In the time of COVID, now more than ever we are thinking about our health, our immune systems, what food we put in our bodies and whats in our cosmetics. And thats understandable. The data about the benefits of pesticide-free and organic food are more widely known and spoken about than they ever have been before. Finally, this information is getting out to the masses and it’s about time.
Concern over cosmetic and body care products too are following in the same vein. Did you know for example that, while the skin is a great protective barrier, it can absorb up to 60% of the lipophilic, thats the oil-soluable, components in our skin-care preparations. Thats quite a thought. Do you know what’s in your moisturiser or shower gel?
What might be even more concerning is that, as women using menstrual hygiene and sexual wellness products, our vaginal mucosa, which is some of the most absorbent skin on the human body, is absorbing an even higher percentage of the chemicals it comes into contact with. This is because vaginal mucosa’s structure has less keratin in than epithelial (regular) skin cells, making it more permeable.
With the range of chemicals thought to be endocrine (hormone) disruptors in many commercial products, you’d be right to be concerned. When looking at what to use as lube, traditional lubes have been made with ingredients known for their slippery nature and profitable price-point, rather than chosen with their benefit to, or effect on, the body. Its worth bearing in mind that products of this nature are not regulated to the same standards the food industry is, and so historically lube may have contained ingredients which you may also find in anti-freeze, chemicals which would disrupt the delicate balance of the vaginal microbiome and ingredients which feed the yeast responsible for a vaginal thrush infection for example.
Not ideal right.
But some newer brands like Into the Wylde are championing women’s intimate health by creating products that are not only free from these unpleasant chemicals but are registered as organic and in our case as vegan too. This is not only looking after our bodies, but the planet also.
Taking a stand around our intimate health and sexual flow is so important because if we don’t talk about it, its the one thing that gets left behind, and really, when you think about the physiology involved, its the one thing we can ill-afford to neglect.
Many people can be a bit squeamish when talking about intimate wellness. Something about the word vagina makes people uncomfortable. And that’s both men and women. But thats because it’s a subject which has been made taboo for centuries. Can we turn that around? I’d like to think we can. So that its not a word that people shy away from; so we can feel like we own the language we can best use to describe our bodies’ and experiences that affect us; so we, as people that identify as women, can fully sit in and own our own power, asking for, and knowing that the products that we like to, and have to use really do have our best interests at heart.
We’d love to know what you think in the comments below.