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Why not try these?
According to Dr. María Jesús Cancelo, head of the Gynecology and Obstetrics Department of the University Hospital of Guadalajara and Secretary General of the Spanish Society of Gynecology and Obstetrics (SEGO), “the administration of probiotics has been shown to be effective in restoring the balance of the vaginal microbiota both in women of childbearing age and in menopause”. The vaginal microbiota is a complex and dynamic ecosystem that has its own well-defined characteristics and is in balance thanks to the vagina’s own physiological defense mechanisms. Various factors can act and alter this delicate balance, causing microorganisms with the capacity to produce infections to proliferate and cause infectious pathological conditions.
The main component of the vaginal microbiota is the lactobacillus. The bacterial count is around 100,000 per ml of vaginal fluid. Using genomic sequencing techniques, some 250 species of bacteria have been identified in the vagina. “In addition to lactobacilli, other species cohabit in a delicate balance in the healthy woman. The disruption of this balance, either by the reduction of the lactobacillus population or by the overgrowth of other species, will result in the presence of symptoms and signs associated with vaginitis or vaginosis, something known as dysbiosis. This situation is frequent in women of any age and although it is difficult to establish the real prevalence because many episodes are self-diagnosed and treated by the woman herself, they account for around one in every four consultations received by the gynecologist,” explains Dr. Cancelo.
“Modifications in the microbiota have been identified throughout the menstrual cycle”.
Among the factors that influence such imbalance, endogenous factors present in the woman herself and other exogenous factors that can affect from the outside can be differentiated. Among the former, genetics itself will determine the composition of the microbiota; in addition, the hormonal status causes the conditions of the vagina and the microbiota to be different depending on the woman’s stage of life, all related to the production of estrogens by the ovaries. “Modifications in the composition of the microbiota have even been identified throughout the menstrual cycle,” reveals the gynecologist.
“Among the external factors, the onset of sexual activity marks changes in the composition of the microbiota. It is also modified by the administration of drugs such as antibiotics, or even by the type of genital hygiene practiced or by tobacco consumption. In addition, stress and the type of diet can have an influence,” he adds.
The role of the dominant microorganisms in the vagina (lactobacilli) is to acidify the vaginal environment and compete with the rest of the microorganisms – some of which are potentially pathogenic – so that while they are present they limit the overgrowth of the latter. If this does not happen, vaginal infections occur. The most common are vaginosis and yeast infections such as Candida. General patterns of vaginal microbiota have been identified that tend to differ between women with and without vaginosis.
Restoring the balance between defending agents and potentially pathogenic agents.
“When the concentration of lactobacilli in the vagina decreases below a critical level, this circumstance is exploited by microorganisms usually found in the healthy vagina, or by others of exogenous origin, which will proliferate until they become dominant, thus behaving as opportunistic pathogens. Probiotics have the therapeutic objective of reestablishing the balance in the vagina between the defending microorganisms and the potentially pathogenic ones in order to prevent the exaggerated growth of the latter from producing vaginal infections,” Cancelo points out.
In women of reproductive age, the most important source of estrogen is the ovary. Circulating levels vary in the different stages of a woman’s life. At menopause there is a drastic drop in estrogen levels, and estrogens are critical in the maintenance of lactobacilli. “The administration of probiotics has been shown to be effective in restoring the balance of the vaginal microbiota both in women of childbearing age and in menopause. The administration of probiotics with the aim of restoring the balance of the vaginal microbiota would be indicated at any evolutionary moment of a woman’s life in which there has been an imbalance between defensive microorganisms and potentially pathogenic ones. Menopause is a special time, since estrogen production is greatly reduced and this affects not only the anatomical but also the functional characteristics of the vagina, making it more susceptible to infections”.
“Compositions are marketed that resemble the microbiota of healthy women.”
At this point, the question arises: Are probiotics less effective as protective agents if the patient suffers from a gynecological condition not linked to the microbiota? Cancelo responds as follows: “There is no doubt that there are pathological situations in which the underlying problem of microbiota imbalance has a general rather than a local origin. For example, in the case of diseases that affect general immunity, or in the use of treatments such as immunosuppressants, the effect of probiotics may be limited… although they also help in the attempt to restore the balance of the microbiota”.
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“A great deal of research is currently being carried out to understand the composition of the microbiota, not only vaginal, but also intestinal and other locations, with the aim of understanding the composition of the microbiota of those people who are more resistant to infections. New therapeutic forms, such as probiotics, which attempt to reconstitute the standard pattern of the microbiota based on the contribution of lactobacilli, are gaining great interest. In the form of probiotic drink products or capsules, or in other substrates, they have demonstrated efficacy in both prevention and treatment and, at present, their role in prevention is being considered as adjuncts to antibiotic treatment or even as substitutes for it”, explains the expert. Try our probiotic drink Colondrink+
“In this sense -continues the Secretary General of the SEGO-, it is known that the composition of the vaginal microbiota is different in women who frequently have vaginal infections compared to those who never present this problem. This is why preparations are marketed with compositions that resemble the microbiota of healthy women.”
“The information produced about the world of the microbiota is exciting.” It is clear that, for Dr. Cancelo, probiotics have a long way to go in terms of protecting the vaginal microbiota: “The information that is being produced about the world of the microbiota in fields as heterogeneous as obesity or children’s intestinal diseases is exciting. In the coming years we will have information from this research that will explain questions that we currently have in clinical practice, such as the different responses to treatment or the relapses that occur in some women. We will be very attentive to this research”.
