May 20, 2025 • 27 mins
Still wondering how your hormones influence potential infections, and how you can get to the bottom of it all? Vaginal health is influenced by multiple factors beyond hormones, including blood sugar, gut health, estrogen levels, vaginal pH, and immune function. Understanding these connections can help address and prevent recurrent infections or irritations.
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• Blood sugar spikes provide food for yeast, making glucose stabilization key for preventing infections
• Gut microbiome health mirrors vaginal microbiome health, making digestive issues important to address
• Antibiotics can wipe out beneficial bacteria along with harmful ones, creating imbalances
• Both high and low estrogen can increase infection risk through different mechanisms
• Vaginal pH can be disrupted by menstrual blood, certain products, and sexual activities
• Menstrual products and synthetic underwear can cause irritation and micro-tears
• Stress compromises immune function, making infections more likely
• Most immune function is housed in the digestive system, creating another gut-vaginal connection
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
So there is a hormone that can set you up for yeast
infections, but it's probablynot the one that you think, and
it's also not working alone.
Your gut microbiome, your bloodsugar and your menstrual cycle
are all in the mix too.
If you have an itch that youjust can't ditch, stick with me
to learn about the top factorsinfluencing yeast infections.
Welcome to I'm Hormonal, yoursource of information about
(00:26):
women's hormone health and howto support your body.
Naturally.
I'm your host, bridget Walton,and I'm a certified functional
hormone specialist and menstrualcycle coach.
I am on a mission to hold thesehormone conversations with as
many menstruators as possible,because you deserve easier
access to accurate informationabout what's up with your unruly
(00:47):
menstrual cycle and with yourfertility mysteries.
Don't you think it's time thatwe figure this out once and for
all?
Hello out there all of youhormone mavens.
Welcome to episode number 106of I'm Hormonal.
I'm your host, bridget Walton.
I'm so glad that you are herelistening.
Welcome, if you are listeningfor the first time today.
(01:09):
Thank you to all of you whohave subscribed to the podcast,
who have shared it with yourfriends, with your coworkers,
with your sisters, whoever it isout there.
I also got to say thank you forsticking with me through the
itch ditch rhyme in the introthere.
I honestly just couldn't helpmyself.
But I'm really excited to sharesome information with you today
(01:31):
about this connection betweeninfections or vaginal irritation
.
Whatever is going on for youwill be kind of in specific so
you can just understand whatactually influences infections
or comfort or discomfort downthere.
Because you may like I did formost of my 20s I thought, okay,
(01:53):
well, if I'm having some vaginalirritation, then that has to be
related to my hormones.
Right, there has to be like onehormone, is it estrogen?
Is estrogen doing somethingweird and this is what's causing
my irritation.
Let me figure this out right,the bottom line or the through
line being, if there's somethingoff with my vagina, this has to
(02:14):
be because of my hormones, andthat's not a completely wrong
assumption, right?
But there are also these otherfactors, non-hormonal, that
influence how your vagina, howyour vulva, is going to feel.
So I'm going to say vagina andvulva a lot during this.
I was about to say this callduring this episode, so I don't
(02:38):
know why I felt like I needed togive you a disclaimer on that.
You already know that becauseyou're here listening to.
I'm Hormonal.
So, anyway, this is going to behelpful for you.
If you're somebody who doesexperience recurrent infections
and you're like all right, letme get the lowdown on what could
be a contributing factor here.
Also, if you're somebody whowould love to maybe avoid
(02:59):
infections in the future, thenthese will be good tips for you
to take away some good nuggetsto put in your toolkit Real
quick.
Before we dive into the realmeat and potatoes of the
conversation today, I do justwant to say another quick
welcome and just for those ofyou who are newer because I see
that there are a lot of you, newfolks listening to the podcast
(03:21):
I want to share with you alittle bit about how the podcast
started, which is that a littleover a year and a half ago I
said okay, we all like you, allyou listening.
Yes, I'm pointing at you.
You deserve more informationabout how your body works.
You deserve to understand whatyour period is trying to tell
(03:42):
you, what your vagina is tryingto tell you just overall.
Like, what am I supposed totake away from this PMS or
irregular periods, whatever itis that applies to you?
So that's where I'm coming fromwith this perspective on.
Hey, you deserve moreinformation.
We should have been taught thisearlier.
But hey, all we can do rightnow is do what we can do and
(04:04):
move forward.
So I just wanted to share thatwith you and also invite you to
send me a message If there'sanything that you want to hear
me talk about.
You found this podcast becauseyou have, you know, irregular
cycles and you want to hear moreabout what you can do.
You want to hear more about howyou can prevent acne.
Whatever it is that is for you.
(04:24):
I would love to hear what's topof mind.
You can always connect with meby checking out the show notes.
There are links there to followme on Instagram.
You can DM me.
That being said, let's get intothe content.
For today I have the top fivefactors that I'm going to be
walking through with you reallyquick.
Let me get you oriented to allfive of them and then we'll go
(04:48):
through one by one.
We're going to be talking abouthow your blood sugar
specifically blood sugar spikesor elevated blood sugar could
influence infection.
We'll talk about your guthealth and antibiotics.
What factor that or those playantibiotics what factor that or
those play?
(05:08):
We're going to talk about howestrogen when low or when high,
may put you at an increasedchance of having an infection.
Next or fourth, we'll talkabout how your pH, how your
vaginal pH, can changethroughout your cycle or when
you use different products andwhat influence that has.
And then, last but not least,we're going to talk through
immune function and stress howthat can influence what's going
(05:29):
on.
So now that you've got the layof the land, let's come back to
the topic of blood sugar.
If you've listened to thepodcast before, you've surely
heard me talk about blood sugarand really stable blood sugar
levels really important for yourhormonal health and your
overall health.
When we are looking at theconnection between high blood
sugar, or blood sugar spikes,and yeast infections or other
(05:52):
types of infections, thiscorrelation, this connection
happens because that glucose inyour blood is actually like a
food source for the yeast right?
So, of course, yeast, likeeverything else, you know all
these other microbes in yourbody they need food, they need
some sort of energy source andso, yeah, glucose is that energy
(06:17):
source for a wide variety ofthose bacteria or yeast or
whatever it is.
Now let me take a step back,because maybe you've heard this
example before.
Maybe you've seen that there isa candida diet.
Candida is a type of yeast thatis relatively common for
overgrowth, and so I mentionedthis because if you have heard
(06:39):
of that, then you'll recall.
Oh, okay, I need to have a lowsugar, like low added sugar,
avoiding alcohol, maybe evenavoiding some higher sugar
fruits, because, okay, that'sgoing to be a source of food for
the yeast and so that's goingto help, you know, help it
proliferate, help it survive inyour system.
(07:01):
Now that we've covered thatexample, just coming back to
okay, well, what does this mean?
If I have more erratic or moreup and down rollercoaster blood
sugar levels, then that can behelping to support, helping to
feed the yeast or whatever typeof bacteria it might be in your
my vaginal microbiome, and sonaturally, that's going to lead
(07:23):
to more irritation.
So what can you do to preventthat?
Of course, focus onincorporating vegetables,
incorporating protein,incorporating apple cider
vinegar.
I have a handful of episodesthat you'll want to go back and
check out if you want to digmore into this, because there
are so many things that you cando on the day-to-day for free to
(07:46):
help support your blood sugarlevels.
Take a walk after you eat, saveyour dessert for dessert.
I know that's just a superquick recap, but the overall
takeaway here that I'll justreiterate one more time is that
if you are somebody who has, youeat relatively a lot of added
sugar, or maybe even not thatmuch, but you notice, okay, my
(08:09):
energy levels in the afternoonare dipping so low, or I have to
have a snack, I'm hangry, I'mcraving sugar.
Those are some signs that yourblood sugar is a little bit more
erratic and you want to bringit back into a more stable
pattern.
So this could be something foryou to do a little bit more
investigating on blood sugar,blood sugar stabilization.
(08:33):
Let's move on to the second itemin this list, which is looking
at how your gut health and howantibiotics can influence
infections.
Now, what's going on in yourgut microbiome is is enormously
connected to what's going on inyour vaginal microbiome.
I know that, enormouslyconnected.
(08:53):
That's not the grammar thatwe're really going for here, but
you feel me right.
What's happening in yourdigestive system is going to
mirror what's going on in yourvaginal microbiome.
So if you are somebody who has,if you have bloating, if you
have constipation or diarrhea,if you have anything that they
mention on, like Pepto-Bismolcommercials, then that could be
(09:15):
a sign there is something wonky.
There might be a slightimbalance with what's going on
in your gut microbiome, and thenyou could say, okay, well,
maybe my vaginal microbiome isjust mirroring that and what I
need to do is address thatimbalance.
And as you support your gutmicrobiome, you will see changes
(09:36):
in what's going on in yourvaginal microbiome.
Now I mentioned antibiotics,because antibiotics can really
skew what is going on in yourgut microbiome.
When you take antibiotics foran infection or to prevent an
infection in some cases, thenthose antibiotics aren't really
(09:57):
discriminating between what theyare wiping out, they're just
going for it.
Helpful tool, but it can alsobe at the expense of some of
these good microbes, this goodbacteria, these good bugs that
(10:20):
you have in your gut that helpyou to have a healthy digestion,
normal digestion, have bowelmovements daily, avoid bloating
and in some cases, when thosegood bacteria are wiped out,
that leaves room for overgrowthof these bad bacteria.
And let me even take a stepback to say that some bacteria
(10:40):
are not inherently good orinherently bad, but are they in
balance?
It's always about what is thebalance, what is the ratio of
this bacteria to that bacteria?
And, of course, this is notsomething that you will just
intuitively know.
There's no way to know that.
You could get the quantifiabledata on that if you do a gut
(11:01):
panel.
But coming back to what mightyou be familiar with, what might
you notice If you have a lot ofbloating, if you have a lot of
stomach problems, if you'resomebody like my digestion has
just never been it and you'vealso noticed that you've had
vaginal irritation or infectionsfor a hot minute then it would
be a great idea to investigatehow you can support bringing
(11:25):
that gut health back intobalance.
I'll talk about estrogen next,and before I talk about the
specifics of estrogen, I want toremind you that whatever is
going on in your gut, that isgoing to be really influential
on your overall hormone balance,and especially when we're
talking about estrogen.
Why is that?
That's because your estrogen isexcreted through your digestive
(11:48):
system, at least in part, right.
Some of it can be eliminatedfrom your body through your
sweat, some through urine, butalso some of those estrogen
metabolites are being eliminatedthrough your stool.
So if you're not having regularbowel movements because there
is something going on in yourgut by regular I mean daily.
We should all be pooping daily.
(12:09):
If you're not pooping daily,then there could be some
recirculation of the estrogenmetabolites back into your
system, because they just getlike scooped back up.
Well, I don't know, was that agross example?
But they get scooped back up,redistributed into your system
instead of being eliminated intothe system.
(12:31):
So gut health closelyintertwined with your hormone
health, especially when we arelooking at estrogen levels.
Now let's talk about highestrogen.
So if you're somebody who isnot having daily bowel movements
, perhaps your estrogen is alittle bit high.
Can't say for sure, right, butthat could be a piece of the
(12:51):
picture for you.
And if that's the case, knowthat when estrogen levels are
higher, that will also correlatewith higher levels of glycogen.
Now, glycogen is a hormone thatis similar to glucose.
It's like it breaks down intoglucose, essentially.
So this comes back to our firstpoint of if there's more
(13:13):
glucose in your system, there'smore food available for that
yeast.
So, taking a step back andlooking at that again, if
estrogen levels are high, thatcan be providing or putting more
yeast food into circulation.
Now, really quick, how might youknow if your estrogen levels
(13:33):
are high?
Common patterns when it comesto high estrogen could be PMS,
breast tenderness, if you'regetting migraines, especially
when your period starts, there'sthis drop.
Also, if you are having did Ijust say, breast tenderness, but
anyway, these symptoms of PMS,everything that falls into that
(13:54):
bucket, as well as heavybleeding, that can be a big sign
too.
Right, because estrogen is abuilding hormone that will help
to build up your endometriallining.
So if that resonates with you,if you say, huh, I have those, I
see those patterns and I alsohave this irritation.
I see those patterns and I alsohave this irritation.
Okay, let's dig into that.
Now, on the other side of thiscoin, for some folks, low
(14:22):
estrogen can also make you moreprone to infection, and that is
why we're always coming back tobalance, balance, balance,
because you don't want too highof anything, you don't want too
low of anything.
We need to figure out what'sthe happy median.
Low estrogen is common when weget later in life, going into
menopause, or when you are inmenopause.
Also, if you have anotherhormonal picture where estrogen
(14:45):
levels are low maybe because youare undernourishing your body,
just as one example, maybebecause you are undernourishing
your body, just as one examplethen that can make you more
prone to infection.
So if that's you and you'rereally going to want to focus on
, okay.
Well, what is keeping myestrogen levels down?
How can I nourish my body togive it the resources it needs
(15:06):
to create a normal amount ofestrogen?
And approach it from that angle.
So high estrogen not the dream.
Low estrogen not the dream.
Both are going to havepotentially similar impacts on
your vaginal microbiome.
Let's move on to number fourhere.
This is one that all of us canbe cognizant of, because we're
(15:31):
talking about what disrupts yourvaginal pH, so your pH.
If we think back to you know,when did I learn that?
Sixth grade maybe, ph being howacidic or how basic is the
environment?
So if you're somebody who maybeyou're listening, because
you've had a bunch of yeastinfections before and you've
(15:53):
even gotten those like rolls ofpaper that you can use to test
your vaginal pH, you'll bereally familiar with what I'm
talking about.
If you don't know what I'mtalking about, just know that
most likely at the drugstorenear you, you can get a roll of
this.
Well, roll sounds even dramatic.
You can get like a small bitlet's just say that of this
(16:15):
paper that when you kind of putit in contact with your, like
with your vulva, right, and itgets some of the moisture on it,
it will change a certain color.
They'll give you a color codespectrum to understand what it's
trying to tell you and thatwill indicate to you.
Okay, is your vaginal pH withinthe normal range?
(16:38):
Is it higher, lower orotherwise?
Because if it's not within thenormal range, then you may be
more likely to have a yeastinfection.
So this is because if yourvaginal microbiome is not
appropriately acidic right,because the acid is helping to
(16:58):
keep certain bacteria, certainyeast, certain microbes from
proliferating well, if it's notappropriately acidic, then one
could expect that there might bean overgrowth of some of those
opportunistic microbes.
So pH is important.
What impacts your vaginal pH?
I've got three things top ofmind.
(17:19):
We're going to talk aboutmenstrual blood.
We'll talk about menstrualproducts and soaps or other
perfumed things that you may beusing.
So, yes, your blood does nothave the same pH as your vaginal
microbiome.
Some people may be moresensitive to this than others
but naturally, when you aremenstruating, that blood
(17:40):
traveling through your vaginalcanals, you know, around your
vulva that could be influencingthe pH and that's why some
people think okay, well, I havean infection after my period
every month, so this must be ahormonal thing, and so I say
that to say it could be a pHthing.
(18:01):
It may not be that yourestrogen is particularly high or
particularly low, it could justbe from that menstrual blood
leaving your body.
It's also worth doing aninventory of what menstrual
products am I using.
Am I using tampons?
That could be more or lessirritating?
(18:21):
Am I using a certain pad?
Try out something new.
Try out.
I mean I would personally hugefan of the Nixit menstrual disc.
I've got a discount code in theshow notes here for you.
Huge fan because it's notinserting something that is
going to really be influentialchange your vaginal pH.
(18:42):
A bunch like some tampons orpads could.
Now, not necessarily to thefault of pads by any means, but
when you have that pad or thatpanty liner up close to your
skin so much, that can justfurther increase the moisture,
maybe even increase thetemperature a little bit, but
(19:03):
also could cause micro tears onyour vulva, which then in and of
themselves could lead tobacterial or other microbe
growth in those micro tears.
So I went on a little tangentoff of just pH there, but it's
worth thinking about.
Okay, am I wearing yoga pantsall the time?
(19:24):
Am I wearing underwear that isused with a synthetic material?
Because if that's the case,then it's totally worth trying
to switch it up and see if thereis a cotton panty or another
more natural fiber that would bea bit more breathable.
And then, similarly, maybe ifyou have a really long period,
(19:45):
or relatively long period, ifyou're wearing panty liners for
seven days, right, that could bereally influential on, or I
should say that could be,allowing, this time frame where
your yeast, or whatever it is,is overgrowing.
The last thing I want to mentionhere would be soaps.
Right, a lot of us I mean,we've all seen the commercials
(20:08):
for the soaps made just for yourfeminine pH, just for your
feminine pH, just for yourfeminine balance.
If that is something that worksfor you and that's what you
would like to use, go for it.
My personal opinion is that, orwhat works for me, I should say
, is that I think my vagina doesa great job of keeping itself
clean, keeping itself in anormal pH.
(20:29):
I do think that for most peopleor for you, know, I should say,
maybe a typical vaginalmicrobiome just using water or a
mild, unscented soap couldreally do the trick.
But yes, are you using acertain soap that is irritating
you.
Are you using some other, Idon't know kind of lotion?
(20:53):
Or maybe, if you're using somesort of lube, that's also well,
not soap.
But you see where I'm goingwith this, just thinking, okay,
what am I putting on my skinhere that could be changing the
pH.
Final honorable mention herewould be that if you are having
sex with a partner and there issemen that is interacting with
(21:16):
your vaginal microbiome, thenthat also has a different pH
from your vaginal microbiome andcan then be influencing what is
able to grow or overgrow.
So a couple of notes there Inrecap.
We're just thinking of the factthat, okay, my vaginal
microbiome needs to maintainthis level of acidity and what
(21:37):
can impact that level of acidity?
That could be menstrual blood,soap, tampons, pads, semen and
more.
So starting to note whetherthis is a note in your phone, in
your app where you track yourcycle, where you track your
cycle details and symptoms,putting, okay, what did I use on
(21:59):
these days and how can Icorrelate that with any
irritation that I'm experiencing?
All right, gang, we are almostdone here.
Let's wrap it up with numberfive of this list.
I mentioned earlier that acompromised immune function
could be leading to someovergrowth.
Now, what causes compromisedimmune function?
(22:19):
The main thing that comes tomind for me while there are many
things, but the main thing thatcomes to mind to me is stress.
Right, when you're reallystressed, your immune system is
going to compensate for that.
But also, if you have somethinggoing on with your digestive
system, I mean, most of yourimmune system is housed in your
digestive system, right, becauseyour digestive system is
(22:42):
designed to burn off anypathogens that come in through
your stomach acid, for example.
Right, that's step one.
So if your digestive system, ifyour immune system, isn't up to
snuff, then that can just leadto overgrowth and that can be
causing an infection itself.
So I will leave it on just thatshort note there.
(23:06):
Because stress you guys don'tneed me to over explain stress
to you, although actually, letme say blood sugar really
impacts what's going on withyour stress levels.
Cortisol is your stress hormone.
Everything in our body isconnected.
If you didn't get that now,then you will know that by
(23:27):
listening to this podcast.
Nothing in our bodies reallyhappens in a silo, right?
What goes on with your bloodsugar impacts your estrogen.
What goes on with your bloodsugar impacts your stress, your
cortisol levels, and cortisolalso impacts estrogen and, as
you just learned today, all ofthese things impact the
(23:47):
potential for overgrowth of sometype of bacteria, impact the
potential for overgrowth of sometype of bacteria.
So I hope that this wasinsightful for you.
I hope that you learnedsomething.
If you are somebody who has beenstuck in this cycle, like I was
, for most of my 20s, trying tounderstand why do I have all of
this irritation?
How do I balance my hormonesbetter to avoid this?
I hope that just understanding.
(24:09):
Okay, maybe it's not just myhormones.
There are these other thingsthat influence my microbiome and
this, maybe, is where I need todo some more investigating.
Well, I hope this gave you somegood food for thought.
As always, if you want someguidance, if you want somebody
to walk along this journey withyou as you get your gut
(24:29):
microbiome back into great shape, as you get your vaginal
microbiome back into great shape, then I would love to hear what
your goals are, what you're upagainst, and you can connect
with me by going to the link inthe show notes and setting up
your free strategy.
Call All right, gang.
That is it for today.
I'm Bridget Walton, thank youagain for listening.
(24:49):
I'll see you on Thursday, whereI'm going to be talking through
a couple of quick tips for you,especially if you're a gal who
travels, and how you can avoidinfections when you're on the go
.
If you loved today's episodeand got something good out of it
, make sure you subscribe sothat these episodes show up
(25:09):
automatically in your feed, nowork needed on your side.
Let's put it on autopilot.
As always, I need to give youmy reminder that the information
I share with you here is foreducational purposes only, and
it should not be used as areplacement for medical advice
or diagnosis.
Now, if you are, on the otherhand, in the market for some
one-on-one support, then I wouldlove for you to take me up on
(25:32):
my offer for a free strategycall.
You can find these links andmore in the show notes.
So there is a hormone that can set you up for yeast
infections, but it's probablynot the one that you think, and
it's also not working alone.
Your gut microbiome, your bloodsugar and your menstrual cycle
are all in the mix too.
If you have an itch that youjust can't ditch, stick with me
to learn about the top factorsinfluencing yeast infections.
Welcome to I'm Hormonal, yoursource of information about
(00:26):
women's hormone health and howto support your body.
Naturally.
I'm your host, bridget Walton,and I'm a certified functional
hormone specialist and menstrualcycle coach.
I am on a mission to hold thesehormone conversations with as
many menstruators as possible,because you deserve easier
access to accurate informationabout what's up with your unruly
(00:47):
menstrual cycle and with yourfertility mysteries.
Don't you think it's time thatwe figure this out once and for
all?
Hello out there all of youhormone mavens.
Welcome to episode number 106of I'm Hormonal.
I'm your host, bridget Walton.
I'm so glad that you are herelistening.
Welcome, if you are listeningfor the first time today.
(01:09):
Thank you to all of you whohave subscribed to the podcast,
who have shared it with yourfriends, with your coworkers,
with your sisters, whoever it isout there.
I also got to say thank you forsticking with me through the
itch ditch rhyme in the introthere.
I honestly just couldn't helpmyself.
But I'm really excited to sharesome information with you today
(01:31):
about this connection betweeninfections or vaginal irritation
.
Whatever is going on for youwill be kind of in specific so
you can just understand whatactually influences infections
or comfort or discomfort downthere.
Because you may like I did formost of my 20s I thought, okay,
(01:53):
well, if I'm having some vaginalirritation, then that has to be
related to my hormones.
Right, there has to be like onehormone, is it estrogen?
Is estrogen doing somethingweird and this is what's causing
my irritation.
Let me figure this out right,the bottom line or the through
line being, if there's somethingoff with my vagina, this has to
(02:14):
be because of my hormones, andthat's not a completely wrong
assumption, right?
But there are also these otherfactors, non-hormonal, that
influence how your vagina, howyour vulva, is going to feel.
So I'm going to say vagina andvulva a lot during this.
I was about to say this callduring this episode, so I don't
(02:38):
know why I felt like I needed togive you a disclaimer on that.
You already know that becauseyou're here listening to.
I'm Hormonal.
So, anyway, this is going to behelpful for you.
If you're somebody who doesexperience recurrent infections
and you're like all right, letme get the lowdown on what could
be a contributing factor here.
Also, if you're somebody whowould love to maybe avoid
(02:59):
infections in the future, thenthese will be good tips for you
to take away some good nuggetsto put in your toolkit Real
quick.
Before we dive into the realmeat and potatoes of the
conversation today, I do justwant to say another quick
welcome and just for those ofyou who are newer because I see
that there are a lot of you, newfolks listening to the podcast
(03:21):
I want to share with you alittle bit about how the podcast
started, which is that a littleover a year and a half ago I
said okay, we all like you, allyou listening.
Yes, I'm pointing at you.
You deserve more informationabout how your body works.
You deserve to understand whatyour period is trying to tell
(03:42):
you, what your vagina is tryingto tell you just overall.
Like, what am I supposed totake away from this PMS or
irregular periods, whatever itis that applies to you?
So that's where I'm coming fromwith this perspective on.
Hey, you deserve moreinformation.
We should have been taught thisearlier.
But hey, all we can do rightnow is do what we can do and
(04:04):
move forward.
So I just wanted to share thatwith you and also invite you to
send me a message If there'sanything that you want to hear
me talk about.
You found this podcast becauseyou have, you know, irregular
cycles and you want to hear moreabout what you can do.
You want to hear more about howyou can prevent acne.
Whatever it is that is for you.
(04:24):
I would love to hear what's topof mind.
You can always connect with meby checking out the show notes.
There are links there to followme on Instagram.
You can DM me.
That being said, let's get intothe content.
For today I have the top fivefactors that I'm going to be
walking through with you reallyquick.
Let me get you oriented to allfive of them and then we'll go
(04:48):
through one by one.
We're going to be talking abouthow your blood sugar
specifically blood sugar spikesor elevated blood sugar could
influence infection.
We'll talk about your guthealth and antibiotics.
What factor that or those playantibiotics what factor that or
those play?
(05:08):
We're going to talk about howestrogen when low or when high,
may put you at an increasedchance of having an infection.
Next or fourth, we'll talkabout how your pH, how your
vaginal pH, can changethroughout your cycle or when
you use different products andwhat influence that has.
And then, last but not least,we're going to talk through
immune function and stress howthat can influence what's going
(05:29):
on.
So now that you've got the layof the land, let's come back to
the topic of blood sugar.
If you've listened to thepodcast before, you've surely
heard me talk about blood sugarand really stable blood sugar
levels really important for yourhormonal health and your
overall health.
When we are looking at theconnection between high blood
sugar, or blood sugar spikes,and yeast infections or other
(05:52):
types of infections, thiscorrelation, this connection
happens because that glucose inyour blood is actually like a
food source for the yeast right?
So, of course, yeast, likeeverything else, you know all
these other microbes in yourbody they need food, they need
some sort of energy source andso, yeah, glucose is that energy
(06:17):
source for a wide variety ofthose bacteria or yeast or
whatever it is.
Now let me take a step back,because maybe you've heard this
example before.
Maybe you've seen that there isa candida diet.
Candida is a type of yeast thatis relatively common for
overgrowth, and so I mentionedthis because if you have heard
(06:39):
of that, then you'll recall.
Oh, okay, I need to have a lowsugar, like low added sugar,
avoiding alcohol, maybe evenavoiding some higher sugar
fruits, because, okay, that'sgoing to be a source of food for
the yeast and so that's goingto help, you know, help it
proliferate, help it survive inyour system.
(07:01):
Now that we've covered thatexample, just coming back to
okay, well, what does this mean?
If I have more erratic or moreup and down rollercoaster blood
sugar levels, then that can behelping to support, helping to
feed the yeast or whatever typeof bacteria it might be in your
my vaginal microbiome, and sonaturally, that's going to lead
(07:23):
to more irritation.
So what can you do to preventthat?
Of course, focus onincorporating vegetables,
incorporating protein,incorporating apple cider
vinegar.
I have a handful of episodesthat you'll want to go back and
check out if you want to digmore into this, because there
are so many things that you cando on the day-to-day for free to
(07:46):
help support your blood sugarlevels.
Take a walk after you eat, saveyour dessert for dessert.
I know that's just a superquick recap, but the overall
takeaway here that I'll justreiterate one more time is that
if you are somebody who has, youeat relatively a lot of added
sugar, or maybe even not thatmuch, but you notice, okay, my
(08:09):
energy levels in the afternoonare dipping so low, or I have to
have a snack, I'm hangry, I'mcraving sugar.
Those are some signs that yourblood sugar is a little bit more
erratic and you want to bringit back into a more stable
pattern.
So this could be something foryou to do a little bit more
investigating on blood sugar,blood sugar stabilization.
(08:33):
Let's move on to the second itemin this list, which is looking
at how your gut health and howantibiotics can influence
infections.
Now, what's going on in yourgut microbiome is is enormously
connected to what's going on inyour vaginal microbiome.
I know that, enormouslyconnected.
(08:53):
That's not the grammar thatwe're really going for here, but
you feel me right.
What's happening in yourdigestive system is going to
mirror what's going on in yourvaginal microbiome.
So if you are somebody who has,if you have bloating, if you
have constipation or diarrhea,if you have anything that they
mention on, like Pepto-Bismolcommercials, then that could be
(09:15):
a sign there is something wonky.
There might be a slightimbalance with what's going on
in your gut microbiome, and thenyou could say, okay, well,
maybe my vaginal microbiome isjust mirroring that and what I
need to do is address thatimbalance.
And as you support your gutmicrobiome, you will see changes
(09:36):
in what's going on in yourvaginal microbiome.
Now I mentioned antibiotics,because antibiotics can really
skew what is going on in yourgut microbiome.
When you take antibiotics foran infection or to prevent an
infection in some cases, thenthose antibiotics aren't really
(09:57):
discriminating between what theyare wiping out, they're just
going for it.
Helpful tool, but it can alsobe at the expense of some of
these good microbes, this goodbacteria, these good bugs that
(10:20):
you have in your gut that helpyou to have a healthy digestion,
normal digestion, have bowelmovements daily, avoid bloating
and in some cases, when thosegood bacteria are wiped out,
that leaves room for overgrowthof these bad bacteria.
And let me even take a stepback to say that some bacteria
(10:40):
are not inherently good orinherently bad, but are they in
balance?
It's always about what is thebalance, what is the ratio of
this bacteria to that bacteria?
And, of course, this is notsomething that you will just
intuitively know.
There's no way to know that.
You could get the quantifiabledata on that if you do a gut
(11:01):
panel.
But coming back to what mightyou be familiar with, what might
you notice If you have a lot ofbloating, if you have a lot of
stomach problems, if you'resomebody like my digestion has
just never been it and you'vealso noticed that you've had
vaginal irritation or infectionsfor a hot minute then it would
be a great idea to investigatehow you can support bringing
(11:25):
that gut health back intobalance.
I'll talk about estrogen next,and before I talk about the
specifics of estrogen, I want toremind you that whatever is
going on in your gut, that isgoing to be really influential
on your overall hormone balance,and especially when we're
talking about estrogen.
Why is that?
That's because your estrogen isexcreted through your digestive
(11:48):
system, at least in part, right.
Some of it can be eliminatedfrom your body through your
sweat, some through urine, butalso some of those estrogen
metabolites are being eliminatedthrough your stool.
So if you're not having regularbowel movements because there
is something going on in yourgut by regular I mean daily.
We should all be pooping daily.
(12:09):
If you're not pooping daily,then there could be some
recirculation of the estrogenmetabolites back into your
system, because they just getlike scooped back up.
Well, I don't know, was that agross example?
But they get scooped back up,redistributed into your system
instead of being eliminated intothe system.
(12:31):
So gut health closelyintertwined with your hormone
health, especially when we arelooking at estrogen levels.
Now let's talk about highestrogen.
So if you're somebody who isnot having daily bowel movements
, perhaps your estrogen is alittle bit high.
Can't say for sure, right, butthat could be a piece of the
(12:51):
picture for you.
And if that's the case, knowthat when estrogen levels are
higher, that will also correlatewith higher levels of glycogen.
Now, glycogen is a hormone thatis similar to glucose.
It's like it breaks down intoglucose, essentially.
So this comes back to our firstpoint of if there's more
(13:13):
glucose in your system, there'smore food available for that
yeast.
So, taking a step back andlooking at that again, if
estrogen levels are high, thatcan be providing or putting more
yeast food into circulation.
Now, really quick, how might youknow if your estrogen levels
(13:33):
are high?
Common patterns when it comesto high estrogen could be PMS,
breast tenderness, if you'regetting migraines, especially
when your period starts, there'sthis drop.
Also, if you are having did Ijust say, breast tenderness, but
anyway, these symptoms of PMS,everything that falls into that
(13:54):
bucket, as well as heavybleeding, that can be a big sign
too.
Right, because estrogen is abuilding hormone that will help
to build up your endometriallining.
So if that resonates with you,if you say, huh, I have those, I
see those patterns and I alsohave this irritation.
I see those patterns and I alsohave this irritation.
Okay, let's dig into that.
Now, on the other side of thiscoin, for some folks, low
(14:22):
estrogen can also make you moreprone to infection, and that is
why we're always coming back tobalance, balance, balance,
because you don't want too highof anything, you don't want too
low of anything.
We need to figure out what'sthe happy median.
Low estrogen is common when weget later in life, going into
menopause, or when you are inmenopause.
Also, if you have anotherhormonal picture where estrogen
(14:45):
levels are low maybe because youare undernourishing your body,
just as one example, maybebecause you are undernourishing
your body, just as one examplethen that can make you more
prone to infection.
So if that's you and you'rereally going to want to focus on
, okay.
Well, what is keeping myestrogen levels down?
How can I nourish my body togive it the resources it needs
(15:06):
to create a normal amount ofestrogen?
And approach it from that angle.
So high estrogen not the dream.
Low estrogen not the dream.
Both are going to havepotentially similar impacts on
your vaginal microbiome.
Let's move on to number fourhere.
This is one that all of us canbe cognizant of, because we're
(15:31):
talking about what disrupts yourvaginal pH, so your pH.
If we think back to you know,when did I learn that?
Sixth grade maybe, ph being howacidic or how basic is the
environment?
So if you're somebody who maybeyou're listening, because
you've had a bunch of yeastinfections before and you've
(15:53):
even gotten those like rolls ofpaper that you can use to test
your vaginal pH, you'll bereally familiar with what I'm
talking about.
If you don't know what I'mtalking about, just know that
most likely at the drugstorenear you, you can get a roll of
this.
Well, roll sounds even dramatic.
You can get like a small bitlet's just say that of this
(16:15):
paper that when you kind of putit in contact with your, like
with your vulva, right, and itgets some of the moisture on it,
it will change a certain color.
They'll give you a color codespectrum to understand what it's
trying to tell you and thatwill indicate to you.
Okay, is your vaginal pH withinthe normal range?
(16:38):
Is it higher, lower orotherwise?
Because if it's not within thenormal range, then you may be
more likely to have a yeastinfection.
So this is because if yourvaginal microbiome is not
appropriately acidic right,because the acid is helping to
(16:58):
keep certain bacteria, certainyeast, certain microbes from
proliferating well, if it's notappropriately acidic, then one
could expect that there might bean overgrowth of some of those
opportunistic microbes.
So pH is important.
What impacts your vaginal pH?
I've got three things top ofmind.
(17:19):
We're going to talk aboutmenstrual blood.
We'll talk about menstrualproducts and soaps or other
perfumed things that you may beusing.
So, yes, your blood does nothave the same pH as your vaginal
microbiome.
Some people may be moresensitive to this than others
but naturally, when you aremenstruating, that blood
(17:40):
traveling through your vaginalcanals, you know, around your
vulva that could be influencingthe pH and that's why some
people think okay, well, I havean infection after my period
every month, so this must be ahormonal thing, and so I say
that to say it could be a pHthing.
(18:01):
It may not be that yourestrogen is particularly high or
particularly low, it could justbe from that menstrual blood
leaving your body.
It's also worth doing aninventory of what menstrual
products am I using.
Am I using tampons?
That could be more or lessirritating?
(18:21):
Am I using a certain pad?
Try out something new.
Try out.
I mean I would personally hugefan of the Nixit menstrual disc.
I've got a discount code in theshow notes here for you.
Huge fan because it's notinserting something that is
going to really be influentialchange your vaginal pH.
(18:42):
A bunch like some tampons orpads could.
Now, not necessarily to thefault of pads by any means, but
when you have that pad or thatpanty liner up close to your
skin so much, that can justfurther increase the moisture,
maybe even increase thetemperature a little bit, but
(19:03):
also could cause micro tears onyour vulva, which then in and of
themselves could lead tobacterial or other microbe
growth in those micro tears.
So I went on a little tangentoff of just pH there, but it's
worth thinking about.
Okay, am I wearing yoga pantsall the time?
(19:24):
Am I wearing underwear that isused with a synthetic material?
Because if that's the case,then it's totally worth trying
to switch it up and see if thereis a cotton panty or another
more natural fiber that would bea bit more breathable.
And then, similarly, maybe ifyou have a really long period,
(19:45):
or relatively long period, ifyou're wearing panty liners for
seven days, right, that could bereally influential on, or I
should say that could be,allowing, this time frame where
your yeast, or whatever it is,is overgrowing.
The last thing I want to mentionhere would be soaps.
Right, a lot of us I mean,we've all seen the commercials
(20:08):
for the soaps made just for yourfeminine pH, just for your
feminine pH, just for yourfeminine balance.
If that is something that worksfor you and that's what you
would like to use, go for it.
My personal opinion is that, orwhat works for me, I should say
, is that I think my vagina doesa great job of keeping itself
clean, keeping itself in anormal pH.
(20:29):
I do think that for most peopleor for you, know, I should say,
maybe a typical vaginalmicrobiome just using water or a
mild, unscented soap couldreally do the trick.
But yes, are you using acertain soap that is irritating
you.
Are you using some other, Idon't know kind of lotion?
(20:53):
Or maybe, if you're using somesort of lube, that's also well,
not soap.
But you see where I'm goingwith this, just thinking, okay,
what am I putting on my skinhere that could be changing the
pH.
Final honorable mention herewould be that if you are having
sex with a partner and there issemen that is interacting with
(21:16):
your vaginal microbiome, thenthat also has a different pH
from your vaginal microbiome andcan then be influencing what is
able to grow or overgrow.
So a couple of notes there Inrecap.
We're just thinking of the factthat, okay, my vaginal
microbiome needs to maintainthis level of acidity and what
(21:37):
can impact that level of acidity?
That could be menstrual blood,soap, tampons, pads, semen and
more.
So starting to note whetherthis is a note in your phone, in
your app where you track yourcycle, where you track your
cycle details and symptoms,putting, okay, what did I use on
(21:59):
these days and how can Icorrelate that with any
irritation that I'm experiencing?
All right, gang, we are almostdone here.
Let's wrap it up with numberfive of this list.
I mentioned earlier that acompromised immune function
could be leading to someovergrowth.
Now, what causes compromisedimmune function?
(22:19):
The main thing that comes tomind for me while there are many
things, but the main thing thatcomes to mind to me is stress.
Right, when you're reallystressed, your immune system is
going to compensate for that.
But also, if you have somethinggoing on with your digestive
system, I mean, most of yourimmune system is housed in your
digestive system, right, becauseyour digestive system is
(22:42):
designed to burn off anypathogens that come in through
your stomach acid, for example.
Right, that's step one.
So if your digestive system, ifyour immune system, isn't up to
snuff, then that can just leadto overgrowth and that can be
causing an infection itself.
So I will leave it on just thatshort note there.
(23:06):
Because stress you guys don'tneed me to over explain stress
to you, although actually, letme say blood sugar really
impacts what's going on withyour stress levels.
Cortisol is your stress hormone.
Everything in our body isconnected.
If you didn't get that now,then you will know that by
(23:27):
listening to this podcast.
Nothing in our bodies reallyhappens in a silo, right?
What goes on with your bloodsugar impacts your estrogen.
What goes on with your bloodsugar impacts your stress, your
cortisol levels, and cortisolalso impacts estrogen and, as
you just learned today, all ofthese things impact the
(23:47):
potential for overgrowth of sometype of bacteria, impact the
potential for overgrowth of sometype of bacteria.
So I hope that this wasinsightful for you.
I hope that you learnedsomething.
If you are somebody who has beenstuck in this cycle, like I was
, for most of my 20s, trying tounderstand why do I have all of
this irritation?
How do I balance my hormonesbetter to avoid this?
I hope that just understanding.
(24:09):
Okay, maybe it's not just myhormones.
There are these other thingsthat influence my microbiome and
this, maybe, is where I need todo some more investigating.
Well, I hope this gave you somegood food for thought.
As always, if you want someguidance, if you want somebody
to walk along this journey withyou as you get your gut
(24:29):
microbiome back into great shape, as you get your vaginal
microbiome back into great shape, then I would love to hear what
your goals are, what you're upagainst, and you can connect
with me by going to the link inthe show notes and setting up
your free strategy.
Call All right, gang.
That is it for today.
I'm Bridget Walton, thank youagain for listening.
(24:49):
I'll see you on Thursday, whereI'm going to be talking through
a couple of quick tips for you,especially if you're a gal who
travels, and how you can avoidinfections when you're on the go
.
If you loved today's episodeand got something good out of it
, make sure you subscribe sothat these episodes show up
(25:09):
automatically in your feed, nowork needed on your side.
Let's put it on autopilot.
As always, I need to give youmy reminder that the information
I share with you here is foreducational purposes only, and
it should not be used as areplacement for medical advice
or diagnosis.
Now, if you are, on the otherhand, in the market for some
one-on-one support, then I wouldlove for you to take me up on
(25:32):
my offer for a free strategycall.
You can find these links andmore in the show notes.
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