Tips and Tricks to Prevent Infection and Discomfort When Using the Menstrual Cup

Sanitary hygiene is always one of the important things in life! If you don’t know how to reduce your risks of infection, you will be prone to infection. And unfortunately, infections are medical conditions that people still die from every year, despite antibiotics.

You can find a lot of tips about sanitation for the menstrual cup online – ones you may have already read and learned but for purposes of this article, we’ll mention the principles behind the tips and tricks so that they are more memorable over time. Once you know and understand the principles behind them, you can more easily make smart decisions on your own personal application of the concept of hygiene.

Nine Considerations for Hygiene About the Menstrual Cup

The major considerations to avoiding infections from menstrual cup usage are listed below:

Reduce any possibility of creating inflammation.  

1. • What type of lubricants are you using in the vaginal area? If they contain chemicals of any kind, there is going to be a minor irritation and inflammation. Irritation and inflammation creates an open door for infections to occur. Consider what type of lubricant you use if any to insert the menstrual cup. Some women use water-based lubricants made from more natural ingredients as a solution to this issue.
   • Knowing your body well is the name of the game here. If you know you are sensitive to latex, you will create inflammation and a possible allergy reaction if you insert a menstrual cup that is made from rubber and not silicone. Switch to the silicone variety if you have latex sensitivity or allergy.
   • Make sure your microflora in the vagina is right.   

• • The reason why this is important is because if you don’t have enough of the good bacterial strains, the ‘bad’ bacterial strains will then colonize the vagina. You want the good ones there, period.
  • One brand that helps the vaginal microflora ‘get right’ that doctors use is the Advanced Natural brand (also found in the Renew Life brand), Ultimate FloraMax 150 billion 40 probiotic strains. Taking this daily for a few months can make a big difference in the health of your vaginal bacteria.
  • If you are more likely to have vaginal itching, your microflora in your entire body – and thus your vaginal area is most likely off balance. Are you taking a probiotic that has healthy strains of bacteria specifically for the vagina?
  • Get any STDs or vaginal infections you currently have taken care of.     

• • The key is to keep the levels low enough so that if they do reproduce they will never get to infectious level rates. You do that by clearing up infections as you find out about them and by keeping your flora correct. Another way is to limit sugar so that you don’t feed the bacteria.
  • When using the menstrual cup, you are essentially trapping bacteria that may be living in the vaginal area there for 10-12 hours. They have an opportunity to reproduce to numbers that cause infections. This isn’t meant to scare you; we al have low levels of ‘bad’ bacteria in us at any one point in time.
  • Any infection you have in your body can easily travel to other parts of the body. This is why dentists are always concerned about gum infections; the bacteria in the unhealthy gums dislodges itself from time to time and travels to other parts of the body, notably the heart.
  • The principle here is that the longer an infectious organism has to multiply itself, the more deep-seated the infection can become. You never want to take a chance on Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, the bacteria that produces the toxin that is associated with Toxic Shock Syndrome. You simply don’t want this bacteria to be able to reproduce, and you want to keep it constantly under wraps.
  • Do you have a suspected Chlamydia infection or bacterial vaginosis? What about Candida? Or other STDs? All these need to be taken care of when using an internal device to collect the menstrual blood with a menstrual cup.
  • Use good sanitation habits during the process.       

1. 1. Use clean towels to dry off. Don’t reuse a towel for more than two days at a time.
   2. If you have a messy bowel movement, take the time to thoroughly wash the area afterwards.
   3. Take a shower at least once daily, and spend a bit of time thoroughly washing your groin area.
   4. Wash yourself before you insert the menstrual cup, and after.
   5. Wipe front to back, no exceptions when it comes to cleaning your groin area.
   6. But be smart in the type of soaps you use. If you use anti-bacterial soaps, these soaps have been known to cause resistant strains of bacteria, such as the Staph aureus that is associated with Toxic Shock Syndrome. The good old-fashioned soaps that don’t add chemicals to them do not create resistant strains of bacteria.
   7. Washing your hands is one of the most important habits you can do to stay healthy, and it’s especially important to wash your hands before inserting the menstrual cup.

• Treat the menstrual cup with respect.    

1. 1. Storage of the menstrual cup in between periods is another concern. Do you store it in a drawer in your bathroom, thrown in the drawer with dental floss, etc.? That’s unsanitary, as cabinet drawers will never be sanitary. They’re dark and dusty and frequented by insects. Store your menstrual cup in a cloth bag after sterilizing it.
   2. Then carefully remove the menstrual cup from the water and let it cool. Do not try to cool it down by running tap water on it. Tap water is not sterile water and has been known to cause different types of infections in people throughout the years.
   3. Boil the water for at least 5 minutes. Ten minutes is fine as well.
   4. To properly sanitize the menstrual cup, you’ll do it in boiling water. This means filling the pot with water – a pot about 1 quart in volume is big enough. The pot should be large enough so that the menstrual cup doesn’t fall to the bottom – and burn.

• Pay attention to the amount of time you wear the cup.Note the time you put the cup in and make a note of the time in your mind when it should come out.

1. 1. The menstrual cup can be left in your body for 12 hours. But longer than this amount of time, you will be taking risks of developing potential infections.

• Take proper precautions about having sex while using the menstrual cup. 

1. 1. There are different types of menstrual cups on the market. One of them called the Ziggy cup, makes sex possible while the cup is in. If the cup is not meant for the additional purpose of having sex, you risk pushing the cup up too high in the vaginal canal. It may get stuck there and you would then need a doctor to pull it out. (And that’s super embarrassing.)

• Know whether or not you are at anatomical risk to use a menstrual cup. 

1. This is something to discuss with your doctor. If you have uterine fibroids, endometriosis or have vaginal pain frequently, discuss the possibility of using the menstrual cup with your doctor first. He or she may have some insight into whether or not your body will best accommodate the menstrual cup or not.

Menstrual cups are not a device that causes a lot of infections, but you still must be diligent about precautions to prevent infections. Take heed appropriately and you will remain safe.