Vaginal care is a very important facet of every woman’s lifestyle, with new trends continually coming to the fore.
However, women have been recently warned against trying a bizarre new trend that suggests using ground-up wasp nests to tighten and rejuvenate their vaginas.
According to the New York post, the trend involves the use of oak galls which are nests that house wasp eggs as a natural way of cleaning female genitals.
The product reportedly is crushed into a paste and applied topically, with one listing on Etsy, which has now been removed, claiming it can improve a woman’s sex life.
They are also being advertised by online retailers as helping to “heal episiotomy cuts, rejuvenate the uterine wall and clean out the vagina” after childbirth, though there are warnings that it can “burn” when applied.
However, gynecologist Jen Gunter is warning women not to get sucked in by the new trend after branding it “dangerous” — saying the practice is using “drying agents” to tighten the vagina.
Writing on her blog, she said: “Drying the vaginal mucosa increases the risk of abrasions during sex (not good) and destroys the protective mucous layer (not good).”
“It could also wreak havoc with the good bacteria. This is a dangerous practice with real potential to harm.”
“Here’s a pro-tip, if something burns when you apply it to the vagina it is generally bad for the vagina.”
But it’s not the first time the gynecologist has warned against using herbal remedies for the vagina.
Last year, she had similarly spoke out against the womb detox trend which claimed to help women with endometriosis, ovarian cysts, thrush and fibroids.
Bags of perfumed herbs, known as Herbal Womb Detox Pearls, were being promoted as a health boost and women were being told to insert three of the balls into the vagina for 72 hours.
But Gunter explained further: “Leaving a product that is not designed for prolonged vaginal use (and these are not) in the vagina is a risk for toxic shock syndrome. Just don’t do it.”