Newspaper Page Text
Spelman Spotlight September 29, 1979 Page 6
A Guide to a Better You
Health Guide To Yeast Infection
By Adele S. Newson
There are some itches you just
can't scratch or, needless to say,
ignore. One of the most common
itches of that sort is a result of a
very common malfunction called
yeast infection.
Bacteria and other organisms
naturally inhabit the vagina in an
ecological balance. When
changes occur that effect the
balance of these organisms in
fections may occur. Candida
albicans is one such infection
resulting from an altered
metabolic state.
Candida albicans is a common
microscopic yeast-like fungus. It
is always present on the skin, in
the mouth and in the large in
testine of many healthy males
and females. It is also found in
the vaginal cavitv.
Women tend to be more
susceptible to the diseased state
of Candida albicans than are
men. In its diseased state, it is
commonly known as a yeast in
fection. According to Judith
Gordon, Family Planning Nurse
Practitioner and Services Direc
tor, men tend to experience the
disease less because of “the way
the genitalia are situated. Men
are more exposed. Yeast flourish
in a warm, dark, moist media,
and the vagina is a nice warm,
dark, moist medium.”
The major symptom of yeast
infections is intense itching, oc
casionally severe enough to in
terfere with sleep and normal
daily activities. Other symptoms
include swollen vaginal and
vulvar tissue, and a white
discharge possessing the con
sistency of cottage cheese.
Sexual intercourse may also
become painful as a result of the
infection.
“Any kind of irritation will
cause the symptoms to flare up,”
explained Ms. Gordon. “In
tercourse can cause an infection
in that the male may be a carrier
of yeast spores. He may have
them under the foreskin of the
penis and deposit them in the
vagina during intercourse. They
may began to grow, but certainly
the friction from intercourse can
add irritation when there is
already an infection there.”
Both males and females can en
counter the disease as a result of
using certain types of antibiotics,
from lowered body resistance, or
diabetes. Women more com
monly contact the disease
through the use of birth control
pills, after the menstrual period
and pregnancies. All of these fac
tors serve to lower the acidity of
the vagina. Yeast grows well in a
non or low acid environment.
Candida Albicans can be tran
smitted from one part of the body
to another. “It can be spread to
the vagina if a person uses im
proper wiping procedures. If a
person, after defecating, wipes
from the back to the front,
they’re going to wipe all kinds of
organisms that are commonly
found in the intestines into the
viginal area. And of course when
these organisms are displaced
they are going to set up an in
fection,” explained Ms. Gordon.
The infection can also reach the
vagina from the anus along the
surface of a menstrual pad.
Usually, yeast infections are as
simple to prevent as they are to
Family Planning Program Offered
By Angela Cumberlander
For the incoming Freshman
and returning students who are
looking for a good family plan
ning program, Spelman’s Mac-
Vicar Clinic has a lot to offer.
The services are available to any
AUC student, staff or faculty
member.
The services offered include a
complete laboratory analysis,
physical exam and contraceptive
services. Included in the
laboratory analysis are the
following: urinalysis—including a
diabetes test, hematocrit-red
blood cell count, sickle cell test,
pap smear, microscopic evalua
tion for vaginal infection and
gonorrhea screening. Also avail
able are syphilis and pregnancy
tests conducted upon request.
A very thorough physical exam
is given; chest, visceral, pelvic.
Beauty
Guide
•When applying make-up,
the test isn’t how much you
can put on, but how much you
can put on and still look as
though you’re not wearing
any.
********
•Best (and handiest) thing
for sharpening an eyebrow
pencil is an emery board.
******
•To keep soap out of your
eyes during shampoo, first
put cold cream on the eyelids
and brows. Soapy water will
promptly detour.
•Gum-chewing
mouth wrinkles.
prevents
"The sound body is a prod
uct of the sound mind."
George Bernard Shaw
vaginal and rectum exams are
conducted. The heart, lung and
thyroud gland are checked as
well as skin surfaces and ex
tremities. The breast examina
tion is performed and taught,
making the patient aware of the
importance of self breast exam
ination in the fight against cancer.
The contraceptive services at
MacVicar include counseling
sessions, refill and follow-up
clinics. The contraceptives
available include the chemical
(combination pill, mini-pill), the
spermicides (foams, jellies,
creams) and the mechanical
(IUD - intrauterine device,
diaphragm, condom). Some
special prescriptions, must be
filled at a pharmacy, but the con
traceptive supplies are available
through the clinic. Treatment for
sexually transmitted diseases is
available and the clinic welcomes
clients as well as their partners
for medical and educational ser
vices. Referrals are made for ser
vices which cannot be handled at
the clinic.
The clinic does even more than
provide contraceptive supplies, it
offers group and individual coun
seling. In these counseling
sessions many topics are
discussed, including the ad
vantages and disadvantages of
each contraceptive method in
relation to the patient. Educa
tional materials are provided in
the form of pamphlets as well
as films. Rap sessions are held in
dormitories or organizational
activities upon request.
How much do all these services
cost? The program is funded by
Spelman College and the Depart
ment of Human Resources. A
sliding scale fee for service is
used based on individual, not
family income; therefore, you
pay according to your own in
dividual income ability. It is
estimated that the clinic serves
800-900 patients per year.
It should be apparent that a
visit to the clinic is more than just
a visit to the doctor; it is learning "
experience for any patient
seeking knowledge. These ser
vices would not be available
without the staff; Ms. Cynthia
J enkins, Project Director and
Health Educator; Dr. William
Mason, Medical consultant; Dr.
Johnny Gilchrest, Gynecologist;
Ms. Cynthia Pickins, Medical
Technician; four professional in
terviewers, Mrs. Bates, Mrs.
Ratliff, Mrs. Lowe, Ms. Thom
pson, and the students trained as
clinical assistants to work with
the staff.
Clinic hours are Monday 4:30-
8:00 p.m. and Thursday 4:00-8:00
p.m. the follow up medical clinic
is 1:00-3:00 p.m. on Mondays and
Thursdays; supply refill hours are
5:30-7:30 p.m. on Wednesdays.
Nursing conferences may be
made by appointment for
Tuesdays, Wednesdays and
Fridays. Appointments may be
scheduled between 9:00 a.m. and
4:00 p.m. Monday thru Friday at
681-3643 ext. 288 or 289.
The clinic does just about
everything but knock on your
door; you must make the
decision to visit MacVicar’s
clinic. All you need is an appoint
ment.
treat. Several home remedies
have been effectively used to
prevent yeast infections. They in
clude:
-Yogurt tampons: dip a tampon
into plain Dannon yougurt once a
day and insert.
-Plain vinegar douche: 1
tablespoon vinegar to 1 quart
water.
-Betadine Douche.
However, home remedies are
not effective when the actual
disease is present. They are
merely used as preventive
measures. Nystatin vaginal tab
lets or creams are most often
prescribed by physicians to cure
the disease.
Most women carry Candida
albicans in their vaginas at some
time in their lives, although ac
tive infections do not always oc
cur. “Yet, yeast infections are a
normal part of female reproduc
tive health problems,” com
mented Ms. Gordon. “Some
women will carry the yeast in a
detectable amount, detectable by
their pap smears, and they will
have no symptoms at all...There
are a lot of women that have it
who don’t know they have it.”
A.U.C. Motto
“We Are Family”
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