How to Treat a Vaginal Infection =
with a=20
Clove of Garlic
by Judy Slome Cohain, CNM
=A9 2003 Midwifery Today, Inc. All =
rights=20
reserved.
[Editor's Note: This =
article=20
first appeared in The Birthkit =
Issue 38,=20
Summer 2003 and was updated by the author in April =
2007.]
Photo by =
Jennifer=20
Rosenberg
![3D"Photo](3D"http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/graphics/garlic.jpg"=20) Garlic kills yeast. Those who bake =
bread know=20
not to add garlic while the dough is rising or it will kill =
the=20
yeast. Instead, garlic is added to the dough after it has =
risen,=20
just before baking it in the oven.
A fresh garlic clove can easily cure a yeast infection. =
The trick=20
is to catch the infection early. A woman who suffers from =
frequent=20
yeast infections knows the feeling well. The first day, she =
feels=20
just a tickle of itchiness that comes and goes. The next =
day, or=20
sometimes two or three days later, the vaginal discharge =
starts to=20
look white and lumpy like tiny bits of cottage cheese. By =
this time,=20
she has a full-blown yeast infection and the lips of the =
vagina are=20
often red and sore.
If a woman can pay attention to the first tickling of the =
yeast=20
infection, she can use the following treatment. Take a clove =
of=20
fresh garlic and peel off the natural white paper shell that =
covers=20
it, leaving the clove intact. At bedtime, put the clove into =
the=20
vagina. In the morning, remove the garlic clove and throw it =
in the=20
toilet. The garlic often causes the vagina to have a watery=20
discharge. One night's treatment may be enough to kill the=20
infection, or it might have to be repeated the next night. =
Continue=20
one or two days until all itchiness is gone. The reason that =
the=20
treatment is done at bedtime is that there is a connection =
between=20
the mouth and the vagina. The moment the garlic is placed in =
the=20
vagina, the taste of the garlic travels up to the mouth. =
Most people=20
will find this strong flavor annoying during the day, so the =
treatment is recommended for nighttime.
If the infection has advanced to the point that a woman =
has large=20
quantities of white discharge and red sore labia, it can =
still be=20
treated by garlic but with a higher dose. Use a dry tissue =
to remove=20
some of the discharge, then take a clove of garlic and cut =
it in=20
half. Put it in the vagina at bedtime and repeat this for a =
few=20
nights. If there is no improvement, she might consider a=20
conventional over-the-counter treatment because it is a =
shame to=20
suffer for many days. Remember that a woman should never =
douche=20
during a vaginal infection. Yeast loves water and any water =
will=20
make it grow faster.
Any cut in the clove makes the activity of the garlic =
stronger.=20
Thus, the more of the inside of the clove that is exposed, =
the=20
higher the dose. Each woman should learn the dose that works =
best=20
for her, from the lowest dose, an uncut clove, to a clove =
with one=20
or more small fingernail slits, to a clove cut in half.
If a high dose of garlic, a cut-open garlic clove, is =
inserted in=20
a healthy vagina, it will often "burn" the healthy skin. =
When the=20
woman is suffering from an advanced yeast infection, the =
skin is=20
already red and "burned" and the garlic cures the infection =
by=20
killing the yeast. Then the skin repairs itself. By the way, =
veterinarians have been using garlic to heal infections in =
livestock=20
for many years. If drug companies could patent garlic and =
make money=20
off of it, they would be advertising it everywhere!
Garlic has been shown in vitro (in laboratory petri =
dishes) to=20
kill bacteria also. In some important research done in China =
(1),=20
garlic was shown to inhibit the growth of all of the =
following=20
microorganisms: Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, =
Vibrio=20
parahaemolyticus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris,=20
Staphylococcus aureus, Mycobacterium phlei, Streptococcus =
faecalis,=20
Bacillus cereus and Micrococcus luteus.
Researchers found that garlic lost its antibacterial =
activities=20
within 20 minutes of being boiled at 100=B0 C. At the =
Maxwell Finland=20
Laboratory for Infectious Diseases in the Boston Medical =
Center,=20
researchers examined the use of garlic for ear infections =
(2). They=20
found that fresh garlic was bacteriocidal, killing even the=20
dangerous bacterium Streptococcus agalactiae =
(commonly known=20
as Group B Strep) but is heat- and acid-labile and loses =
activity=20
when cooked or taken by mouth.
Group B Strep (GBS) can kill newborns, most commonly =
premature=20
babies. Current U.S. protocols call for culturing women =
toward the=20
end of pregnancy to see if they are GBS carriers, since =
newborn=20
strep infections occur more often=97but not exclusively=97in =
babies of=20
women who culture positive for beta-strep. About 15 to 30 =
percent of=20
women carry the beta-strep bacterium, the vast majority =
without any=20
symptoms, although at least two women with GBS vaginitis =
have been=20
documented (3). The risk of contracting GBS by infants =
probably=20
increases with the quantity of GBS in the birth canal (4). =
Between=20
1=963 in 1,000 babies develop beta-strep infections after =
birth (5).=20
Many of these infections may be iatrogenic, caused by the =
hospital=20
protocols. The strep bacillus originates in the anus. When =
the=20
membranes are ruptured, fluid washes down and out of the=20
vagina=97until someone checks the cervix. Every time a =
cervical check=20
is done, the examiner may carry GBS up on his or her gloved =
finger=20
and deposit it on the cervix. Inserting an internal =
electro-fetal=20
monitor electrode or an internal monitoring catheter also =
opens a=20
pathway for bacteria to enter. Any of these scenarios could =
also=20
explain why length of time after rupture of membranes =
correlates=20
with infection rate. No randomized controlled studies have =
been=20
undertaken comparing women with no vaginal checks or =
internal=20
monitors to women with frequent vaginal checks. Intrapartum=20
prophylaxis with intravenous antibiotics, preferably =
targeted on=20
GBS-colonized parturients with risk factors, is, at present, =
considered the "new standard of care." However, its efficacy =
and=20
safety at preventing early-onset infection is still in =
debate.=20
[Editor's Note: See "Facing the Challenge of Group B =
Strep"=20
in Midwifery Today, Issue 63, Autumn 2002.] =
Vaginal=20
chlorhexidine disinfection during labour in GBS-colonized =
women may,=20
in addition, offer a minor contribution to prevention. =
Chlorhexidine=20
is a compound with plaque-inhibiting effects and available =
only by=20
prescription in the U.S.* Its side effects include staining =
of=20
teeth, restorations and the tongue, bitter taste and other=20
disturbances, such as dryness of the mouth and development =
of oral=20
ulceration (6).
A fresh garlic clove inserted into the vagina for one or =
two=20
nights will also, most likely, reduce the colonization of =
the vagina=20
with GBS, with no known side effects, besides garlic breath. =
But=20
none of the funding agencies or drug companies are =
interested in=20
providing support for research=97likely because the product =
could not=20
be patented. Chlorhexidine vaginal gel or wash reduces GBS=20
colonization, so the idea of using local measures is not too =
radical. But at this time, a clinical trial in the U.S. to=20
demonstrate efficacy of these topical methods will be almost =
impossible, given the established standard of care =
(intrapartum=20
antibiotics) established by the CDC. So garlic experiments =
to reduce=20
neonatal GBS will have to take place outside of the U.S.
Garlic protocol:
- Break a clove off of a bulb of garlic and peel off the =
paper-like cover. Cut in half. Sew a string thru it for =
easy=20
retrieval.=20
- Put a fresh half in your vagina in the evening before =
you go=20
to sleep. Most women taste garlic in their mouths as soon =
as it is=20
in their vagina, so it is less pleasant to treat while =
awake.=20
- In the morning, the garlic may come out when you poop. =
If not,=20
many women find it is easiest to take it out on the =
toilet. Circle=20
the vagina with a finger, till you find it. It cannot =
enter the=20
uterus through the cervix. It cannot get lost, but it can =
get=20
pushed into the pocket between the cervix and the vaginal =
wall.=20
- Most people will taste the garlic as long as it is in =
there.=20
So if you still taste it, it is probably still in there. =
Most=20
women have trouble getting it out the first time.=20
- For easy retrieval, sew a string through the middle of =
the=20
clove before you put it in. You don't want to get =
irritated. Be=20
gentle. Don't scratch yourself with long nails.
![](3D"http://www.midwiferytoday.com/graphics/dot.gif") Judy Slome Cohain, CNM, has run =
All the=20
Way Homebirth practice in Israel since 1983. She would love =
to hear=20
from women who have tried to change a positive GBS culture =
to a=20
negative one by using garlic. Please email her at judyslome@hotmail.com with=20
the outcomes, which will be collected for future =
research.
*A compound of chlorhexidine is the main ingredient in=20
Hibiclens=AE, an antimicrobial skin cleanser available over =
the=20
counter.
References
- Chen, H.C., Chang, M.D., Chang, T.J. (1985) =
Antibacterial=20
Properties of Some Spice Plants Before and After Heat =
Treatment.=20
[English translation of Chinese article]. Zhonghua =
Min Guo=20
Wei Sheng Wu Ji Mian Yi Xue Za Zhi 18: 190=965.=20
- Klein, J.O. (1999) Management of Acute Otitis Media in =
an Era=20
of Increasing Antibiotic Resistance. Int J Pediatr=20
Otorhinolaryngol 49: S15=9617.=20
- Honig, E., Mouton J.W., van der Meijden, W.I. (1999) =
Can Group=20
B Streptococci Cause Symptomatic Vaginitis? Infect =
Dis=20
Obstet Gynecol 7: 206=9609.=20
- Christensen, K.K, Dykes, A.K., Christensen, P. (1985) =
Reduced=20
Colonization of Newborns with Group B Streptococci =
Following=20
Washing of the Birth Canal with Chlorhexidine. J =
Perinat=20
Med 13: 239=9643.=20
- Irving, W.L. Best Practice in Labour Ward=20
Management. Edited by L.H. Kean, P.N. Baker and D.=20
Edelstone. London: WB Saunders, 2000.=20
- Albandar, J.M., Gjermo, P., Preus, H.R. (1994) =
Chlorhexidine=20
Use after Two Decades of Over-the-counter Availability. =
J=20
Periodontol 65: 109=9612.
If you enjoyed this article, you'll enjoy =
Birthkit=20
newsletter back=20
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