What is an Abnormal Vaginal Smell?

Many women tend to overdo it when it comes to personal hygiene and their intimate areas, due to some misconceptions according to which any smell at all of a vagina is wrong and should be completely eliminated. The truth of the matter is a vagina actually has its own specific slight musky scent that is not at all unpleasant and shouldn’t make women feel uncomfortable; on the contrary, it can be really appealing for their partners. Nevertheless, there are some unfortunate cases when this normal and pleasant smell becomes something else, making women feel uneasy and stressed about it.

For instance, if you feel a rather pungent smell, the cause could be the ingestion of certain herbs or spices that are causing your urine to smell funny. You might want to reconsider your diet, if this happens to you. After all, vaginal smells are nothing else but a combo between women’s natural body odors and the foods and drinks they eat and drink.

On the other hand, if you suffer from some kind of vaginal infection, you have strange discharges and you are feeling a bad smell coming from your intimate areas, you’re very likely to be right and the odor you’re feeling is actually an abnormal one. While normal vaginal discharges shouldn’t have any smell and create any discomfort, abnormal discharges go hand in hand with abnormal vaginal smell. For a better understanding of these infections, you should know that a woman’s vagina normally hosts a lot of organisms which are called Lactobacillus. These organisms create an acid environment, and when an unbalance occurs, a larger number of bacteria or yeast organisms develop in the vagina and problems arise. Discharges modify in terms of color, heavy loss and itchiness, and obnoxious odors appear. So if you are dealing with such symptoms, your vaginal smell is definitely not a normal one.

Some of the bacteria that can cause infections are Gardnerella vaginalis which cause bacterial vaginosis or BV and thus the unpleasant smell of the vagina. Yeast infections are other causes that can give birth to abnormal odors, and Candida vaginitis is one of the most common yeast infections in women. Its symptoms are more obvious, the discharges are heavier, whiter and thicker or there might not be present at all. Apart from itches, sores, irritations or redness, Candida vaginitis is a known source of bad vaginal smell. Another common infection women deal with on a regular basis is Trichomonas vaginitis. Smelly discharges are the most apparent symptoms of this infection.

All in all, you can be the own judge of the normality of your vaginal odors, and if you feel like something is wrong, look into the cause and get the right treatment or change your diet.