Fact: Having some type of vaginal odour is normal. Despite all of the marketing that tells you otherwise, there is likely nothing wrong with the way your vagina smells. It’s completely natural and normal for you to have some kind of vaginal odour. And no, that scent probably won’t be a field of wildflowers. It’s a vagina, not a perfume counter.
Chances are, you smell just fine. But if you’ve noticed a change in your vaginal odour that doesn’t go away, it’s worth bringing up with your doctor. Here are a few things that might cause your vagina’s natural scent to go awry.
What Is Vaginal Odour?
Vaginal odour is the smell that your vagina—and usually your discharge—gives off. A certain amount of vaginal odour is normal, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). But if the odour is strong and noticeable, it’s possible that you have an infection or other problem, ACOG says.
How and Why Does Vaginal Odour Happen?
There are a few things that might cause your vaginal odour to go awry:
1. You accidentally left a tampon in there.
It happens—and probably more often than you’d think, Lauren Streicher, M.D., a professor of clinical obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, tells SELF. Some people may put in a just-in-case tampon toward the end of their period and forget about it, don’t remember that they already have one in before putting in a new one, or forget and have sex with one in and it gets pushed sideways into the back of cervix, she says. “Every gynecologist has had the experience of a woman coming in with an odour, discovering it was a forgotten tampon, and feeling mortified,” she says.
2. You have a bacterial infection.
Bacterial vaginosis (usually just known as B.V.) is the most common vaginal infection in people ages 15 to 44, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and it happens when there is too much of certain bacteria in your vagina. This throws off the pH of your vagina.
Experts aren’t sure what causes B.V. or how some people get it, but they do know that it usually occurs in people with vaginas who are sexually active. People who douche are also at an increased risk of developing B.V. The odour actually happens due to the change in your vaginal pH when the balance of good and bad bacteria down there is thrown out of whack, Jessica Shepherd, M.D., an assistant professor of clinical obstetrics and gynecology and director of Minimally Invasive Gynecology at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago, tells SELF. Luckily, it’ll go away once B.V. is treated with antibiotics, Dr. Streicher says.
3. You ate something funky.
You’ve probably heard that eating pineapple or citrus fruits can make you smell sweeter down there, and that fried foods can make your vagina smell more strongly. “I hear this all the time, but it’s all anecdotal,” Dr. Streicher says. So there’s no scientific evidence behind this, but experts have certainly heard of it happening before.
If you find that your usual scent is off and you know you recently ate a bunch of very fragrant foods (like garlic) or anything that’s not normally in your diet—and the change bothers you—you can consider whether what you eat may be contributing. If you’re not sure whether the change in smell is due to food or something else, call your doctor to get checked out.
4. You recently had sex without a condom.
You might notice things smell a little different down there after sex, which makes sense. You’ve got your fluids mixing with another person’s fluids, and maybe some sweat too. Plus, semen has an elevated pH, Dr. Streicher says, and that can cause an odour to form. Typically, the smell will clear up on its own within a day or so—or after you shower—but if it persists, call your doctor.
5. You have your period.
You’ve probably found that your vaginal odour smells a little more intense when you’re bleeding, and that’s normal, Dr. Shepherd says. Blood has an elevated pH, and that can throw your vaginal flora off a little during your period. Usually it’s not a huge change in scent, and it goes away once your period wraps up, she says.
6. You have a yeast issue.
You probably associate yeast infections with a certain discharge, but they can also cause a particular odour to develop. OTC yeast infection medications should help clear up the infection—and smell, Dr. Streicher says—but if you’ve tried that once and it didn’t work, check in with your doctor.
7. You have trichomoniasis.
A stinky smell down there could signal an STI called trichomoniasis, Alyssa Dweck, M.D., a gynecologist in Westchester, New York, and assistant clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, tells SELF.