One in every three women will suffer from bacterial vaginosis (BV), the most common cause of vaginal discharge, at some point in their lives. However, new data reveals that twice as many women do not even know what BV is, confusing the symptoms for other conditions such as thrush.
A YouGov survey commissioned by healthcare brand BETAFEM asked over 2,200 women to identify the cause of bacterial vaginosis and more than half (52 percent) of the respondents gave an incorrect answer.
26 percent instead identified the causes of thrush and a further 26 percent saying they did not know enough to confidently choose. 5 percent even said that bacterial vaginosis is a sexually transmitted disease.
So What Is Bacterial Vaginosis?
BV is a common vaginal infection. Its cause is unknown but women are more likely to get it if they use an IUD, change sexual partners or use perfumed products around their vagina.
The symptoms of bacterial vaginosis include an unpleasant fishy smell and thin, watery, greyish white discharge—different to those you experience with thrush.
It is not a sexually transmitted infection either, contrary to what some people responded in the aforementioned survey, but it can increase your risk of getting one, such as chlamydia.
Given how common and how distressing bacterial vaginosis can be, it is concerning that many women are still unable to identify these symptoms. There simply needs to be more education about different vaginal health problems so that women can correctly identify the problem. So far, there has been a general lack of education about the difference between bacterial vaginosis and thrush due to the taboos surrounding vaginal health.
Taboos
Many women have been conditioned to feel embarrassed about their vaginas. This may be preventing them from sharing knowledge about common vaginal problems and addressing important vaginal problems with a healthcare professional.
Women, after all, have been taught to use euphemisms that suggest vaginas should not be spoken about—‘intimate area’, ‘down there’ and ‘privates’. Vaginal health is not something that should be ‘private’ though; it is important for women to discuss any concerns they have openly, be it with a healthcare professional or friends and family.
Stigmas And Not Seeking Help
YouGov’s research shows how there is a direct correlation between the stigmas surrounding vaginal health and women not seeking the professional help they might need.
Their survey found that 30 percent of women would not speak to a male healthcare professional if they had a problem with their vaginal health, and 11 percent would feel the same towards a female healthcare professional. The reason why? They said they would feel too “uncomfortable” to speak with them.
This demonstrates why, collectively, we need to bust the taboos around vaginal health in order to share knowledge and feel confident to speak to medical professionals about any important health problems.
