[~Jenna~]

What can I tell her? Is he not cleaning himself very well? Is it just her? She said she never had this problem with circ'd guys. My best friend has had the same problem with her intact boyfriends. Sil is getting fed up and disgusted and I guess she thought I would know what to do. Plus if it is something the guy is doing wrong it would be good to know so that I can pass the info along to my boys when they are old enough.

 

[~Megan~]

Then he should treat himself with a yeast cream.
More than likely he's using too much soap much like if you stuck a bar of soap in your vagina it would disrupt the ph and you might get a yeast infection.
The more you clean it with soap the more you destroy your body's defenses.

 

[~Megan~]

And she should treat herself as well.

They both can use anti yeast cream and add acidophilus to their diets.

 

[~Jenna~]

Wow that was a fast reply :LOL Thanks...I never thought he could be using too much soap. I'll pass the info along.

 

[Daisyuk]

I've had repeated yeast infections since I was 14 - nothing to do with sexual contact with anyone at all. Once some women have it, there appears to be nothing on earth that will remove it completely, all that can be done is to get it down to manageable levels where she is symptom free and keep it there.

Your SIL may be one of these women, like myself, who have chronic problems with it, and it may be spontaneously erupting when she gets stressed, or if her vaginal flora get out of balance somehow. If she does think she is infecting her intact partner, then she needs to make sure that when she treats herself for it, he is also treated, or like anything else, it will go backwards and forwards between them.

It's a bit rich that she is blaming him for an infection that she may have given him in the first place.

 

[eightyferrettoes]

Does she ever douche, or use "feminine deoderant sprays"? That can set you up for an infection. Or she may just be unlucky. I agree, her yeast infection has nada to do with her partner's intact status.

Does she think women in Europe struggle with perpetual yeast infections? :LOL

 

[ZachZ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by eightyferrettoes Does she think women in Europe struggle with perpetual yeast infections? :LOL

Of course, most men in Europe don't bathe as voraciously nor as often as men in the U.S.. So, I would concur with the "too much soap, too often" hypothesis. The adage, "You can never be too clean"...I guess you can.

Ph imbalance makes a lot of sense, and so does the "chronic problems" idea. There have been more people throughout history uncirc'd than circ'd. People just didn't anti-bacterialize themselves so frequently though.

Hope that they can resolve it. Perpetual yi can't be fun for anyone.

 

[Mommiska]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daisyuk It's a bit rich that she is blaming him for an infection that she may have given him in the first place.

ITA with this. Why does she assume her partner is the cause of the problems? Could just as easily be her.

My dh is intact, and we did pass a yeast infection back and forth (have no idea who 'started it'!) a few times about 8 years ago.

Once we both got treatment at the same time, it stopped and has never re-occurred - for either one of us.

I'm kind of guessing that I gave it to him originally, as he'd never had yeast infections before, whereas I'd had a couple (although I'm not particularly prone to them) - but who knows?

 

[shaylahc]

I think it IS possible for someone who is intact to keep passing a yeast infection back and forth to their partner. It makes sense....they have a warm, moist area where yeast could thrive under that circ'ed men don't have. My father is European and he was intact for most of his adult life and was eventually circ'ed due to repeated infections and my mom said she had problems with him giving her recurrent yeast infections until he was circ'ed (his choice). Not that I am advocating circumcision, I am very anti-circ, however from a biological standpoint it would make sense if women get more yeast infections because of the way our anatomy is, that intact men would also because there is the same moist, dark, and warm area where the yeast can thrive.

That being said, I think the solution is quite simple---they both need to be treated at the same time. There is a pill called "Diflucan" that is very easy to take and can be prescribed by a physician. If they both take it at the same time it should get rid of the problem.

Looking at it from the other standpoint, it could be the reason why the intact male has a yeast infection is because the woman lover is the one who keeps giving it to him. I wouldn't necessarily assume it's *his* fault, kwim?

GL to you OP. I hope they get their problem resolved.

 

[Frankly Speaking]

The most likely scenario is that she at least gave him the initial infection if not subsequent infections. That's because of the difference in the chemistry between men and women. Women's vaginal lubrication is a mucous and that mucos feeds the yeast fungi. That mucous is ever present. Men's seminal fluid is also mucous but is only present in this area during sexual excitement. women get yeast infections at a far higher rate than intact men. Circumcised men can also be a carrier of the yeast fungi, it's only that they are less likely to show symptoms. Which is better, to be infected and passing the infection and not know it or to be infected and know it and be able to address the infection? I suspect most women would prefer the latter.

I knew of a couple who had this problem. The woman kept blaming her recurrent infections on him and kept pressuring him to be circumcised. After months, he relented and was circumcised. The yeast infections continued unabated. The doctor finally told her that her yeast infections were because she was very fat and her genital area never got a chance to dry out because her thighs were in constant contact. Once she lost weight, the yeast infections ended.

Frank

 

[allgirls]

That's kind of interesting as I was getting recurrent yeast infections a while back...I kept treating but they kept coming back...

A few months ago my husband had a very mild(but itchy) rash on his penis...went to the Dr. and was diagnosed with a yeast infection...got it treated and it went away...he probably got it from me originally or he many have just an overgrowth in his own body

I havent' gotten a yeast infection since either...and I am pregnant...a time when I am really prone to them

My husband is circumcised!

 

[~Jenna~]

I guess it never occurred to my SIL that she could have given it to him first. My best friend is the same way...she just assumed her boyfriend gave her the infections instead of her being the first to have it. The problem with my friend though now is that if she has a boy she wants to circ because of the yeast infection issue

. I just pray she won't have any boys.

So basically when my boys get old enough to clean themselves I should tell them to not use so much soap? Isn't if kinda funny that one of the pro-circ arguments I've heard is that intact boys and men *won't* clean themselves...not that they'll clean themselves too well :LOL

 

[~Jenna~]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frankly Speaking I knew of a couple who had this problem. The woman kept blaming her recurrent infections on him and kept pressuring him to be circumcised. After months, he relented and was circumcised. The yeast infections continued unabated. The doctor finally told her that her yeast infections were because she was very fat and her genital area never got a chance to dry out because her thighs were in constant contact. Once she lost weight, the yeast infections ended.

I bet her husband was pretty angry he got circ'd for nothing!

 

[Marsupialmom]

Well my dad is circ'ed. He got a yeast infection from my step-mom who had given it to my brother because they were nursing. They as a family went around with this cross infection for several months. She finally cut my dad off, LOL. And they all got treated. How my dad was treated I don't know for sure, this was out of a conversation that was already TMI for me.

My ex is cut and yep, we shared yeast infection.

If she is using OTC she needs to stop and talk to a doctor. Some yeast are becoming resistant because of over treatement. Another thing that can happen is she killed off all the good yeast and know the infection is actually bacterial vagitois (I can't remember how you spell it). It is can be confused.

Another possiblity is that one of them have blood sugar issues.

Are they both wearing cotten undies? Thongs can increase problems with infections.

It is so easy to blame the guy when it is really nobody's fault.

 

[TigerTail]

i would try a tsp of plain yogurt as a sexual lubricant. can't hurt.

suse

 

[Quirky]

If she's having systemic yeast problems, it may take a lot more than external treatment to get rid of it....it may take a complete revamping of her diet, cutting out white flour, white sugar, soda, fruit juices, processed foods, all the crap that yeast thrives on. She should definitely see her doctor and get bacterial vaginosis or other infections ruled out. If her yeast is really bad one day's worth of Diflucan may not cut the mustard...when nursing moms get systemic yeast the recommendation is two weeks' worth.

And yes, her partner should get treated too. Keep in mind though that unlike, say, chlamydia, a yeast infection is not a sexually transmitted disease per se - it's an overgrowth of an organism that lives on all of us, all the time, and takes hold when things get out of whack. So there shouldn't be any blame or shame attached to having yeast infections (or other STDs for that matter, the only blame or shame is not practicing safe sex and/or getting them treated! a disease is not a moral issue). And he definitely should not get circed because of it - any more than she should cut off her labia to reduce the areas where yeast could thrive!

 

[Paddington]

i got my first when i went off the pill. and they questioned if my activity had changed (nope, just doing NFP) or partner had changed (nope, married) and it kept coming back until they finally gave me a super pill (one day pill) not knocked it out!

haven't had one since and that was 5 years ago...

 

[~Jenna~]

Thanks everyone for all the info! You guys are awesome.

 

[Frankly Speaking]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ~Jenna~ I guess it never occurred to my SIL that she could have given it to him first. My best friend is the same way...she just assumed her boyfriend gave her the infections instead of her being the first to have it. The problem with my friend though now is that if she has a boy she wants to circ because of the yeast infection issue . I just pray she won't have any boys.

Maybe you need to explain this to your SIL?

Quote:

So basically when my boys get old enough to clean themselves I should tell them to not use so much soap? Isn't if kinda funny that one of the pro-circ arguments I've heard is that intact boys and men *won't* clean themselves...not that they'll clean themselves too well :LOL

Use of soap in the preputial space is not recommended. However, many men do and have no ill effects. The important thing is that they rinse really, really well. You see, soap is an alkaline and alkalines neutralize acids and acidic is the normal state of the entire urinary system including the preputial space. It's the same reason douches are no longer recommended for women. It upsets the pH balance of both spaces. However, for men, it returns very quickly to the acidic pH level as long as there is no soap remnant left to continue neutralizing the acid.

Aggressive washing also removes the protective enzyme, lysozime. This is the very same enzyme that protects your vulva, eyes and nose from infection. With our obsession for cleanliness, you can certainly overdo it with aggressive washing inside the foreskin and douching.

Quote:

I bet her husband was pretty angry he got circ'd for nothing!

Yep, he was not happy. When their son was born, the father would not stand up for him. However, she saw it as no big deal and her influence insured that her son was also circumcised. The grandfather is intact and he was very angry. The Grandfather and the Son-in-Law actually got into a fist fight in the hospital about it and the police were called. The Son-in-Law spent the night in jail. The Grandfather is still angry that his grandson was circumcised.

It's obvious from the other posters that circumcised men clearly can get yeast infections. It's not the sole province of intact men.

Frank

 

[bell bottom blues]

You might recommend "The Body Ecology Diet" by Donna Gates, for getting both people's ph back in line.

I guess they could also experiment with slathering plain yogurt on themselves (instead of whipped cream) just for fun