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Keeping your vagina clean: what works (and doesn’t)

Drink natural yoghurt at least once a week to help clean your vajayjay naturally. No, actually, just put the yoghurt in there directly for best results. Really?!

We’ve probably heard these remedies for cleaning our vaginas and ensuring the highest standards of hygiene; but what works and what doesn’t?

The Kenyan market is flooded with products that claim to contain mild ingredients that help clean the vagina and while many doctors recommend keeping it natural and avoiding douching, different Kenyan women say different methods and products work for them.

We talked to some women to get a picture.

Good health = happy vagina
I used to douche, but I started getting infections every so often and when I visited a gynaecologist, I was told to keep it natural, take care of my diet, and my vagina will take care of itself. And that works. I used to get a funny smell down there whenever I ate badly, not to mention the stink bomb farts, and when I started eating clean – little junk food and a balanced diet with my fruits and vegetables – my vagina started treating me well. Also, pineapples are good for your lady part – it’s not a myth. It will smell sweet and eatable which will make your man keep licking…

Lisa, 28
Awful spots from ‘mild cleaner’
I don’t use any soap or non-soap products to clean down there. I’m pretty sensitive and I’ve found truth in the advice that it cleans itself and there is, therefore, no need to do anything extra. All I do is clean my outer lips and the rest takes care of itself.

I once used a ‘mild cleaner’ and I got dry, itchy, and weird spots. It was worse when my man insisted on going down on me. He freaked out when he saw the spots and asked me if I had an STI.

Needless to say, there was no action that night and I ditched the vagina cleaner and decided to keep it natural.

Tina, 26
Keep it clean at all times
One thing you’ve got to do when you are sexually active is to keep clean. Take a shower after having sex, no matter how tired you are. Yes. There was once I didn’t and I got a urinary tract infection! I don’t douche, I just clean my outer lips, but it makes all the difference. Even if you are using a condom, that rubber can cause an infection, so you better wash up.

Nancy, 35
Deep clean
Call me old school, but I don’t think anybody part is clean unless soap is used. I mean, before you eat your food, you are supposed to clean your hands thoroughly using soap. If you don’t wash your face with some kind of soap or non-soap (whatever that is) product, it will start getting pimples and look bad. That’s the same policy I have with my vagina. I got to use soap and douche. The product I use is mild and I haven’t had any reaction.

Wendy, 30

So the majority of the ladies we talked to seems to prefer keeping it ‘au naturel’. What works for you? Leave us a comment below or share your experiences with us on Facebook: Love Matters Africa and Love Matters Naija.