What Is Vaginal Discharge Anyway, And Is Yours Healthy?

Even if you don’t have one of your own, it’s still good to know:

What’s actually going on down there?

Vaginal discharge is a normal mix of cervical mucus, shed epithelial cells, and bacteria that helps protect against infection. It also reflects hormonal changes.

What kind of hormonal changes?

• Day 1 of menstrual cycle: falling estrogen and progesterone cause shedding of the endometrium, releasing about 20 to 90 milliliters of menstrual fluid (it’s not just blood) over 2 to 7 days.
• Early follicular phase: cervical mucus is often whitish, thick, or sticky as estrogen begins to rise.
• Around ovulation: higher estrogen produces clearer, thinner, slippier mucus (for sex reasons!).
• Luteal phase: higher progesterone leads to thicker, cloudier, sometimes yellow-tinged mucus that blocks sperm and pathogens.

Don’t menstruate? If you’re menopausal, have had your uterus removed, or for some other reason don’t menstruate, then what happens depends on what you’ve got going on hormonally and anatomically, for example:

• Hormonal contraception: often cause consistently thicker cervical mucus similar to the luteal phase.
• Menopause: lower estrogen thins the vaginal epithelium, so if unmedicated, will tend to replicate what would have been the menstrual period. If, on the other hand, you have HRT, then a lot will depend on your HRT regime, but if it has estrogen and progesterone in healthy doses and with a good bioavailability, then your body will most likely settle into something of a monthly routine, just without the bleeding.
• No uterus? Same cycle, because the hormones are regulated by the hypothalamus, and you still have one of those, so provided you still have sex hormones (be they from your ovaries or the pharmacy), your body will carry on as normal, sometimes even trying to shed the uterine lining that you don’t have (nearby smooth muscles that are similar to uterine tissue can get the message intended for the uterus and cramp up instead). No bleeding, of course.

So what can go wrong? Most of the time, nothing much; it’s usually quite able to take care of itself. However, it’s good to watch out for…

• Yeast infection: clumpy white discharge can suggest excess yeast, which also brings about epithelial shedding.
• Bacterial vaginosis: thin gray or white discharge with a strong odor may indicate reduced acidity from bacterial overgrowth.
• When to seek care: new or unusual bleeding, itching, pain, color, or odor should be considered cause to go get a professional check-up.

For more on all of this plus some visual illustrations, enjoy:

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Want to learn more?

You might also like:

Vaginal Dryness In Menopause | Causes & Solutions

Take care!