Women in the UK are more likely to know about intimate beauty treatments than they are about serious health issues that could make them six times more likely to miscarry or give birth prematurely.
Research published last week by Balance Activ reveals women are more aware of bikini waxing (67%) than they are about intimate health, with nearly two thirds of women questioned (61%) unaware or unsure of health issues that could lead to fertility problems, miscarriage and increased risk of sexuallly transmitted diseases (STIs).
One of these issues is a condition known as bacterial vaginosis, or BV, which affects one in three women in the UK. Because very few know about it the symptoms are often confused with other infections. It is twice as prevalent as thrush and if left untreated during pregnancy, the condition can lead to serious implications:
- Pregnant women with BV are six times more likely to miscarry and twice as likely to give birth prematurely than other women.
- It's thought BV is responsible for one in three of all premature births in the UK.
- BV can put women at risk of contracting STIs such as gonorrhoea and chlamydia.
It seems intimate women's health is the last taboo as over one-third of women questioned (38%) admit they would only feel comfortable getting health advice from online forums while nearly a fifth 19%) are too embarrassed to speak with a GP.
Health experts in the UK are now calling for more awareness of intimate health and the serious side effects that can be the result of untreated conditions.
BV is not a sexually transmitted disease nor linked to poor hygiene, but is in fact a condition caused by changes in the vagina's pH balance.
Find out more about BV from this interview with UK family physician, Dr Dawn Harper.
Make an appointment to see a GP online at 1st Available.
__small.png)
