Recurring Yeast Infections

What is the cause or causes of recurring yeast infections? Keep reading to find out.

These annoying, often painful vaginal yeast infections can cause your intimate relationship to screech to a halt due to pain and burning as a result of intercourse. It is important to understand what causes these infections so that the causes can be avoided, or at least worked with to prevent recurring infections.

The cause of a yeast infection is, in most cases, simply the overgrowth of Candida, a bacteria normally is present in the genitals in small numbers. When the yeast bacteria find just the right environment, they multiple more rapidly and the result is a yeast infection.

Yeast infections can be transmitted sexually and having unprotected sex with an infected partner is one way to get a vaginal yeast infection. It is, however, by no means the only way and anyone who tells you that yeast infection indicates sexual activity is simply uninformed.

One of the most common causes of yeast infections is taking broad spectrum antibiotics for a medical problem. These antibiotics kill the bacteria causing the medical problem or illness, but they also kill ‘good’ bacteria which help to ensure that flora found in the vagina maintains a healthy balance. The result can be that yeast takes over and a full fledged infection develops.

Another cause of yeast infections can be remaining in wet or damp clothing after swimming or perspiring profusely. If you go swimming and then sit in a wet swim suit, the moisture and heat create a perfect ground for yeast to flourish. Tight, nylon clothing or other materials that do not allow air to circulate can have the same result. Those tight leather jeans that you love to wear dancing could be the cause of your yeast infections!

Hormonal changes can result in a change in the body’s chemistry sufficient to allow a yeast infection to catch hold. It is not uncommon for a woman that has never experienced any problems with yeast infections in the past to suddenly find they experience the annoying symptoms during pregnancy.

Personal hygiene products that change the pH of the vagina can provide yeast a perfect environment. Commercially available douches, deodorant sprays, and other personal care products can change the chemistry of the vaginal area just enough to promote yeast growth and a subsequent yeast infection. Nonoxynol-9, a common spermicidal agent used on some condoms has been linked to yeast infection.

A common cause of yeast infection recurrence is having unprotected sex with the same partner with whom you had sex before you treated your yeast infection. It is very common for couples to pass the Candida yeast infection back and forth between them. When a woman has a yeast infection and has sex with her committed partner, the man can get Candida inside the penis, causing him to carry this infection. If the woman treats her yeast infection, once it gets better she may return to having sex with that same man. Within a day or so, the woman will again have all the symptoms of a full-blown yeast infection. A doctor can prescribe medication to treat both partners in a relationship to prevent this cyclic yeast infection process from occurring.