Every woman produces a secretion in the form of a thick white vaginal discharge. This is normal and healthy because it helps cleanse the vagina and gets rid of bad elements in the genital area. Vaginal discharge in women generally starts during their puberty stage. Fluid secretion continues for the rest of their lifetime.
Thick White Vaginal Discharge Explained
The vaginal secretion in women has an important role to play. It helps maintain the balance of the body’s reproductive system. There are two primary roles of the vaginal discharge:
- Lubrication
The thick white vaginal discharge serves as the woman’s natural lubricant in order during sexual intercourse. Without this, sex wouldn’t be pleasurable, but difficult and painful because of vaginal dryness. Vaginal secretion typically increases when the woman becomes aroused sexually.
- Balance the Bacteria
The genital area of women is filled with millions of bacteria, both good and bad. For the vagina to stay healthy, there should be a good balance between the two types of bacteria. There are times when due to several factors, bad bacteria tend to overgrow and become out of control.
With the help of the woman’s vaginal discharge, these excess bad bacteria are effectively eliminated along with the dead cells. This way, the vagina stays healthy because it is able to maintain a good balance and fight infections off.
Healthy Vaginal Discharge Changes
A woman’s vaginal discharge may vary in amount and color each time. Listed below are the most common instance of vaginal discharge change:
Ovulation
When you are ovulating, your vaginal mucus takes on a clear, sticky and thin form. If you take a sample, you should see it stretch easily between your fingers without separating. You can use this as a method to monitor your monthly period cycle, whether you are fertile or not. This type of vaginal secretion would tell you that you are fertile at this particular day.
Menstruation
After your menstrual period, you should notice a thick white vaginal discharge with gooey texture. This happens because of the quantity of estrogen change that your body produces.
Pregnancy
Most women will notice an obvious change in their vaginal secretion during pregnancy. It is not unusual for the secretion to increase in amount each passing day. This is because your body needs work double time to produce the blood flow and estrogen you require at this period. As your conception date gets closer, you will start to produce an increased amount of vaginal discharge. This is how your body prepares you for your baby’s travel to your birth canal.
Aside from this, the secretion will also turn increasingly runny and thin. This is one of the telltale signs that the mucus plug that covers yoru cervix is starting to dislodge itself, which means that you are approaching labor.
Abnormal Vaginal Discharge
It is easy to determine an abnormal vaginal discharge from a normal one. You simply need to base it on the odor, color and texture of the secretion. In most cases, abnormality on vaginal secretion can be blamed on various bad bacteria and fungi. If you experience an abnormal change in your discharge, visit your doctor right away. This may turn out to be an onset of an infection like an yeast infection or something similar. Other than that, if it’s just a normal thick white vaginal discharge, you are safe.
