What is a Yeast Infection?

A yeast infection is a vaginal infection that is caused by Candida albicans. Seventy-five percent of the world’s women will have a yeast infection during their lifetime. Yeast infections normally include a variety of symptoms; redness, dryness, burning, and itching. Women who have severe yeast infections will notice frequent urination and that they have a swollen vulva.

Candida albicans is most commonly found infecting women’s vagina’s, it is also found in the oral cavity, men’s foreskins, folds of the skins, and in babies diapered areas, basically the fungus likes warm, moist, dark areas. It can also live in the gastrointestinal tract.

There are several reasons a women can get a vaginal yeast infection. Stress can trigger an outbreak. The type of clothing you wear can also trigger fungal growth. Many women claim that they develop a yeast infection at the beginning of their menstrual cycle. A reaction to oral contraceptives (birth control) can also trigger a yeast infection.

But men can also develop a yeast infection, the condition is frequently called Balanitis. Balanitis is frequently found in the penal head, and is most common in men that have not been circumcised.

There are many counter-the-counter treatments that have been very successful in curing the yeast infection. While these treatments have been successful in the past, there is some concern that the yeast can develop an immunity to the treatment, this is especially true if you are a person who is particularly prone to yeast infections.

If you use an over the counter treatment and your yeast infection does not clear up in a few days, schedule a trip to the doctors office. A yeast infection should be gone one week after you have began treatment, if it is still lingering consult your doctor.

Though it doesn’t happen very frequently, it is possible for yeast infections to be sexually transferred. It would be wise to avoid sex until the yeast infection has cleared up.

Methods to avoid a yeast infection include wearing loose fitting clothing, wearing cotton underwear, wearing underwear that isn’t perfumed or died, changing out of your wet bathing suit, avoid douching, wiping from front to back, and maintaining a balanced blood sugar level. Now you know what is a yeast infection, it’s also important to understand how to prevent and cure yeast infection.