as healthy as possible will go a long way to helping you ward off attacks.
The general advice is to keep your stress levels in check, get regular exercise and limit the amounts of processed junk food that you eat, as stress, a bad diet and lack of exercise can all compromise your immune system.
Your sex life
If you're sexually active and in a relationship, you can pass the infection backwards and forwards while having sex, although to reiterate, it's not a sexually transmitted infection in itself. Men can have it without noticing so if you keep getting attacks and you don't know why – it could be that every time you treat yours, he gives it straight back to you.
If this is the case with you, have a word with your partner and ask him to look out for any of the following symptoms of thrush:
- red skin around the head of the penis
- swelling of the head of the penis
- irritation and soreness of the head of the penis
- thick, lumpy discharge under the foreskin
- itchiness around the head of the penis
- an unpleasant odour
- difficult retracting (pulling back) the foreskin of the penis (phimosis)
- pain when passing urine
- pain during sex
If you develop thrush when you have sex with a new partner for the first time, it's wise to pay the doctor a visit just in case, and make sure that you use condoms until you're both clear of any infection.
Having a little bit too much fun in bed with sex toys, and having vigorous sex can also traumatise the sensitive vaginal tissue and bring on an attack.
What not to wear
It's a pain when you want to wear leggings or tight jeans but skin tight clothes and synthetic fabrics are an open invitation for thrush as they create perfect living and multiplying conditions.
If you're unlucky enough to be susceptible to thrush, you might have to give the skinny jeans a miss and opt for loose clothes and simple cotton undies. They might not be glamorous but let's face it, neither is thrush...
Staying clean and fresh
There can be such a thing as 'too clean' if you're prone to thrush. Using perfumed products is a treat that makes you smell gorgeous and feel pampered but it's also a sad fact of life that perfumed soaps, bubble baths and vaginal deodorants can contain chemicals that change the vagina's natural acidity levels.
This gives Candida the go ahead to multiply, and before you know it you've got an attack of thrush to contend with. You should definitely give the perfumed treats a miss if you think you might already have thrush, and if you're a regular sufferer, annoying as it is, you're better off avoiding those types of products completely.
Be careful when you step out of the shower, too, because if you're prone to thrush, even rubbing your vaginal area a bit too hard with a towel can cause irritation to the sensitive vaginal tissues and increase your chances of an attack.
A word to the wise while we're talking cleanliness too...because Candida also lives in the gut, you should always wipe from front to back after you go to the loo, as this avoids introducing it into the vagina.
Other triggers for Thrush
If you've been on a course of antibiotics, you might find that you end up with a dose of thrush afterwards because they kill off all bacteria – including the good bugs that normally stay in your vagina and keep it healthy. This gives the Candida yeast a chance to proliferate. It's not inevitable but it is something to watch out for. If you tend to get thrush after antibiotics, tell your doctor when you get a prescription.
It's all part of being a woman, and the normal hormonal changes that go with having periods and being pregnant can upset the natural balance of the vagina too.
Contraception can seem to worsen thrush or make women more susceptible, some women say they are sensitive to the hormones in the contraceptive pill. It's never actually been proven that the pill can cause women to be more prone to thrush but if regular attacks are getting you down it could be another thing you could discuss with your doctor.