Yeast infections? ck out article.

[Guest guest]

HI all

Thought this was a good article from Dr. R. Jelovseks Health newsletter on why a person may get yeast infections & have itch. Though he talks about it with diabetics (more prone to it) he makes some good sense to me just in general as well. (He also should have suggested LS or LP as a possibility.)

Dee~

Reader submitted Q & A - Skin itching and diabetes

"I have had diabetes since I was 7. Now I am 34. I was overweight until about a year ago when I deliberately started exercising. I really worked out in the gym. After about three months of serious work out I lost so much weight and was very skinny I also developed itching in my private parts. I get itchy when I touch my private parts but when I ignore them for a while, I am okay. My gyn simply says this is common with diabetic women. But I need some relief and a little more weight. What should I do?" - EB ''Itching in the "private parts" might be termed vulvar pruritus. Pruritus is a medical term that just means severe itching usually of the skin. Diabetics often get skin itching due to yeast skin infections especially if the blood sugar is not as well controlled as it should be.

When there is high sugar content on the skin, yeast grows there.

Yeast (candida) metabolizes the sugar to alcohol which can cause itching and burning of the skin nerves. Your doctor may be correct that the itching is due to the diabetes but it also may not be especially if you have lost weight and your blood sugars been under good control.

If the sugar is often elevated, the vagina becomes a storehouse for yeast and when that discharge gets out on the skin of the vulva, itching ensues. You may need some chronic treatment with vaginal suppositories such as boric acid. Any male or female who is engaged in moderate exercise or athletics is prone to skin rubbing and abrasion and in turn, secondary skin infections with tinea fungal species as well as yeast. In males this might be called "jock itch" and affect the skin of the groin and scrotum.

In females it affects the vulva or skin of the perineum. Usually a redness of the skin is associated with these secondary skin infections and if that is the case, a sulfur-based soap such as Sulfa Lo may be effective to stop the itching.

However, you also need to prevent the skin damage from

rubbing and prevent the skin from remaining in a constantly moist environment. This means using well fitting clothing during exercise such as Spandex so there is no rubbing of skin against skin. It also means that after exercise you need to let the perineal skin dry well, usually air dry, so the sweat and moisture does not provide a growing media for yeast and fungus. Also in conjunction with frequent physical workouts, shaving or waxing the vulva or constantly using soaps on the perineum removes those elements of protection that the vulvar skin has. While it is normally ok to shave the vulva and wash frequently with soap, once you have a secondary skin irritation that is allowing yeast and fungus to grow, you should stop depleting the skin of its protective oils and hair in order to get better. You also asked about a little more weight and what to do? I am not sure if you are asking about weight gain because of the vulvar itching or just in general. I do not think weight gain will help the vulvar itching. If the skin of the vulva is dry (which itself can cause itching) you may want to try some grape seed oil on the perineum as a moisturizing skin agent after bathing. "