EVENT, Lifestyle

Understanding Women’s Health

Now that I’ve become a mother, especially with Sophie, I could foresee having a lot of intimate talks with her. For some reason, I can’t recall my intimate conversations with my mother. You know, those girly talks. And I personally think mothers of older generations don’t really talk to their daughters about these. So I asked myself, how should I teach and guide Sophie about these then?

I’ve never exactly talked about intimate care with my mother too. But, I guess I’m lucky to have elder sisters so we could share all these girly issues while growing up. Ahhh I remember now, I have learned about menstruation during my primary school years! I was taught what period is about, sanitary pads, how to put it on, etc… There was once when my teacher took out an undie and demonstrated each step. Oh boy, the classroom was filled with smiles and giggles. But then, I was never educated on the importance of feminine hygiene.

As a mother to Sophie, I want to play both mother and sister roles. I want to be able to guide her and be her friend to talk about these. I want to be as open-minded as possible so we could build our trust from there. But before I do, I’m not very sure if I am ready with these knowledge myself, or whether they are accurate.

I believe intimate care is widely overlooked and issues related to it are often left either unaddressed or ignored. Did you know that over 40% of women claimed to use soap or body wash for their intimate care? I presume most women will know that an imbalance in pH and healthy intimate flora (in other words, good bacteria) can result in a variety of symptoms. But do we know exactly why and how? What level of pH should our intimate area have? Issues with itchiness, how do we deal with it?

While the intimate area is different from the rest of our body, pH 5.5 is a normal level for our skin, but the ideal pH level for our intimate area should be about 3.5 – 4.5. Therefore using normal soap or body wash of improper pH levels could potentially upset our intimate health. That being said, our intimate area changes in pH levels at various stages of our lives, such as in puberty, menopause, during pregnancy, breast-feeding, on antibiotics or during monthly periods! We all know it needs special care. Now that we know the pH levels are different at every phase, so what should we first and understand and we look for in a good feminine wash product then?

Hence, I am so pleased to have joined the recent BETADINE® Feminine Care workshop and launch. Together with over 25 women, an talk on intimate are was lead by Datuk Dr Nor Ashikin Mokhtar, Senior Consultant Obstetrician and GynaecologistProcessed with VSCO with hb1 presetProcessed with VSCO with hb1 presetProcessed with VSCO with hb1 presetAnd this is what I’ve learned:

1. Get to know about pH levels

pH measures acidity and basicity between a scale of 1 to 14. In a healthy woman, the pH in the intimate area is typically 3.5 – 4.5, making it slightly acidic to prevent build-up of unfavorable microorganisms. Besides, pH changes in the intimate area may be caused by our period discharge, body wash and douching too.

Screen Shot 2016-10-27 at 01.35.02.pngIn order to keep it healthy, these are some of the tips to maintain and restore the pH level of the intimate area:

  • Often change sanitary napkins and tampons
  • Avoid using harsh soaps or scented shower gels
  • Restrict douching
  • Use feminine wash that supports pH balance, reduce unfriendly organisms and provide a boost of prebiotics

2. The role of Probiotics and Prebiotics for a healthy intimate area

Probiotics – essential to protect our intimate area’s microenvironment. It helps maintain optimal pH balance, support and restore immune functions and prevent unfriendly organisms.

Prebiotics – ingredients that promote growth of probiotics. So probiotics need prebiotics to grow quickly and reduce growth of unfriendly organisms which could cause infections, pH level above 4.5 (not ideal) and etc.

To ensure the health of our intimate area, use a feminine wash that contains prebiotics to:

  • Populate beneficial organisms to prevent unfriendly organisms from multiplying
  • Stimulate your immune system and strengthen probiotics for better intimate area health
  • Protect you against feminine discomfort

3. Use feminine wash that is designed for women’s daily feminine hygiene needs

Again, do not use body soap as it destroys the balance of pH level in our intimate area! Look for a product that is gentle and mild enough for daily use – that supports pH balance. Just like the BETADINE® Daily Feminine Wash Foam, it contains unique Tri-Care formula with prebiotics that protects against unwanted symptoms associated with pH imbalance.

Try to avoid scented ones, for normal skin routine and intimate care. As much as I would like to smell heavenly for longest hours possible, some of the products may not be suitable even for our normal skin, what more on our sensitive intimate area? I advise you to avoid considering convenience of using a single product for all parts of the body… Huge BIG NO for us!

Even better the BETADINE® Daily Feminine Wash Foam comes in a pump-action foam format that allows you to skip the extra step of having to lather the product before applying.

Processed with VSCO with hb1 presetHow convenient!

Foam is perceived to be luxurious and soft on skin, diluted hence mild. Most importantly it makes it so gentle to apply! Plus not greasy at all! It makes you feel… clean. Haha.

Processed with VSCO with hb1 presetBETADINE® Daily Feminine Wash Foam addresses a wide variety of intimate care needs. An all-in-one friendly intimate care product to suit our daily health and cleansing routine by providing safe and effective odour neutralization, healing and protection against germs, and maintaining skin’s natural balance.

4. Most importantly, a product that pampers and gives a boost of confidence throughout the day.

I recommend doing some research first and find assurance in the product according to your needs. Remember, it has to support natural balance and gentle enough for everyday use! Just like the BETADINE® Daily Feminine Wash Foam.

Final notes to take:

  • During monthly periods, do change sanitary pads often and avoid leaving tampons in for too long as the intimate area becomes more alkaline during this period, throwing the pH level off balance and making us more susceptible to infections.
  • Avoid wearing constricting jeans or tights and opt for slightly looser pants or fully cotton underwear will do a lot of good for your intimate area too!

If you have cleansers for all areas of the body but your intimate area, you should start acting now that you are aware of the basic knowledge I’ve shared! Practicing good personal hygiene is as important as washing your hands before eating. So girls, strive to be a woman of strength, courage and dignity. It makes you beautiful and learn to appreciate yourself more!

Go, and be beautiful! 🙂

Curious about BETADINE® Daily Feminine Wash, go find out at:

WEBPAGE my.betadine.com/my/home
MICROSITE myfemcare.com.my
FACEBOOK www.facebook.com/BetadineMalaysia
HASHTAG #HonestyEmpowersUs #BETADINEMY #BETADINEFeminineCare
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