Vaginal Discharge: Why Does It Happens And What Is Normal, When To Worry
Vaginal discharge is a clear or whitish liquid that comes out of the vagina in the form of an extra discharge. As the cervix and vagina of a woman also lined up with certain kinds of cells and glands like other parts of the body, these glands tend to produce a small amount of liquid.This liquid discharge is a combination of cells that shed from your vagina continuously and helps in keeping your internal vaginal canal clean. When normal, this vaginal discharge is the one that helps to keep the vaginal tissues healthy, protect it from any kind of infection and irritation along with providing a natural lubrication. As this discharge is completely normal in most of the cases, the amount of discharge and its colour might vary depending upon the stage of a woman’s menstrual cycle. Where vaginal discharge is the body’s way to keep your vagina healthy, one must know that a normal discharge is healthy whereas an abnormal discharge can be a sign of some underlying issue and might require medical assistance. Let us learn more about why this discharge takes place, what is a normal and abnormal discharge, factors that affect a woman’s vaginal discharge and more with Dr. Amina Khalid, Obstetrician Gynecologist, MBBS, MD.
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What is Vaginal Discharge?
Similar to all the other parts of our body, our vagina and cervix are also lined up with several cells and glands. These glands present in the vaginal lining tend to produce a clear-whitish sticky discharge in amounts of small fluids. This vaginal discharge is a fluid that functions by cleaning the internal vaginal canal and helps to remove microorganisms, dead skin cells and other such particles as it flows out of the vagina. You would be surprised to know that the vaginal discharge you used to consider to be an issue can actually be helpful and a way to keep your vagina healthy. This vaginal discharge is the one that helps to keep the vaginal tissues healthy, protect it from any kind of infection and irritation along with providing a natural lubrication.
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The cells present in the vaginal and cervix lining consist of glycogen in them. When these cells get shredded after a period of time, the glycogen present in them sheds off as well. After shedding, this glycogen gets converted into lactic acid with the help of Lactobacillus which is a good bacteria. The lactic acid formed helps to provide vagina the acidic environment that it requires to ward off any kind of harmful microorganisms from invading and causing infection.
What is a Normal Discharge?
Vaginal discharge is a sticky fluid that ranges from being clear to whitish in colour. This vaginal fluid comes in with a mucus-like consistency and has a subtle smell that is not foul smelling or unpleasant. One important thing that one must know about a normal vaginal discharge is that it does not itch. Although the amount of discharge that one might experience differs from one person to the other, a woman experiences about 4 to 5 ml of vaginal discharge daily on an average.
When normal this discharge can help to ward off any harmful microorganisms in the vaginal canal and protect you against several infections that might result in irritation. This discharge might increase or decrease depending upon several factors such as the stage of a woman’s menstrual cycle. This vaginal discharge tends to increase when a woman is-
Vaginal discharge that is anything other than white in colour, watery in consistency or is causing irritation and itching that comes in with a foul smell is considered to be an abnormal vaginal discharge. As there is no set matrix for defining normal and abnormal discharge and hence one needs to learn to recognize their normal. Where vaginal itching is not the only sign of an abnormal discharge or vaginal infection, one also needs to look out for altered colour or increased discharge as a sign. If you suspect your vaginal discharge to be different or abnormal for that matter, do consult a doctor as this can be an indication of some underlying health issue.
Signs of an Unhealthy Vaginal Discharge
As by now we have learnt that what causes a normal vaginal discharge and how is it important to keep our vaginal healthy and infections at bay, let us take a quick look at some of the warning signs of an unhealthy vaginal discharge-
Ways to Maintain Vaginal Health
Also Read: Check Out These Home Remedies For Vaginal Hygiene
Getting to know about a normal discharge and the signs and symptoms of an unhealthy vaginal discharge is not just enough as it can be an indication of some underlying health issue. In many cases an unhealthy vaginal discharge can be a result of improper vaginal hygiene and hence one needs to take utmost care of cleanliness down there. With the vagina being a self cleaning organ, it is the outer structure of the vulva that requires proper hygiene practices to keep any kind of infections at bay. In order to ensure the vaginal health and hygiene, follow the given steps-
Where vaginal discharge is completely normal and a self cleansing system of the vagina which helps to keep unwanted microorganisms at bay and helps to prevent any kind of infection and irritation. In some cases this vaginal discharge can be far from normal and turn out to be a sign of some underlying health issue. It becomes really important to make vaginal hygiene your priority in order to keep infections and diseases at bay.
(This article is based upon a post by Dr. Amina Khalid, Obstetrician Gynecologist, MBBS, MD)
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