TED Talks · Listen with Dr Jen Gunter

Yeast in Your Body

As an OB-GYN who specializes in vulvovaginal disorders, I hear a lot of myths about vaginal yeast infections.

Level: C1 · 54 sentences

Transcript

  1. As an OB-GYN who specializes in vulvovaginal disorders,
  2. I hear a lot of myths about vaginal yeast infections.
  3. And the one that just won't go away
  4. is that they're linked to too much sugar in your diet.
  5. On the surface, idea sounds plausible
  6. after all sugar is a food source not just for us
  7. but also for yeast and bacteria so if we eat more sugar
  8. we're feeding the yeast and there are studies
  9. that show yeast infections are more common in people with diabetes
  10. who can have higher levels of sugar in their blood
  11. but the truth is the sugar consumption yeast connection is a myth
  12. for most perpetuated both by well-meaning but ill-informed healthcare professionals,
  13. as well as purveyors of snake oil.
  14. You know, the ones who want to sell you cleanses, diets,
  15. and books designed to help you get rid of all the yeast.
  16. The first thing you need to know
  17. is that yeast is normally found in the vagina.
  18. At some point in a given year,
  19. one study estimates that 70% of people
  20. will have yeast in their vagina,
  21. just hanging out in the microbiome and causing no symptoms.
  22. And secondly, sugar is normally found in the vagina.
  23. After all, that's what also feeds the good bacteria.
  24. It's the overgrowth of this yeast that's already there
  25. that produces symptoms and results in what we call a yeast infection.
  26. One theory for the sugar-yeast connection
  27. is that the source of the yeast is actually in the gut
  28. and that a high sugar diet feeds this yeast,
  29. which makes it overgrow and then it gets into the vagina.
  30. But there's no credible data to support this.
  31. Another theory is that eating more sugar causes sugar levels in the vagina to rise,
  32. thus feeding the yeast.
  33. But it doesn't. And yes, someone actually studied this.
  34. Researchers gave people some with a history of vaginal yeast infections
  35. and others without a drink containing a lot of sugar
  36. or glucose their blood and vaginal sugar levels were measured
  37. before and after the drink they found
  38. that the sugar levels in the vaginal secretions
  39. didn't change for either group. But what about diabetes?
  40. Now, we know diabetes is associated with an increased risk of vaginal yeast infections,
  41. but the actual reason why isn't known.
  42. While very elevated glucose levels might be part of it,
  43. It seems the immune system and other factors may also be playing a role.
  44. There is a newer class of diabetes medications
  45. that causes people to dump a lot of sugar into their urine
  46. as a way to lower blood sugar.
  47. The massive amounts of sugar in the urine
  48. can cause yeast infections on the vulva.
  49. As the vulva is being bathed in levels of sugar,
  50. it didn't evolve to handle.
  51. But unless you have diabetes,
  52. there is no link between eating sugar and yeast infections.
  53. So ignore the so-called influencers. It's fine to enjoy a slice
  54. of cake now and then, and definitely skip the cleanses.