Healthline Media does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This is because pregnancy hormones change the balance of yeast and bacteria in the vagina, leaving you more vulnerable to yeast infections or bacterial vaginosis. A pale yellow discharge can be normal in pregnancy but if it smells strongly or you feel itchy or uncomfortable, then it could be a sign of a vaginal infection. Hormones make a persons cervix produce mucus. Plain old BO. Sometimes, your discharge may indicate a problem, like an infection. It tends to appear in early pregnancy but can occur any time due to various health conditions. Mom might also want to get her extra sweating checked. It is believed that these hormones try to put the mom-to-be off even the slightest unusual odors to ensure that she doesnt eat anything that can harm the baby. What can I do about vaginal discharge during pregnancy? If you develop a yeast infection during pregnancy, your doctor may recommend a vaginal cream or suppository. White Discharge After Period: What It Means. Vaginal discharge may change at different stages of life. It is common knowledge that iron is an important component of hemoglobin, the stuff that our red blood cells use to transport oxygen around the body. A heavier flow of discharge towards the end of your third trimester may even indicate that you'll soon be in labour. A critical component of appropriate prenatal care is ensuring . During pregnancy, it becomes white and milky in appearance. During your pregnancy, it helps to prevent any infections . Again it's a normal and necessary discharge. You may notice an increase in white creamy discharge early in pregnancy, due to higher levels of estrogen. We include products we think are useful for our readers. When is vaginal discharge in pregnancy a warning sign of a problem? 3. One of the earliest signs of pregnancy is an increase in vaginal discharge, and this continues throughout pregnancy. It will start out red and thick, gradually fade to a pinkish shade, and then eventually become yellow or white. Other signs of a potential problem include intense itching, a serious headache, rapid weight gain, sudden swelling, painful urination, strange vaginal discharge, a fever, and shortness of breath. Have your doctor evaluate any discharge symptoms -- especially a bad smell and color changes. Of course, some mild odor changes can be expected during pregnancy. Normal discharge during pregnancy is clear or white, and usually a bit sticky; it should not have a noticeable odor. What exactly is going on down there with the discharge? Shifts in a persons hormone levels can occur during certain phases of the menstrual cycle or pregnancy. When normal, it should be somewhat thick, clear to white in color, and odorless. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend screening all pregnant women for STDs. Below are a few examples of unhealthy discharge and the diseases or infections that they may indicate. When your water breaks, amniotic fluid may come out as a leak or trickle, or in a big, dramatic gush. Abnormal discharge may be a sign of infection . Vaginal discharge is normal in menstruating women. After all, inadvertently swallowing a chunk of meat that has gone bad pre-pregnancy may make mom sick for a few days. As your pregnancy progresses, this discharge usually becomes more noticeable, and its heaviest at the end of your pregnancy. If you feel you need to do something, and a warm, wet washcloth doesnt feel sufficient, a pH-balanced moist wipefree of chemicals, scents, essential oils, or alcoholis the next best thing. Labor and birth. Health-wise, however, this doesnt bode well for her. It also helps them feel dry, clean, and more comfortable throughout the day. This test will reveal to a person the exact amount of hCG in their blood. This amount will increase just before you ovulate (when you're most fertile) and its consistency is usually thin and slick. If you buy through links on this page, we may earn a small commission Heres our process. This is a sign of a serious complication of diabetes, known as diabetic ketoacidosis or DKA. Some women go overboard on the hygiene in an attempt to rid themselves of the extra discharge, with the opposite result of what they had intended. (2014). Regular discharge comes out sporadically in small amounts, but amniotic fluid leaks out continuously once your water breaks. It is necessary to talk to a doctor to adjust medication dosage to balance both the babys and the moms safety. This watery discharge is usually full of any dead cells and tissue your body no longer needs as your pregnancy develops, which is why it can get heavier as your pregnancy progresses. Vaginal discharge is a normal experience for people with vaginas in their reproductive years. This can, however, be what is called an aura, or a strange sensation that comes just before a migraine or a seizure. Leukorrhea is simply the medical term for all vaginal discharge, not just the discharge that occurs during pregnancy. Normal vaginal discharge is white, cream or sometimes a light yellow colour. Your body is getting rid of dead skin, cervical and vaginal secretions, bacteria and cells that the body no longer needs or have a use for. The colour of this discharge varies among different women depending upon . It is made up of mainly blood, bits of fetal membranes, decidua, meconium, and cervical discharge. Your discharge has a strong and noticeable odor or has changed in color, amount, or consistency from your normal discharge. Leukorrhea is a mild, odorless discharge from the vagina that is clear or milky in color. This can be exacerbated by the fact that the mom-to-be is retaining extra fluid that can pool in the legs, making them prone to injury. In a majority of cases, however, it will be odorless. For your health and safety, run any treatment ideas for your situation by your healthcare provider. When you're pregnant, you might find you're producing more discharge than before, due to the pregnancy hormones coursing through your body. Management of normal labor and delivery. The color, consistency, and amount of leukorrhea can vary depending on where you are in your menstrual cycle. Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available. 2005 - 2023 WebMD LLC. Abnormal discharge may also signal a complication in your pregnancy. However, a doctor must perform a blood pregnancy test. It might indicate an ectopic pregnancy. The scent isn't bad or unpleasant. After all, tobacco smoke contains a plethora of toxic chemicals, all dangerous for the baby. 2013; article ID 590416. doi:10.1155/2013/590416, Hansen LK, Becher N, Bastholm S, et al. Obstetrics and Gynecology International. 2020;323(13):1324. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.3690. Could a monthly antibody injection be a promising endometriosis treatment? Swelling in the Feet and Legs During Pregnancy. This could be a sign of placenta previa or placental abruption. Dr.Garima Sawhney. But people who smell oddly like theyve just come out of the village bakery may have a condition that is very bad for the pregnancy: typhoid fever. Read our, Do You Really Need to Use a 'Feminine Wash?'. A very strong odor, itching, or burning could be signs of a bacterial or yeast infection, which are more common during pregnancy because of hormonal changes, Hernandez adds. Healthy vaginal discharge is usually thin and clear or milky white with only a mild, inoffensive odor. BV can cause issues during pregnancylike increasing your risk for preterm laborso it is important to speak to your healthcare provider if you suspect you have BV. Vaginosis is dangerous for pregnancy, as it is associated with increased rates of miscarriage, low birth weight and preterm labor. The amount of vaginal discharge (cervical fluid) increases during pregnancy and turns into the mucus plug gradually. As many know, diabetes can pose a risk to the pregnancy if left untreated. BabyCenter's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. However, if the discharge becomes thick and lumpy, resembling cottage cheese, then you might have thrush (candida albicans). The skin contains two types of sweat gland: eccrine and apocrine. It can also, in part, be exacerbated by moms increased sweating, which can deliver much-needed nutrients to the said microbes. Wipe from front to back when you visit the toilet to prevent bowel bacteria entering the vagina. Note that this is actually normal in people who are vegetarian or are taking protein-rich diets, because ammonia is actually one of the by-products of the breakdown of proteins. Here are the changes in cervical mucus after conception: 1. Curr Infect Dis Rep. 2015;17(6):30. doi:10.1007/s11908-015-0462-0, Jin J. 2. A change in the amount of vaginal discharge can also sometimes indicate pregnancy. An increase in vaginal discharge is often one of the earliest signs of pregnancy. The extra discharge is due to a boost in estrogen production and increased blood flow early in pregnancy, she says. Find more about her work at www.auninditabhatia.com. You might feel it in your underwear, so you . Vaginal discharge can increase noticeably in the last three months of pregnancy. Any changes in the color, odor, or consistency of vaginal discharge might indicate an infection, so it's a good idea to keep an eye on it throughout your pregnancy. Increased discharge also helps protect the fetus by preventing external infections from traveling up from the vagina to the uterus. Vaginal discharge actually has many uses in your body. When the discharge is green or yellow with a foul smell, it can indicate a bacterial infection that may require antibiotic treatment. The doctor will make sure that the medication you are prescribed is safe for use in pregnancy. The discharge could also be a sign of the early stages of pregnancy. If you have a c-section, you might not have quite as much lochia as moms who have vaginal deliveries. The tricky part here is that some of these heavy metals are actually essential to the body in small doses. When to call your midwife about vaginal discharge during pregnancy. A decidual cast is a large piece of tissue that passes through your vaginal canal. Because there is hardly any insulin to help sugars enter the cell, the body begins to break down fats to use as fuel instead. Fonseca TMMV da, Cesar JA, Mendoza-Sassi RA, Schmidt EB. In some instances, you may experience brown or pink discharge. Just before or as you go into labor, as your cervix dilates, the plug comes loose and is pushed out of the vagina. Because these metals are so toxic, the body excretes them liberally through sweat and urine, resulting in that strange odor. (2018). Pregnancy causes higher levels of estrogen, leading the body to produce more discharge and increase the blood flow to the uterus and vagina. If you're less than 34 weeks pregnant and you think your water has broken, call your provider right away. Melasma brown patches on the face around the cheeks, nose, and forehead. We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article. Practice bulletin 172: Premature rupture of membranes. Here are some other ways to keep your genital area healthy: Vaginal bleeding or spotting during pregnancy, Pregnancy symptoms you should never ignore. Vaginal discharge is a mixture mostly made up of mucous, dead skin, and bacteria. The discharge may also be white or yellow in color and lumpy in texture, almost like cottage cheese. We all know that moms-to-be must stay away from smoking and cigarette smoke. Your body creates extra mucus when there is a boost in estrogen to help reduce the opportunity for a vaginal infectionmuch like the mucus in our nose helps prevent us from getting sick. Having a heavier discharge than normal is common when you are pregnant. These changes may suggest preterm labor. How Viagra became a new 'tool' for young men, Ankylosing Spondylitis Pain: Fact or Fiction, https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/pregnancy-test/, https://www.womenshealth.gov/pregnancy/youre-pregnant-now-what/stages-pregnancy, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK278962/, https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaginal-discharge/, http://nhs.uk/chq/Pages/952.aspx?CategoryID=54#close, https://www.virtua.org/articles/what-to-know-about-vaginal-discharge-during-pregnancy, https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control/fertility-awareness/whats-cervical-mucus-method-fams, Common sweetener erythritol tied to higher risk of stroke and heart attack, Gout: How metabolic syndrome may increase the risk, A new therapeutic target for the prevention of heart failure due to aortic stenosis, Skipping breakfast and fasting may compromise the immune system. 2015. The only place to satisfy all of your guilty pleasures. She has written for Thethings, Babygaga, Thetravel, and Therichest. Can diet help improve depression symptoms? Welsh recommends the following vaginal skin treatment tips: Don't use perfumed products, which often include many chemicals and irritants. It is also seen that during early pregnancy, some females experience either . JAMA. Monique Rainford, MD, isboard-certified in obstetrics-gynecology, and currently serves as an Assistant Clinical Professor at Yale Medicine. Unless shes just wearing some really strong perfume, that is. Usually, this is a result of the overgrowth of normal bacteria in the vagina in a condition known as bacterial vaginosis. Cramping Out Of Nowhere. In early pregnancy, vaginal discharge may increase due to the rise of hormones such as estrogen and as a result of greater blood flow to the vagina. Unless mom is a cyborg, chances are that her body is probably not giving off a metallic smell. While fungal infections of the feet can rarely affect the pregnancy itself, it can make the expecting mom super uncomfortable. Both candidiasis and oral thrush are easily treatable. There are also some metals, such as cadmium, that are toxic even in tiny amounts. The discharge that is normally seen during pregnancy consists of vaginal and cervical secretions, dead skin cells and bacteria naturally found in the vagina. Because of these factors, the mucus gland in the cervix starts to work more intensely than they normally do, triggering additional mucus. Basically, even if mom was only hanging around with smokers for a short period of time, she may still be inhaling any chemicals left on her clothes and hair throughout the day. Normal pregnancy discharge is white or cream in colour. Can changes in my discharge be an early sign of pregnancy? 1 Many people notice that leukorrhea increases during pregnancy, either at the start of pregnancy or as the pregnancy progresses. Debra Rose Wilson, Ph.D., MSN, R.N., IBCLC, AHN-BC, CHT. Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. 6. This mucousy fluid collects in the top of the vagina and then gravity causes it to flow . With all the changes in hormones during pregnancy, the pH level in your vagina will fluctuate. All the extra mucus produced, obviously, starts . The discharge usually becomes thinner and drier after ovulation. Guide to Vaginal Discharge: Whats Normal and When Should You Call Your Doctor? We avoid using tertiary references. Depending on your circumstances, they might take a swab from the low vagina or use a speculum inserted into the vagina so the swab can be taken from higher up. As such, there is an increased risk for a c-section or, if the vaginal delivery pulls through, tears in moms perineum. While not as serious as bacterial vaginosis, yeast infections can cause plenty of discomfort and other problems. She may also experience symptoms like excessive hunger, sweating and urination. Lochia as moms who have vaginal deliveries blood, bits of fetal membranes, decidua meconium! 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