When your female pH is just right, there should be little, if any, discomfort around your vaginal area. It’s only when the pH balance is off that you should feel the discomfort and smell some strange odors.
Thankfully, there are vitamins and probiotics to take care of your female pH balance and get it all back in order.
These pills can vary in vitamins and probiotic strains as well as in price so make sure you are getting the best ones for you and your symptoms.
In this guide, we will look at the best vitamins and probiotics to take for female pH balance. We will also look at why probiotics are almost essential for women and how vaginal pH levels can change.
The Best Vitamins For Female pH Balance
Various vitamins should look out for female pH balances including vitamins A, B, B12, C, and E.
Every single one of those vitamins can be found in the natural form of aloe vera as well as folic acid, tiny amounts of magnesium, calcium, potassium, and zinc.
We would recommend throwing in some D-Mannose too if you want to look out for a healthy pH balance.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C has been found to lower female pH when inserted in the vagina as a tablet or suppository. For those women who are prone to bacterial vaginosis, vitamin C tablets can help prevent it from occurring.
Cranberry Supplements
Cranberries are naturally acidic so they can also support great vaginal pH levels. With proanthocyanidins compounds, they can also help flush out the bacteria that can cause urinary tract infections.
Garlic Pills
As well as keeping vampires at bay, garlic also has some potent antifungal and antibacterial properties.
This is down to a phytoactive compound known as allicin and, when taken orally, they can help treat vaginal infections and their symptoms.
Why Probiotics Are Almost Essential For Women
There are around 100 trillion probiotics in the human body (also known as good bacteria) going around our intestines and stomachs.
You likely do not notice them as their primary function is to maintain our bodies in the best microbial health and harmony.
That means at their best levels they will do a job in keeping bad bacteria in check yet also helping with some daily functions.
They can help fight depression, support weight loss, and boost our mood but they can protect the female body from typical health problems.
Not every single probiotic will do the same job as different strains carry out different functions and have different effects.
Some probiotics are ideal for fighting an infection in the gut while others are especially there to balance out a female pH level.
That’s largely due to how hardy various strains of probiotics are. The ones designed to combat tooth decay do not need to travel further than the mouth whereas those intended for the stomach need to battle past stomach acid.
To aid with fertility, look out for certain foods and supplements that contain Lactobacillus species. This particular strain has been found to look out for the vaginal microbiome when it battles against pathogenic infections.
Specifically, those pathogenic infections that come with preterm labor, infertility, and factors associated with pregnancy risk.
For your gut health, you should be looking for Lactobacillus casei or Lactobacillus acidophilus which can help with constipation and bloating as it should restore your gut flora.
If you have isolated irritable bowel syndrome as the primary cause of stomach upset then we would recommend that you find a combination of bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus strains.
It is also worth noting that probiotics from the saccharomyces boulardii can be helpful too though Lactobacillus strains can help with diarrhea caused by food poisoning and gastroenteritis.
You should not have to venture far to find probiotics in various foods, especially in the grocery store. Some of them are more palatable than others but you can still slip in some of them to become regular features of your diet.
These probiotic sources include live bio yogurt, unfiltered apple cider vinegar, and fermented foods like kimchi (fermented cabbage), miso fermented paste from soybeans), and sauerkraut (fermented cabbage). There is also kefir to look out for which is a yogurt-like milk drink and pickles.
If most of those foodstuffs seem impalatable to your taste buds then you can take your probiotics in pill form.
These will still contain the relevant Lactobacillus strains but are typically swallowed in easy-to-take pills.
That may be easier than trying to source, and then incorporate, those foodstuffs into your diet, particularly the fermented ones.
The Best Probiotics For Female pH Balance
To promote good vaginal health look out for probiotic strains that will reduce your risk of bacterial vaginosis, vaginal yeast infections, and urogenital infections.
Some harmful microorganisms simply will not survive due to the dominance of Lactobacillus strains that will create an environment that is markedly too acidic for them.
However, contraceptive pills, antibiotics, and spermicides will disrupt the female pH balance so look out for probiotics to restore the balance.
Probiotics that are designed to improve female pH balance include strains such as Lactobacillus fermentum and Lactobacillus rhamnosus.
These two probiotics have been found to help maintain a healthy vagina as they keep the vaginal microbes in check and balance.
You may even find both combined in certain pills instead of buying them separately which can be a hassle.
Other female-focused probiotics include Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus rhamnosus. To help keep a balance with your vaginal yeast and level of good bacteria, look for those two aforementioned
Lactobacillus strains as well as Lactobacillus gasseri which is a specific strain most notably found in the vaginal flora.
Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus rhamnosus can be combined with Lactobacillus reuteri to improve acidity and each one is found in a healthy vagina.
Again, the combination of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus rhamnosus can combine with cranberry proanthocyanidins.
All three are designed to support urinary tract health and support the overall health of the vagina.
How Vaginal pH Levels Change
On the pH scale, the number 1 marks the highest acidic measurement while 14 is the most alkaline. For instance, stomach acid, also known as gastric acid, is typically between 1.5 and 2 on the pH scale making it very acidic.
However, the vagina should only be mildly acidic and a healthy one has a pH level measured between 3.8 and 4.5.
Any variations on the pH scale can mean discomfort and various other issues so it should be kept at a mild acidity. That’s largely due to the presence of Lactobacillus, a natural bacterium found in the vagina.
Lactobacillus produces lactic acid which should go some way to minimize how many alkaline bacteria is produced.
When less Lactobacillus is produced, the vaginal pH level becomes more alkaline, and more harmful bacteria will find the environment easier to thrive in.
With an offset vaginal pH level, you can expect more urinary tract infections, yeast infections, and bacterial vaginosis.
Sexually transmitted infections such as trichomoniasis also prefer more alkaline conditions in the vagina.
That means that maintaining Lactobacillus is an ideal way of keeping a healthy and balanced vaginal pH level and avoiding such infections.
Another reason for the vaginal pH level to change can be a woman’s age. That pH level should be around 4.5 or below during the reproductive years of 15 and 49.
It can get even higher prior to menstruation and may rise a bit following menopause too. Unprotected sex can also affect the vaginal pH levels, as can cleaning the internal genitals and taking antibiotics which can affect Lactobacillus production.
Final Thoughts
For female pH balance, you can take a range of vitamins and probiotics to combat urinary tract infections, yeast infections, and bacterial vaginosis. Before it gets to that stage, undertake some simple vaginal care by letting it take care of itself.
Wear protection during sex to prevent sexually transmitted illnesses and make regular appointments with the right physicians like an OB-GYN.
Prevention is typically better than the cure so take action as soon as you suspect that your female pH balance is only slightly off and then look out for it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Else Should You Take pH Balance Pills?
Aside from helping balance out vaginal pH levels, pH balance pills will help maintain the best levels of unhealthy and healthy bacteria.
The probiotics are living microorganisms that can assist with various health benefits once ingested aside from female pH balance.
That includes aging support, skin health, immune function, and how you manage depression and anxiety.
Overall, we would recommend pH balance pills to balance out vaginal pH levels as well as lower inflammation and help with gut and digestive health.
What Other Ways Can Help Maintain A Healthy Female pH Balance?
Once you find out that your female pH balance is off, you may feel an itch, other general discomfort, and smell some strange odors.
To prevent this from happening, make an appointment with an OB-GYN who can perform exams to check that the vagina is in a healthy state. Remember that your vagina cleans itself so there is no need to douche.
Finally, use a condom or a barrier method for when you have sex as it will provide protection from sexually transmitted illness and prevent alkaline semen from affecting the female pH balance.
