Ijust wrote a piece about helping women get over their hang-ups on receivingoral sex. One of the e-mails I've gotten in response asked a question thatstumped me. A man said that he and his wife have noticed that she tends todevelop yeast infections after he's gone down on her, and I've actually had asimilar experience with a previous partner. His question was about what to do.Any suggestions on what's causing it or what he can do to make his mouth moreoral friendly?
To get an answer to this question, Icontacted nurse practitioner Meg Robertson, a lead clinician at PlannedParenthood of Wisconsin. She says, "Maintaining a normal pH balance in thevagina is key to preventing vaginal infections such as yeast vaginitis andbacterial vaginosis (BV). Both yeast and BV are caused by organisms that arenormally present in the vagina and essentially keep each other in balance toprevent an overgrowth of either one. Many things can alter the pH balance of awoman's vagina, including soap/bath products, tampons, douching and exposure tobodily fluids such as blood, semen and saliva.
"When the pH is changed, that alonecan trigger an overgrowth of either yeast or bacteria, or both,” Robertsoncontinues. “It is highly unlikely that he is 'giving her a yeast infection' inthat yeast is not a sexually transmitted infection. However, it is verypossible that his saliva is altering the pH balance of her vagina, which maythen be triggering an infection.
"The solution may be to use a dentaldam for cunnilingus, which can also help to prevent transmission of some STDs,such as oral herpes, to the genital area,” she adds. “It is also important forwomen to cleanse the outside of the vagina/vulva with plain water after eithervaginal or oral sex to remove any body fluids, lubricant, etc. left from theirpartner."
If you aren't familiar with the term"pH balance," it is basically a measure of the acidity or alkalinityof any environment. The vagina tends to be naturally acidic. For a bit more ofan explanation of pH balance, check out what the ladies of SweetSpot Labshaveto say. SweetSpot makes cleansers that are designed to maintain the normal pHof the vagina, so if you don't feel like getting out of bed right away to washwith plain water as Ms. Robertson suggests, keeping a few of their On-the-GoWipettes next to the bed may be helpful.
If you decide to use dental dams to helpprevent yeast infections, it's important to use lubricant on both sides of thedam (the side pressed against the vulva and the side that's being licked). Noone likes dry latex on their private bits! Lubricant itself can be a cause ofyeast infections for some people, especially if the lube contains glycerin.Sliquid Swirl is one of the only glycerin-free flavored lubricants around,making it a good choice for this particular situation. I'm not saying thatcherry vanilla lube is a match for the delicious taste of pussy, but it's anonirritating option for both partners.
I'd also like to pass on a dental dam tipthat Midori shared during her "How to Eat a Peach" workshop a coupleof weeks ago. Often, people think of dental dams, which are large squares oflatex or polyurethane, as being difficult to use, because you have to hold themin place somehow. Midori whipped out a garter belt that she had rigged to holda dental dam in place by attaching one of each of the four garters to the fourcorners of the dental dam. Just step into it like underwear, and you're good togoplus, the garter belt looks hot. Midori wore one of these over her pantsthroughout most of the class and looked quite fetching.
Some people also like to use cut-openlatex gloves for safer oral sex instead of dental dams. After slicing open theglove and spreading it apart, you can stick your tongue in the thumb of theglove, which might allow you to be a little more dexterous with your lickingand sucking than might a flat piece of latex.
If you're having trouble visualizingeither of these methods, feel free to stop by the Tool Shed for a demo.Hopefully some of these suggestions will help!
Want Laura to answer your questions in SEXpress? Send them to laura@shepex.com. Not all questions receivedwill be answered in the column, and Laura cannot provide personal answers toquestions that do not appear here. Questions sent to this address may bereproduced in this column, both in print and online, and may be edited forclarity and content.
Laura Anne Stuart has a master’s degree in public health and has workedas a sexuality educator for more than a decade. She owns the Tool Shed, anerotic boutique on Milwaukee’s East Side.
