Free Book Excerpt from "The V Book: A Doctor's Guide to Complete Vulvovaginal Health"

Sweating

We all worry about our underarms producing odor from sweat, but the vulva is just as relevant. Ordinary sweating is a common cause of vulvovaginal odor. Remember that the genital region contains numerous apocrine glands, which produce sweat, as well as oil glands and glands associated with each hair follicle. Odor from sweat happens for one reason: Sweat includes the waste product urea, filtered from the blood (it's actually dilute urine), and the resident bacteria in the region interact with sweat-gland secretions, giving the external genitalia its odor. Treatment of a problem with odor from sweat involves (1) washing daily with antibacterial soap, then drying well…

…There are also prescription medicines, available either by mouth or to apply topically, to help control sweating. They will help cut down sweating everywhere in the body; it's not possible to take a pill that works only on V sweat glands. Dermatologists who are interested in the problem can prescribe these antiperspirants when a chronic condition known as hyperhidrosis, or excessive sweating, is thought to be the cause of odor.