[Mes T]

Yeast can lead to BV?

Ugh this is terrible...

Haven't tried the vinegar yet, btw, as I decided to try this vaginal gel thing that my doc prescribed a while ago. NOT HELPING.

[BvMessenger]

hi. so update on what i have done about my bv. i have had bv since i was 17 or 18 and i am 32 now. i didn't know what it was for years, i would over wash to try and get rid of the smell making it worse. it has knocked my confidence to such a degree. now i live in holland and have been to the doctors, again, but they have given me normaflor, restoring the natural flora inside. i read on wikipedia this- "A change in normal bacterial flora including the reduction of lactobacillus, which may be due to the use of antibiotics or pH imbalance, allows more resistant bacteria to gain a foothold and multiply." suggesting using anibiotics may have a cause, also- "A 2005 study by researchers at Ghent University in Belgium showed that subclinical iron deficiency (anemia) was a strong predictor of bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women" iron deficiency is something i have noticed quite a bit researching bv. i have iron deficciency as i am a non meat eater. when i use the normalflor (dry pill for in the vagina) it clears the bv symptoms away but it does come back when i stop. next im going to try (wikipedia again-" In 2009 one Cochrane review did not find probiotics useful in the treatment of BV[16] while another concluded they were effective when combined with antibiotics.[17]" i have antibiotics leftover so the two together will be a test. using anti biotics is really bad for you, when i looked up the metrowhateveritscalled there have been tests on mice with it leading to cancer cells. this has not been proved with humans i don't think but when i asked my doctor about it he nodded like he knows. i just think the natural way is better, of course but when you are at this point and its a relief but sad to see so many of us really Suffer from it we have to do whatever we can. it's important to keep the rest of us posted so if you come here for help and find an answer, come back and let us know for gods sake! thanks. love

[shellybell]

Trying to beat it!

Hi everyone!
This is my first post here, but I have been reading this blog for soooooo long =)

Quick history - I am 40 years old, married 13 years and have never had a problem with BV...until... June '09 when I had a Mirena IUD put in. I started having a foul smelling discharge with my period in July. Now with an IUD, you are apt to get your period for weeks after it's put in while your body adjusts itself to the IUD. Knowing what I know now, all that bleeding upset my natural flora. I went a few months not realizing I had a problem until I realized after I had been in the bathroom, my 4 year old would complain that Mommy's peepee stinks! LOL Make a long story short, a visit to the Doc, who I admire and trust, diagnosed me with BV in November.

I have gone back and forth with Metrogel, Tindamax, Clindamycin, etc. I have done so much research my mind hurts!!! The most recent was the Clindamycin for 7 days, waited two weeks (no symptoms returned, which was a first!) and then metrogel once a week for 10-12 weeks. I am only on the third dose of the metrogel right now. I made a mistake though. I had been taking 2 Fem-Doph a day, and went down to one when I felt my symptoms were gone, inorder to save some money. I also was not taking my multi vitamin religiously. Now last Saturday, 2 days after sexual contact, I noticed a fishy smell. Well, right back on the 2 Fem-Doph and the vits. Sems to be gone now - it's Wednesday.

So much info, so little time, so here's my current plan of attack:

Fem-Dophilus capsules orally - 2 a day
Garlic tabs and multi-vitamin for Women - 1 / day
**** Make sure you are gettin iron and folic acid in your vitamin
Bio-fem gel after sex ( you need to order this via mail - i got mine from England)
*** another gel I saw mentioned was BALANCE ACTIV - it's a lactid acid gel as oppsed to Acetic acid which is in the Bio-Fem. This one is also only avail out of the USA via mail order.

A couple notes:
1) Gardnerella usually reacts to the metrogel, but another bacteria - Atopobium Vaginae does not - only reacts to the Clindamycin. So if u have the A. Vag metrogel will not work. U must have specific labwork done (a DNA lab test) to find out what is affecting you - it could be BOTH!

2) Metronidazole(Metrogel) only attacks the BAD bacteria, while Clindamycin attacks ALL. So it is very important you take some form of Lactobacillus REUTERI. This is the Fem-Dophilus - from Jarrow.

3) also I found a study online in which participants were given the Metronidazole tablets orally AND used a lactic acid gel intravaginally every night for 7 days. Look up Lactacyd or Balance Activ for the lactic acid gel. The good Lactobaccilus bacteria in your uro-genital tract actually make lactic acid naturally. this gel provides the correct environment for them to repopulate the vagina. At the end of the study, these women had better results than either the meds alone or the gel alone.

I hope this helps someone on here =) I'll post back to let you know how I did!!

[shellybell]

One more thing!

Forgot to mention...

The iron is important, as stated in one of the above posts, because anemia is thought to be a factor in recurrent BV.

I was slightly anemic before my IUD was put in because I got long, VERY heavy periods. Hence the reason for my IUD - to control the periods. Now that I know this, I am almost positive my flora was already off down there when this whole thing started. The trigger for the noticable symptoms was the 3 weeks of bleeding I had after my IUD.

So I'm hoping the extra iron in my diet will help.

[Dezerya18]

go figure! the Mirena, i had that too and it jacked me up really bad. I think the metrogel is causing recurrences because the clumping stays in you for too long and causes yeast. hence the nasty cycle.....can you overdose your body on probiotics??? because im ready for them to be the only thing i consume on a daily basis!

[shellybell]

go figure! the Mirena, i had that too and it jacked me up really bad. I think the metrogel is causing recurrences because the clumping stays in you for too long and causes yeast. hence the nasty cycle.....can you overdose your body on probiotics??? because im ready for them to be the only thing i consume on a daily basis!

I have read a few things online about IUD's being a common factor in BV. I'm thinking it is not the IUD itself, but the upset in your natural flora that the sudden change in your menstrual cycle causes.

Not sure about the metrogel causing yeast infections, but there are certainly lots of posts regarding the yeast/BV cycle. I have been lucky to not have suffered the yeast infections too.

As for the probiotics, I believe you can overdue it, but it would just cause intestinal upset. There is such a thing as getting too much of a good thing LOL.

[Sarah001]

Any antibiotics whether they are taken orally or inserted vaginally can cause yeast infections because they destroy all bacteria, as soon as they kill the bacteria (including the good) this cycle can start so I don't think it's specifically because the metrogel stays inside for a while. We girls basically need to replace good bacteria as soon as we finish anitbiotics so if it's a one off dose start right away with acidophilus to avoid the yeast infection. As the last comment said too much lactobacillus will just cause a stomach upset in most people.

[Dezerya18]

ok ladies, here we go again.....lol

I went to an apothecary this morning. I explained to the guy the problem....BV...of course. he said if you take a probiotic that is not refrigerated it's useless no matter what the company is saying on the box. he put me on 50billion Ultimate Flora pills twice a day! also he gave me a vile of Spilanthes Usnea. it has a dropper and i'm to take half a dropper in water two to three times daily basically until the bottle is gone. it's kinda gross i mixed it with cranberry concentrate and water. However, if you like the taste of Oregano it's not half bad. I wonder if i could mix it with a tablespoon of pasta sauce and swallow followed by full glass of water?? hmm.

ALSO, the liquid can be used as a topical and placed in a vaginal wash!! for those of us who are ok with that type of thing. I

I went here cause once again, i've been given Flagyl!!!! For the love of whomever is mightier than I we all know how this is going to go. This was all sparked because my 2yr BF said that he wanted to have a "break" for me to figure this out....yup.....last time we had sex his penis broke out in little bumps....weird!! SO, i've go to solve this problem!! WE have to solve this together.

Also, he basically recommended that i go on the CANDIDA diet until i get this thing under control. Fancy that! He might be onto something here. I've read all the posts and have never heard of this herbal remedy! So here goes...dose one around 10am....

[Dezerya18]

oh yea, for anyone new....my onset starts with my period......clock work on day four i have the BV smell. downhill from there.

[CoffeeKid]

Hey guys,

I've had BV for almost a year now. I caught it from another woman! Yes, it can be transfered between females.

I was put on antibiotics last summer.. it worked for a little while, but it gave me a yeast infection. My BV came back a few months later and I've had it ever since.

I don't want to take antibiotics for this. For the past 2 days I've been soaking a tampon in drugstore hydrogen peroxide, and leaving it in for 30 minutes or so. It seems to be helping. I'm also eating a lot of plain yogurt (I add honey to it)

I'm against douching/scared to do it.
The hydrogen peroxide does sting, but I still leave it in. Not to be graphic, but the discharge on the tampon is already significantly different. Yesterday it was yellow, and today it was completely white. It also literally smelled sweet, like honey.. it was really weird. Anyway, good luck to all of you!