If you suspect your hormones are off balance, you should schedule an appointment with an Endocrinologist and get properly evaluated so you know for sure that this is a hormonal problem and not something else. As far as balancing vaginal PH, what I know for sure is the vagina has to maintain it's acidity. Various probiotics help a lot because they contain the live cultures that a normal healthy vagina would typically have. A few people claim probiotics don't help at all and swear by other remedies that have helped. Other than probiotics, there are certain herbs that you can experiment with. Afterall it doesn't hurt to try something new.

It doesn't work.

It doesn't hurt, and if you need a pH-balanced lubricant, it's fine. But it's pretty expensive, and it doesn't really do anything.

Hello Ladies,
I am new here. After 4 years I decided to start trying to do more research on BV. I have read and read and read until I can read no more!
Glad to have found you.
My BV went undiagnosed for 4 years....had so many drs tell me this was just something I would have to deal with, one even told me "this is part of your beauty."
Ladies, if this was happening to a man, I betchya they would be a lot more concerned about it!!
ok, off my soapbox.
well I finally got diagnosed last august and did the metro pills. wow I felt like a real woman again, for about 3 weeks. then guess who? yep, back again. not so bad though, thought I could deal...up until about 3 weeks ago, when i went on the 1000 calorie diet. (stupid i know-you don't have to tell me) obviously i was not getting the vitamins i needed because the BV got HORRIBLE.
Ladies, I have kept this secret from my husband all these years...and finally told him 3 days ago. poor guy-i should have done that a long time ago. i guess I am one of the lucky ones because the only symptom i have is discharge, and the smell after sex. no everyday fishy odor. since my husband was a virgin when we met (2 weeks after i first realized something was amiss down there), he never questioned the smell after sex. well he has been so understanding about this situation and that is great.
I started my second round of metro pills 2 days ago, i am also taking 2 fem-D a day along wih the metro. i really hope this helps. i am thinking about also getting the rephresh to use after sex.

Sweaty-love your blog, left you some comments.

Ladies, my heart goes out to you..it makes me so sad what some of you are having to deal with with the odor. the comments people have made to you, it is not right, I am so sorry. My cousin had the odor for about a year with her bv, and she said she was absolutely miserable and cried daily. couldn't get help from drs either. she said she finally found something that helped her. i will find out what it was and post it.

Nice to "meet" you all. I'm Tosha, 26, married to my soul mate, and have a 7 year old boy who loves thumb wrestling and legos, and a 15 month old girl who is a spoiled little queen. currently studying for my masters degree and staying home wih the kids. live in mobile, al.....would love to move back out west to arizona one day!
So glad to know I am not alone in BV hell and that this is not "just part of my beauty" lmao

Hi Tosha,

Thanks for your comments on my blog. I'm glad you found it helpful.

"Sweaty" and Lori (me) are different people. It's not clear who you're speaking to. FYI.

Sorry I haven't written in a while guys. I've been trying to reevaluate whats going on with me down there, and it struck me that ive never had this strong fishy odor smell that alot of you talk about. I've been diagnosed with BV but not a certain strain or anything. ive also tried flagyl and metro gel for it. ive tried fem d, i've tried taking probiotics and changing my diet and it just seems to never leave. When i read what joan had written about it being hormonal that really made sense to me because it really only happens when my hormones change to start my period. like currently i have a chunky white discharge, no smell, no itching. If it wasnt for the discharge, id be golden. could Birth control change the hormones that might trigger this?

Sorry about that! It was you. Both you and she have blog siggies and I got confused.

right off the bat, in my pov, BA sounds way better. lactic acid is the first ingredient, which i read is good for the good bacteria down there. Represh contains all of those nasty parabens which aren't supposed to be good for you anyway. in addtion, it contains glycerin, which sometimes causes yeast infections in women. glycerin is also found in many lubes, be careful ladies. i don't know if the glycogen and glycol in the BA does the same thing.


and italian wife, that is such a good question. i myself have wondered the same thing.


As for a personal update, all was good until a week or so ago, when the bf said it started
smelling a little wayward down there. And then i noticed i did indeed have an
increase in white discharge. after a couple of days the discharge went away however, and
my bf said i smelled normal again.

so, wtf.

i thought up of a few reasons why this relapse may have happened:

I started doing one probiotic a day instead of 2. since the incident, i have upped my doasge back to normal.

My bf ate me out for like an hour. I doubt this may be the sole reason, but maybe a contributor??

I drank heavily for a couple of nights. first it was nye, then i had a party to go to. on top of that, my diet
was not so great. i wasn't following the alkaline diet for those few days and then BAM the bv hit.

after a few days of normal probiotic use and alkaline diet....it seems ok again. but it still freaked me out.

Thanks.

I'm having success with BA at the moment. I use it once or twice a week and the onion smell disappears COMPLETELY for a few days, sometimes up to about 5 days. (I was even confident enough to let my ex go down on me.) It also reduces my discharge to a normal amount, which is amazing, so I can walk around the supermarket without liquid seeping out of my underwear

Don't know whether it would've helped me when my bv was really bad though, cause recently it's been more of a ph imbalance I think, rather than full blown bv. Perhaps that's why it helps me? It almost seems too good to be true at the moment, so I'm suspicious.

Hey all

Just did a bit of research into Balance Activ and I'm really encouraged to see it's endorsed by two repsected TV health doctors here in the UK:

BA on youtube
BA on youtube again

Seems like (if it works) it'll be cheaper and faster than taking FemD which I thought was my only hope until now. I'm going to order the BA now, will let you know how it goes when I've used it.

All in all it's just a really good sign that BV is being talked about openly in those vids, and that this is a new product so it means someone somewhere is researching our little condition...


Hope you're all lovely
Grace x

Thanks for posting the links to the vids.

Can't wait to see how you get on with it! Like I said, my concern is that it's only working for me because my BV is at such a low level at the moment that it doesn't always show up on tests (although I have a very heavy discharge and slight odour which it takes care of temporarily) so I'll be really interested to hear of other people's experiences.

I still take my folic acid probiotics orally though. I'm too scared to stop taking them.

what website do you go to to order balance activ? i tried to search it but it says only available in uk. please help!?!

sooo sad

Have you tried ebay? I'm in the UK and decided to buy mine from a pharmacy here, but I know it's on ebay UK.

Otherwise you could email the manufacturers - they might know if anyone's planning to distribute it in the US? On my box it says its manufactured in Sweden by Kullgren Pharma in Gnesta, if that helps.

I know how frustrating it is when you can't get a product in the country you're in. FemD isn't available here but I found I could order it on ebay from the US.

Good luck.


Neptune:

I'll be taking my first dose of BA tonight and will report back in the next couple of days...

I googled lactic acid vaginal gel and there's another product called Gynofit Gel. Have you heard of it? Can't work out whether it's available in the US or not.

I was all pleased this morning, thinking I had this problem under control, but tonight my discharge has started to sting and get smelly. I used a tube just 2 or 3 nights ago and need another already. Hope it's not going to stop working for me. Maybe I need a course of treatment for a few days, then go back to using it twice a week.

Neptune, did you use it for the recommended 7 days initially?

No I didn't, but would have done if my bv had been really bad at the time. I just followed the instructions to maintain ph balance as opposed to treating bv.

I just read this article on the brand Rephresh creating a probiotic using the same live cultures as Fem-Dophilus (here). It seems Dr.Gregor Reid had some participation in creating this new product. I checked and it's actually available at CVS for $29.99. What do you think?

Looks like the same strains as FemDoph alright. How many do you get for the $29.99? iHerb charges $23.77 for a bottle of 60 Fem Dophilus, delivered cold.
Thanks!
Maggie C.

according to THIS you only get a 30 ct for $29.99. Come out better buying 60 from Iherb and getting it cold - I think.... just IMO.

This actually sounds awesome. Thanks for sharing this, Sweaty.

I love that it's available at CVS. Let's hope this means that it's going to be available soon at Rite-Aid, Walgreens, etc.

(Unfortunately, having it widely available doesn't mean it's going to be cheap. Bah.)

It seems like a few people are really sold on the whole idea of refrigerated probiotics. With all of the research I've done on it, I've came up with nothing. There is no conclusive information that actually states refrigerated probiotics are any different than the freeze dried variety. If anyone has any information on this I would definitely like to know. The one article I found to be somewhat helpful was this one (here) from the National Cancer Institute.

I don't think anyone thinks/said that refrigerated probiotics are better.

However, I assume that if the packaging says that the products needs to be refrigerated, that means it's not freeze-dried for whatever reason, and so I'll just follow the directions and keep it in the fridge for maximum potency.

Which of course brings up another good thing about RepHresh Pro-B - apparently doesn't need to be refrigerated!

Good news is that this product is definitely being sold elsewhere besides CVS:
http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp...mp;catid=132230

Bad news is that it's not any cheaper.

Yet another good news? It says you only need one a day, not two! This is a good thing, since it's over $1 per pill.

One drawback - "Do not use if pregnant or nursing unless directed to do so by your doctor."

Overall, I'm very excited about this product. I hope it works as well as Fem-Doph. It looks like they contain the same number of organisms, so if Fem-Doph works for you, this should, too.

im not sure how 2 post never reallly posted much but
To Lori and Sweaty
just wanted you alls opinion on this because i read yall blogs all the time an no that yall no what yall talking about so what do u think


Hey evry1 im not new here but i always read u guys post, an i to have been suffering from this for years and i just came across this website for bv home remdies and started taking to mind some of the suggestions the ladies posted.
Actually its the earth clinic site if intrested. So what there talking about is this vitamin called folic acid which helps the red blood cell formation. An ive done a lil research on it what it seems to do is carry out oxygen to different places in your body and i think this may be a good thing, because we need the aerobic bacteria n the vagina to produce oxygen which keeps the bad bacteria from taking over.An it really makes sense n a way. So what i did was read all the post on the site before I decided on what ill try an these ladies to have suffered for years an claim to have had good results with the probiotic and folic combo.
So i actually begin taking them day 2 but cant really tell cause of my period but i think this may be a cure so ladies check it out, an good luck on this ugly disease. An ill keep u guys posted

www.earthclinic.com/cures/bacterial_vaginosis
or what i did was just typed n bacteria vaginosis home remedies and then went to the earth clinic site cause that address isnt really showing all the remedies

Here is the process by which BV develops in "Doctor Language"

Gardnerella (bad bacteria) increases, anaerobes increase, as a result the Gardnerella produces amino acids, the anaerobes have an enzyme that cleaves into amines. The amines raise the pH in the vagina, that cause the squamous cells to slough and desquamate and produce discharge characteristic of the disease. Then you have a cycle of elevated pH which kills more lactobacilli which allows the anaerobes to increase even more.

Lactobacillus bacteria are classified as aerobic bacteria, or bacteria whose growth is favored by an oxygen-rich environment. Lactobacillus bacteria produce small quantities of lactic acid, which account for the moderate acidity of normal vaginal secretions. This mildly acidic environment is thought to play a significant role in immune defense as this acidity has the effect of inhibiting the growth of many other microorganisms, which might be introduced within the vagina. Lactobacillus bacteria are also responsible for producing small quantities of hydrogen peroxide that has an additional role in protecting the vagina from particular infections

I remember visiting the Earth Clinic website a while back and I've read the posts about folic acid, apple cider vinegar, hydrogen peroxide and the like. What I know about folic acid is it's good for growth of healthy new cells and it's also a b-vitamin which is good for metabolism. I won't say that it won't help your Bacterial Vaginosis but from what you mentioned above, some of these women were also taking the folic acid with a probiotic. Probiotics are excellent for treating reoccurring vaginal infections and are better for your intestinal and urogenital flora in the long run.

I'm glad probiotics are used in this "remedy", it's taking a step in the right direction. I can see this remedy being helpful, mainly because of the probiotics usage. Folic acid is naturally occurring in foods which would be leafy green vegetables, fruits, dried beans, peas, nuts, enriched breads, cereals and other grain products. I always recommend that people eat foods in their most natural form for proper absorption, after all, there is no way of knowing whether a choice supplement will be absorbed properly. This could lead to the reason why choice supplements have no effect on some people. There was a time I spent somewhere around $40-$45 on various supplements attempting to treat one of my ailments, and I honestly didn't notice a difference after taking them regularly for weeks, the only affect I had was a neon colored urine. I eventually quit taking them and they're still sitting in my medicine cabinet today. That is why I don't typically recommend common vitamins to people because there is no way of knowing if it will absorb properly or not.

My conclusion: Probiotics are great for treating reoccurring vaginal infections and great for over all intestinal/urogenital health. Folic acid is great for growth of healthy new cells and metabolism. But choice folic acid supplements are wildcards, you'd be better off consuming it through whole foods.

Just an update on my progress with Balance Activ.

I applied the seventh and final application last night, and have to say my symptoms have definitely improved. I have hardly any discharge (the bit that's there is about the size of a 50p coin - sorry - not sure how big your US coins are but you get the picture...) and the smell on my pants is so much fainter, hardly there. And if I put my finger in my vagina the smell is so different, not entirely odourless but so so much better. I know (though it's hard to remember what it smelt like before I got BV) it's normal to have a slight odour.

It's still early days and I want to see how I go in the next week and after my period, which is due next week actually. So I'll report back and let you know if it's continued to help me.

I'm not celebrating just yet, because I know the pH could get ropey again and the bad bacterias could thrive, but I'm hoping my ladypart (he he) is stronger now and might be able to cope on her own. We'll see.


Also might be worth noting that for the past 3 days I've taken 1600mog folic acid after reading the post from wanabefresh. I already had it at home from trying it before with little success, but after reading all the Earth Clinic posts I thought I'd give it a go, increasing the dose I took before (which was 800mg).

I've also been 'airing' my vagina - like just not wearing pants for a while and wafting some air into her (just in my own living room, by the way!)

How's everyone else doing?

Healthy wishes to you all.

Glad you've noticed an improvement! I'm still using it (about twice a week) as I find that while it's not a cure, it makes the symptoms so much more manageable.

Now I'm toying with the idea of using a course of metro gel then continuing with the BA and seeing if that gets rid of the problem completely.

Yeah, I don't feel it's gone completely, so I bought another box today, which I'll use in a week or so. I thought about alternating using the BA one night and the next inserting live yoghurt + contents acidophilus caplet sprinked in. So one night I'm balancing the pH, the next I'm adding some friendly bacteria to this mix.

What's really frustrating is that we can't get FemD here in the UK. I've emailed Jarrow to ask if there's any way of ordering it or if plans to do so in the future, but they haven't replied yet. I've searched online a lot for a UK distributor, the only place I can find that ships to UK is ebay so I think I'll have to order it from there, unless anyone knows any other info?

I bought a probiotic today which has Lactobacillus Rhamanous in it from Holland and Barrett (about our only health food shop in the UK) and have started taking it orally.

So yeah, I'll see how I go in the next week then maybe do a run of BA / inserting probiotics.

Metrogel - is that something you can buy in the UK and what does it do?

Cheers,
Grace.

Hmmm. Good idea about alternating BA with acidophilus. I haven't inserted acidophilus vaginally for a long time now so I might start doing it again.

Metrogel is only available on prescription here - it's just Metronidazole in a gel to insert, for those who can't tolerate the oral antibiotics. My bv responds to this antibiotic, but the problem just returns within a few days.

dp

There's a study going on about a vaginal powder called (Lactin-V) "made of naturally occurring Lactobacilli that can prevent the occurrence of bacterial vaginosis (source) ." I read about it from the clinical trials website. If all goes well, this could be a whole new pharmaceutical drug that can help women with bacterial vaginosis.

Grace,

Bustie mfc10 said:

Do you know if OMBE is available in the UK?


Let's just make clear that BA = Balance Activ, not Boric Acid. (Right? ) Thanks.

That's the case with ... probably most of us. I call it "the vicious cycle."

Read my blog post on why that happens:

http://allaboutbv.blogspot.com/2008/12/bv-vicious-cycle.html

Ah yes. BA and BA. I'd forgotten about boric acid. Yep, I was talking about Balance Activ

Good link thanks Lori.

Yeah for me BA is Balance Activ, not Boric Acid - should have clarified that. I've never tried Boric Acid, scares me a bit. And I don't think you can get in the UK (like so many bloddy things - I think there must be tighter regulations on chemicals and supplements here).

Lori - yeah, I did look into mfc10's tip-off about OMBE but there's nothing at all online about it.

Hi, Grace 08: I had a friend in Austria get it for me--it was available over-the-counter at pharmacies there. Perhaps if you go to an area pharmacy/chemist's and ask about it, they might know how to obtain it if they don't have it. I, too, tried to find something about it online a few days ago, and couldn't. I wonder if it's under a different tradename now?

Maggie C.

Hello All,

As I sit here reading for hours (with my metrogel inserted), it saddens me to know that Dr's have figured out cures to many diseases, deadly diseases, but no one can figure out how to keep a healthy balance in the vagina? I feel like all these medicines do is mask the problem for a while and in most cases, it just comes back anyway.

I had a case of BV about 4 years ago - one and only one case. All of a sudden out of no where, December of 2007, I noticed a very pungent, almost sour odor when removing my tampon on the last day of my period. I went to the Dr. a month later because it wouldnt go away and I had a case of BV. He prescribed Vandazole. It masked the problem for a few months then again it was back. I have been trying to be very consistent with Acidophlus which does seem to help the odor. I notice the smell mostly a week before my period and right after it. Sometimes I have discharge, sometimes I dont. And this past weekend was the first time I smelled it after sex and was absolutely mortified

Your so right! I guess Doctor's think finding a cure for more dire illness' are more paramount compared to vaginal infections. More research is being done on bacterial vaginosis. Research studies are decently expensive and very time consuming, which is why most of it isn't being done. Maybe if there was a Vaginal Health Organization set up maybe there would be more answers. After all, most women will experience at least one vaginal infection throughout their lifetime.
--I always heard it was bad to wear tampons when you have an active vaginal infection.

Oh yeah, I emailed Culturelle about their product containing Lactobacillius GG on whether it would help urogenital infections and this was the response:
"01/22/2009
On 01/21/2009 you wrote:
Is Culterelle good for urogenital health in women? Meaning preventing urinary
tract infections and yeast infections.

Dear Ms. Desruisseaux,

Thank you for your inquiry. Culturelle, containing Lactobacillus GG, is the most
clinically studied probiotic available. It will help regulate digestion, promote
proper absorption of nutrients, as well as strengthen the bodies defenses
against bad bacteria and allergens. Most find Culturelle very effective in
regard to urogenital health and infection prevention. The Lactobacillus GG is
good intestinal flora that will take over the space where bad bacteria and yeast
like to populate. If you have any further questions, please feel free to call us
at 1-800-722-3476 .

Sincerely,

Angela
Consumer Resource Team
Amerifit Brands"

What do you think?

Yes, I have heard that too about tampons. I am trying to stay away from them. I am supposed to start the Nuvaring today and I am hesitating to put it in. I hope it's not going to be a nightmare for me. I just don't think frequent vaginal infections and putting something up there for 3 weeks at a time is going to work out for me. I guess I'll give it a shot.

Culturelle sounds really good it won't hurt to give it a try. i'm buying one today!!!

I'm assuming your Doctor will give you good advice on whether to put it in or not.

Culturelle GG will not help BV.

It is a very good probiotic product for your intestines. It's not designed specifically for urogenital use. (Also, its use has already been covered in this thread.)

It won't hurt to try it, but considering how much it costs, I think that money is better put towards proven products like Fem-D or the new RePhresh Pro-B.

Unless you are having intestinal problems, I think this is yet another wild goose chase. One that people have already been through in this thread, and shared their experiences for the benefit of others.

Your right. It won't hurt to give it a try. Tell me how it goes!

What she said.
Maggie C.

Grace, can I ask how your symptoms are after your course of Balance Activ?

ok so can anyone help me out on this? Last Tuesday I went for my yearly exam. Had a pap and I spotted all of the next day. 2 days after is when I noticed the BV. I never had the fishy smell. I always get this sour kinda odor. I did 3 nights of the metrogel and it won't go away. Does my period coming any day now have anything to do with it? I was fine up until the pap.

Not great, unfortunately. Discharge is watery, almost a chemical smell - I've noticed that before though, a bit like the smell of perming solution that hairdressers use.

I'm taking an acidophillus with rhamnosus in, which I bought because it's the closest thing to FemD in terms of acidophilus strains I've found. But it doesn't have the reuteri strain that FemD has, you just can't get that strain in the UK.

So, I'm disheartened about the Balance Activ not working beyond using it. It definitely worked during that week but for some reason my body couldn't sustain it. I'm very healthy in every other way, eat loads of raw veg and fruits, not much sugar.

I have another week's worth of Balance Activ in my cupboard, and plan to use it when my period has been and gone (should be here now actually), but I'm going to alternate using that one night, then inserting a pro biotic yoghurt with the acidophilus capsule sprinkled in the next night, so it'll be a two week treatment. Then maybe a Balance Activ 1-2 times a week as maintainance, if it goes okay.

I plan to order FemD fro ebay too, just need to work out pricing.

If none of that works - then to the doctors.


How about you, Neptune, are you still using Balance Activ to maintain?

Oh that is a shame. I'm also finding that the results don't last long. When I was first on it it kept the symptoms away for sometimes up to 5 days, but a couple of times recently the discharge and smell have come back after 24 hours of using the gel.

I'm still using 2 tubes a week for maintenance though. It's an improvement if nothing else.

I'm sure this has been repeated but anyway I went to the Dr a few weeks ago knowing something was wrong...I havent had BV in approx 6 yrs, but back then it took a few months to clear up (it was discharge with no smell). This time It came on suddenly, one of those mornings I woke up and knew it (haha 'cept this time it was the strong fishy smell, no discharge!!). Doc said I had an infection and a UTI, and gave me CIPRO (2x a day for 5 days), Fluco, and Vandazole. After a week, all my symptoms were gone, and I went back for another pee test and everything came up normal! Exactly a week after that, within 3 hours of waking up and going to work, it all came back with a vengeance! Doc said it my balance is out of whack, and it might keep happening with the prescriptions. But now Im on oral metronidazole and a double dose of fluco. Argh!

Ive been taking one acidophillus pill a day, but I kept reading about Fem-D on this site, so I ordered it from iherb for next day delivery; any dosage suggestions? Im determined to regain my balance!

This is driving me crazy!

It seems like you may have resistant strains of bacteria, which could be why the metrogel isn't working for you anymore. Your spotting is probably caused by that fact that your period is coming some time soon. This could be an infection linked to your menstrual cycle. Does your bacterial vaginosis infection get worse before or after your period? And is the odor present during your period?

??


???


????

You're just making stuff up at this point. Please stop.

Sweaty, you do contribute some great research from time to time. But about 80% of the time, you have no idea what you're talking about.

If you don't know the answer, it's okay to just be quiet. It really is.

It's definitely better than muddy-ing the waters with stab-in-the-dark suggestions.