While you don’t need feminine hygiene products, if you really want to cleanse, moisturize, or freshen up your nether bits between showers, there are products you can purchase.Īnything you use on the vulva can easily enter the super-sensitive vaginal canal. Okay, so what are feminine hygiene products for? However, she says that warm water is all you need to adequately clean your vulva. Sherry Ross, OB-GYN and author of “ She-ology” and “ She-ology, the She-quel.” “Cleaning the vulva should be a part of your daily hygiene routine,” says Dr. The vulva, on the other hand, does need to be washed. Kimberly Langdon, OB-GYN, medical advisor at Medzino, a digital health company based in California. “ Douching actually increases the risk of pushing STIs upward toward the fallopian tubes and can cause pelvic inflammatory disease,” says Dr. Washing inside or douching the vaginal canal can disrupt this natural balance, resulting in irritation, bacterial vaginosis, or other vaginal infections. At this pH, the vagina can prevent “bad” bacteria from thriving, says Chang. That would be a pH value of 3.5 to 4.5, which is slightly acidic.
“A healthy vagina has an ecology of bacteria that helps it maintain the right pH,” explains Chang. Renjie Chang, OB-GYN, co-founder of sexual health startup NeuEve. The vagina doesn’t need to be washed or wiped or treated because the vagina is a self-maintaining organ, explains Dr. Here’s the thing: None of these products are necessary. But for this article, we’re talking specifically about products designed for vulva (the external part of your genitalia) and vaginal (the internal canal) use. No, you don’t need genital hygiene productsĪgain, the category “feminine hygiene” is quite broad. Companies are banking on the idea that most people with vaginas have internalized this message, and experience deep shame about their scent.
Specifically, a marketing tactic used to appeal to buyers of sanitary pads, tampons, panty liners and shields, internal cleansers, sprays, disposable razors, and more.īut companies aren’t targeting any buyer here - they’re targeting cisgender women buyers.Ĭisgender women and other individuals with a vagina have long been taught that their vaginas are smelly, dirty caverns. Pursue the toiletry section of any pharmacy, grocery store, or gas station and you’ll see the phrase “feminine hygiene” plastered over lotions and potions, wipes, oils, and more.īut the term is nothing more than a marketing ploy.
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