Your Skinny Jeans Could Be Having This Nasty Side Effect On Your Vagina

Um, we think we might wear skirts from now on.

Women wearing jeans

Skinny jeans make up a pretty healthy chunk of our wardrobe (One STELLAR staffer ‘fesses to having an impressive six pairs, don’cha know) and as fair as fashion goes they are the food equivalent of always having milk in the fridge; dependable, reliable and goes with pretty much everything.

But could one of our fave-o fashion threads be wreaking havoc on our vaginas? Unfortunately, the answer could be yes.

The problem starts when tight fitting jeans rub up against the vulva, leading to irritation. While some women might feel a slight burning, tingling or itch, in some cases the irritation can lead to a nasty infection like bacterial vaginosis.

Thanks to the, er, tight, warm confines around your crotch bacteria is able to breed too, increasing your chances of developing a yeast infection.

Speaking to SELF, Tami Rowen, Ob/gyn at UCSF Medical Center explains that “tight pants rubbing and putting pressure on the vulva can cause irritation.

“I’ll do a biopsy, and it comes down to that something is irritating the skin tissue. The biopsy shows inflammation that just shouldn’t be there.”

Fortunately, it’s all about finding the right fit. “Lunge in that fitting room,” instructs our fashion editor Linda Conway. “And wiggle your way right into them bad boys.”

As long as you’re comfy and you can move around freely in them you shouldn’t run into any problems.

This gives us an excuse to go shopping, right? Right.

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