Is It Normal to Have Vaginal Discharge?

Vaginal discharge is the one thing, other than the menstrual cycle, that women notice and use to judge wellness in their bodies. If your cycles are regular and on time, and your vaginal discharge is normal, you feel your body is healthy, right? But, if a woman starts skipping her cycles or having too many cycles or bleeding heavily, she knows something is not right with her body. Okay.

Still, so many of you come in (most of you for other female problems) and I find out that you are constantly dealing with abnormal vaginal discharge or odor. You and your partner feel it is just 'normal' for women to have a fishy or strong odor all the time. Isn't that what all those tuna fish and fisherman's wharf jokes are all about? Men know it, and they talk about it, and think that's just the way it is – so, just grin and bear it.

Women don't know what to do. It's embarrassing, right? Three showers a day, and you still worry if everyone else can smell you. You can't wash it away, and that SUCKS because you know he's going to smell you during sex. But feminine sprays, lotion or soap and water do not help.

It is normal to have vaginal discharge. Some women produce more vaginal discharge than other women, and this is due to hormonal fluctuations. Teenagers and pregnant women both have higher than normal hormone levels which causes an increase in vaginal discharge. Women who are dry and lack discharge may have low hormone levels, like in menopause or during breastfeeding. You may also notice changes in the amount of vaginal discharge, changes in its consistency, (thick, thin, watery, sticky), and sometimes find it necessary to wear a pad or panty liner. Birth control pills will change vaginal discharge because it balances the female hormones and is a good therapy for women who feel too 'wet' all the time.

But, no matter the amount or consistency of discharge, it should never have a foul or fishy odor. At times, discharge may have a slight odor, due to hormonal changes during the month or during the final day of your cycle – due to pH changes from the menstrual blood. Normal discharge should not be accompanied by pain, itching, burning or redness.

Vaginal discharge is very important to the female reproductive system. Fluid made by glands inside the vagina and cervix carries away dead cells and bacteria. This keeps the vagina clean and helps prevent infection. A change in your normal vaginal discharge may be a symptom of a vaginal infection.

Most of the time, vaginal discharge is perfectly normal. The amount can vary, as can the odor, and the color can range from clear to a milky whitish, depending on the time of your cycle.

Important things to watch for to determine if there is an infection include the length of time you have had the abnormal discharge, the color/odor of the discharge and the presence of any itching, pain, or burning in or around the vagina. Different infections present with different types of discharge and symptoms:

• Chlamydia and gonorrhea are obvious, as there is a copious amount of cloudy, yellowish discharge, sort of like having a period of discharge, with an awful odor that is so different from the normal everyday discharge that it can alarm most women. In addition, they can cause urinary incontinence, painful sex, severe pelvic pain, bleeding and irregular cycles if not treated quickly. Also, they can be the cause of PID (pelvic inflammatory disease) which can cause severe illness, fevers, blockage of fallopian tubes and eventually lead to infertility.
• Trichamonas is a parasitic infection typically contracted and caused by having unprotected sex, with grayish frothy discharge.
• Yeast Infections can have two kinds of discharge: either thick and clumpy like cottage cheese or thin, whitish discharge that causes intense itching and swelling.

Infections require medicated vaginal creams or antibiotic medications, but here are some tips for preventing vaginal infections that can lead to abnormal discharge:

• Keep the outer vagina area clean by washing regularly with a gentle, mild soap and warm water. DO NOT WASH INSIDE THE VAGINA WITH SOAP. Never use scented soaps, feminine products or douche. Also avoid feminine sprays and bubble baths.
• After using the restroom, always wipe from front to back to prevent bacteria from getting into the vagina and causing an infection. It is a good idea to have baby wipes or other 'wet' wipes near the toilet as they work much better than toilet paper for feminine cleansing.
• Try to wear 100% cotton underpants; switch off wearing floss panties and regular panties; and avoid overly tight clothing all the time.

We are lucky enough to have WaterWorks, which is FDA cleared for feminine cleansing and to reduce vaginal odor problems. Everyone loves this, as it functions just like a douche, but isn't. It is made of medical grade stainless steel and uses no chemicals (only plain tap water) and it can safely remove vaginal odor with the first use.

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Leukorrhea - What is it and Should I Be Concerned?

        Leukorrhea is a term that has been used for many years to describe vaginal discharge, whether normal or not.  It has classically been used to describe the increase in vaginal discharge that occurs during pregnancy and continues into the postpartum.  The term leukorrhea, when used now, is almost exclusive to the post-partum period, which is the 4-6 weeks right after having a baby.   

      It usually consists of a thick, whitish or yellowish discharge, or a thick, clear, blood-tinged discharge and is usually due to hormone imbalance & continued uterine involution (shrinkage). Most of the time it goes away completely after the post-partum period is over, and discharge returns to pre-pregnancy status.  For a select few, it may go away for a while, only to return from time to time.  It may even keep re-occurring for years.

     Now, most of us just say "vaginal discharge" to refer to any fluid coming from the vagina, whether pregnant or not.  Vaginal discharge plays an important role in maintaining a healthy vagina. The secretions are designed to flush out bacteria and other tiny organisms to prevent infection.  It is the natural defense mechanism the vagina uses to maintain its chemical and pH balance, as well as to preserve the flexibility of the vaginal tissue.  Vaginal discharge is normal for a woman and it would definitely not be normal to not have it.  Normal vaginal discharge is odorless and a clear or a pale milky color.

     Vaginal discharge does increase during pregnancy, as there is a baby growing in the uterus, which causes increased blood flow to the vagina and increased estrogen levels. Even female infants can have discharge for a short time after birth, due to their in-uterine exposure to estrogen from mom; many times it is period-like.  

     Discharge changes during the month.  It can be heavy at times and it can change to clear and watery - that's normal. Other reasons for change include infection, female malignancies, and hormonal changes. In pre-teens, an increase in discharge will happen about 2 years prior to puberty and the onset of the first period.    

     Abnormally heavy discharge (way too much flow that makes you feel wet all the time) that looks and smells normal, is caused by an increase in hormone levels, particularly estrogen, that causes excessive secretions from the cervical glands. These secretions help to clean your vaginal area, so even if they are uncomfortable, they are a sign that your body is doing what it needs to stay healthy. Some women have enough discharge that they need to wear panty liners all day long. This is the type of discharge we discussed earlier that can always come and go for no reason and would respond well to minimal treatment.

     Abnormal discharge will be thick or even cottage-cheese textured, yellow or green, or tinged with blood. It may have an unpleasant odor. You may feel itching or burning in your vaginal area. These are more likely signs of an infection or a sexually transmitted disease.  If you have a sense that your discharge is not normal, it is a good idea to check in with your doctor. Generally, your doctor can test it with a simple swab (Q-tip) test for culture.

       Chronic vaginal discharge always involves one or many parts of the reproductive organs. Whenever the body is loaded with toxins due to poor dietary habits and the eliminative organs such as  bowels, lungs, skin and kidneys are unable to eliminate the toxins, the body produces a profuse discharge or elimination through the vaginal walls and glands of the uterus.  In the case of advanced, chronic inflammatory conditions, it leads to discharge with pus, offensive odor and color varying from cream to yellow or light green.  

       Usually, what happens is you may begin feeling like you are getting a cold and find you also have an increase in vaginal discharge.  You may start to feel irritable and develop black patches under your eyes or some face discoloration, due to the skin weeping that occurs as the body rids itself of toxins.  You may feel weak and tired, a lot of pain in the lumbar region and the calves and a dragging sensation in the abdomen.  Arthritis syndromes can pop up, causing all-over body aches and pains and stiff joints, young & old alike. 

       Backaches will come on for no good reason making it difficult to get comfortable and you may have pain that shoots straight down your vagina or into your leg, especially the thigh and calf muscles.  It is common to have lower abdominal pain from the swelling and inflammation of the uterus and vagina that makes them ache and throb.  If it is an infection, then it has a very good chance of moving into the bladder due to close proximity of the vagina.  Then comes the burning during urination and frequent urge to go, but only a tiny amount of urine comes out.  MISERABLE FEELING!!  

      These are only examples of bodily malfunctions that can accompany female problems or how other organ systems can affect the female system as well.  It is so common to see women suffering with gastric reflux, heart burn, constipation, diarrhea and IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), when their struggling with pelvic pain, heavy periods and painful sex, it's like their whole body is sick because of the way their female system is all off.   So now you feel wiped out, and all you thought you were battling was a little discharge, yeast or bacterial infection.  It's amazing what our body does when it wants to flush out toxins, we usually don't think it will use our vagina and other female organs to do this along with skin and everything else.  Amazing.    

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Vaginal Discharge: What is Normal and What is Not?

Vaginal discharge in women is normal,and what is normal changes throughout a woman's menstrual cycle, pregnancy,and a woman's lifetime. Thankfully we will be covering this topic in detail for all of you over the next several weeks.

As a woman and a physician I think it is so important for each of you to get to know your own bodies and how it functions. As your body cycles through the month, the change in hormones that cause ovulation and allows for menstruation, also will change the consistency and amount of vaginal discharge. After our menstrual cycle ends, women will notice a thick, creamy whitish discharge for the next week. This is normal and should not have an odor or cause itching, burning or any type of vaginal pain or irritation.

With ovulation comes a clear, sticky discharge that is very distinct in that it can look and feel like a stringy mucous. For fertility purposes,this discharge can be graded in its stretchability. This has a name called 'spinnbarkeit'. The better it stretches, the more likely is ovulation and fertility! Once ovulation has ended, (about 72 hrs) then the vaginal discharge will become clear and watery due to the post-ovulation progesterone effect as the egg passes from the body. Some women can also have a transient change in odor.

In menopause women will have a reduction of female hormones and this causes a decrease in vaginal discharge. Pregnancy, because there is such an increase in estrogen (the primary female hormone), will significantly increase vaginal discharge.

If you can begin to trust and understand how your body functions normally, then it will be easier for you to know what it means when you see changes. When there is abnormal discharge, the change will be significant.

Sometimes there will be an abnormal amount of discharge and the color may change to yellow, green, brownish, gray or may have some blood in it, that is not associated with menses. Also abnormal discharge is usually accompanied by an unusual odor that
causes distress. This is because it is usually associated with infection.

So, I hope this helps you to begin to understand your body better as a woman. Normal discharge is usually clear or white and rarely has an odor. It is normal to have vaginal discharge.

All women have it, just be aware of any changes and don't be afraid to ask questions.

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