BV & Preganancy: How Harmful Bacteria Sometimes Outgrow the Good Bacteria?

How Harmful Bacteria Sometimes Outgrow the Good Bacteria?

Although that is a very good question, the answer is not as simple. There are many theories as to why sometimes the harmful bacteria outgrow the good bacteria. Some of these theories require further research.

So far however, scientifically it has been found that the pH level of the body is one of the main reason why this sometimes happen.

What is pH?

pH stands for potential hydrogen. H is in upper case because it stands for the element hydrogen. It is actually a form of measurement which measures the acidity or basicity of the solution or substance.

Our body’s pH level can also be measured. In general, a pH level of 7 means that it is natural water. Higher than 7 means it is basic while less than 7 means that it is acidic.

The vagina should have a pH level of 4. This makes it acidic. This is very important because the acidity in the vagina keeps the harmful bacteria from growing more than the beneficial bacteria.

It is important therefore for the vagina to be in this level in order to be healthy and in order to keep away the bacteria that can cause Bacterial Vaginosis.        

Sometime however, the pH level of vagina changes. The change can be brought about by different number of things. Diet for example, may change the pH level of the body, including that of the vagina. Similarly, stress and other factors can bring about the change in the pH level in the vagina.

Now, one of the things that can bring about a change in the pH level in the vagina is the hormonal changes in the body. This is the reason why pregnant women are susceptible to BV.

The pregnancy can cause hormonal changes in the body. As the hormones change, the pH level changes and the vagina no longer maintains its desired acidity. When this happens the harmful bacteria starts to grow. As they continue to grow in number and they are no longer controllable by lactobacillus.

This will then be the onset of the Bacterial Vaginosis. As the harmful bacteria continue to overgrow, they also change the pH in the vagina, making it even less acidic. This makes it even more difficult to cure the BV.

This is actually the reason why it is best to prevent BV from developing. Moreover, once the BV develops even when it is already cured, chances are, it will recur again in the future.