How To Keep Your Vagina Healthy In Your 30s And 40s?
What can be more successful at boosting sex drive and quality of life than testosterone alone? Testosterone and oestrogen.
That’s why from the late 30s onwards, women with low sex drive or vaginal or bladder symptoms may also benefit from taking a weak oestrogen, which also keeps them ahead of the game when it comes to vaginal health.
Types of oestrogen
The human body makes three types of oestrogen:
Oestradiol (E2)
Estriol (E3)
Oestrone (E1)
Oestradiol
Oestradiol is the predominant oestrogen during reproductive years, both in terms of absolute serum levels as well as in terms of oestrogenic activity. During menopause, oestrone is the predominant circulating oestrogen. During pregnancy, estriol is the predominant circulating oestrogen.
Though estriol is the most plentiful of the three oestrogens, it is also the weakest. But its weakness is its strength.
Estriol
Because it is weak, estriol has virtually been ignored by the mainstream medical community.
But sometimes more is less — studies show that topical estriol causes no increased risk of hormone-dependent cancers of the breast or womb but estriol does treat vaginal dryness and still has benefits for bone density, heart health and urinary tract health. In fact, estriol may be a breast-protective oestrogen.
In a prospective study funded by the US Army and performed at the Public Health Institute, Berkeley, California, researchers compared estriol levels during pregnancy with breast cancer incidence 40 years later. Results revealed that of the 15,528 women who entered the study, women with the highest level of estriol during pregnancy had a 58% lower risk for breast cancer compared with women who had the lowest serum estriol levels.
Low oestrogen symptoms
You may never have heard the vagina be likened to a canary in a coal mine before, but in a sense, it is, because it’s the first place where declining oestrogen levels may show up. Low vaginal oestrogen levels can start years and years before systemic oestrogen levels drop.
The way that low vaginal oestrogen levels show up is through many vaginal and bladder problems. Symptoms of low oestrogen levels are:
Vaginal dryness
Burning
Itching
Vaginal discomfort
Pain and burning when urinating
Dyspareunia (pain during sex)
Leaking urine when coughing or sneezing
Urinary frequency or more frequent urinary tract infections
How to keep your vagina healthy
Genitourinary symptoms are more than just a bit irritating — they can be a real nightmare. And many women suffer in silence because they don’t know that they could feel better. So what can you do to address symptoms of low vaginal oestrogen?
Vaginal moisturiser
There are lots of products available but make sure to only choose organic, natural products free of chemicals and toxins.
Take probiotics
Though limited, there is some research that adding probiotics to your diet can be beneficial for vaginal atrophy and dryness. This benefit may occur by creating a healthier vaginal pH, which, in turn, may improve vaginal health, including atrophy and dryness.
There are loads of probiotic supplements out there and some are made specifically to target the female reproductive system. However, you can also get probiotics through your diet by eating whole fermented foods such as tempeh, natto, miso, and sauerkraut.
Vaginal lubricants
Water-based lubes: are the safest for people with sensitive skin or vaginal irritation and can be used with condoms and sex toys. However, they do get sticky and require frequent re-application.
Silicone-based lube: is slippery, long-lasting, requires less lube to be applied and needs reapplication less often. They’re harder to wash off and shouldn’t be used with silicone-based sex toys, as they can break down the rubber over time.
Oil-based lube: also provides a slippery feel that lasts longer than water-based lube. They should not be used with latex condoms, as they can dissolve the latex of the condom and may cause latex condoms to break — same for latex diaphragms and latex sex toys. And they can be more difficult to clean off of sheets and your body.
Avoid vaginal dryness
This includes avoiding things like douching and using fragrance-containing products in your vagina, like bubble baths and scented soaps and lotions. Instead:
Stay hydrated
Exercise regularly
Don’t smoke
Get assessed to see if you can benefit from our treatment
Our libido plus cream contains estriol. It doesn't impact the systemic oestrogen levels in your bloodstream as much or in the same way as systemic hormone therapy but it does restore declining oestrogen levels in the vagina — preventing vaginal and bladder symptoms that can be all too common and all too annoying. Contact us to find out more about our hormone treatment.
Sources:
https://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/vaginal-estrogen-not-linked-to-high-risk
