“Never realized how cavernous the human vagina can be until I couldn’t get my diva cup out for three hours.”
Sadly, it’s not just about saying no to cookie dough and sushi.
When it comes to foodborne illnesses, the stakes are much higher for pregnant women. "Women have altered immunity during their pregnancy, which means they are more susceptible to bacteria and it's harder to fight off infection, so they tend to get sicker, too," Dr. Shilpi Mehta-Lee, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at NYU Langone Medical Center, tells BuzzFeed Health.
Foods are typically unsafe to eat during pregnancy if they have a high risk of bacterial or parasitic contamination. The worst kind are Listeria bacteria and the Toxoplasma parasite, says Mehta-Lee, because they can easily cross through the placenta and infect the fetus, causing anything from developmental problems — like blindness — to miscarriage and stillbirth.
Other harmful bacteria include E. coli, Campylobacter, and Salmonella. These are less likely to cross the placenta and do serious harm in the womb, Mehta-Lee says, but they can make the mother severely or even fatally ill by causing prolonged diarrhea and vomiting or other complications — and that obviously isn't good for a growing fetus either.
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The standard foods that doctors say need to be avoided include raw or undercooked meat, fish with high mercury levels, raw eggs, and unpasteurized dairy (pasteurization is a sterilizing process that kills bacteria). But some foods that have a high risk of bacterial contamination may not make the list because they aren't as obvious or popular. With our expert's help, we rounded up a list of these below.
That being said, it also isn't healthy to beat yourself up if you make a mistake. "If you accidentally eat something you weren't supposed to, don't believe that any problem in the future was 100% caused by that single exposure to a food — I see too many women feeling guilty for this reason," Mehta-Lee says. "If you get checked out and the pregnancy is still going well after you've eaten something on the banned list, just relax and try not to become overly worried or paranoid."
ABC / Via popsugar.com
Even though the fresh-pressed fruit and vegetable juice trend is huge right now, pregnant women probably shouldn't hop on the bandwagon. "Women think these are great during pregnancy because they're healthy and full of vitamins, but what they don't realize is some juices, such as orange juice, are unpasteurized, and also the rapid chopping and juicing process allows for cross-contamination," Mehta-Lee says.
The result? Many of these seemingly harmless fruit and veggie juices have a higher risk of containing bacteria like E. coli, which can make the mother and developing fetus pretty sick.
Davidcallan / Via gettyimages.com
Most pregnant women know not to eat sushi, but smoked fish is a little less obvious since it's technically cooked through a curing process. "Cold-smoked or cured fish like salmon lox isn't heated high enough to kill certain parasites and bacteria, which can cross into the placenta and harm the pregnancy," says Mehta-Lee.
Fish should always be cooked to at least 145 degrees Fahrenheit before eating if you're pregnant. So you definitely want to get your bagel without lox, no matter how tempting it looks.
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“Would you rather wake up to this or a CRYING BABY!!”
See if you can pass our breast test.
“Last night I dropped my birth control pill and I thought I saw it on the ground but when I picked it up it was a fucking lentil.”
呼びかたで見えてくる、生理との向き合いかた。
日本では生理を「女の子の日」「アンネ」「メンス」などと呼ぶけど……世界中の女子は、生理をなんて呼んでいるの？
気になる生理の呼び方をBuzzFeed Communityにアンケートで聞いてみました。
世界中から集まった、6000以上の回答。呼び方で、その国が生理とどう向き合っているのかが見えてきます。
（呼び方は元の言語から日本語に訳しています）
Binik / Via gettyimages.com
他にもこう呼ばれているよ： レディースデイ、レディースウィーク
呼んでいる国： オーストラリア、カナダ、ニュージーランド、イギリス、アメリカ
他にもこう呼ばれているよ： T.O.M（トム、time of the month）、トムが町にいる、 トムがやってきた
呼んでいる国： オーストラリア、カナダ、ニュージーランド、イギリス、アメリカ
他にもこう呼ばれているよ： ストロベリー・デイズ、ストロベリー・シーズン
呼んでいる国： オーストリア、ドイツ、ハンガリー、ラトビア、ノルウェー、スイス
Hint: Sperm are sneakier than you’d think.
Honestly, we all probably asked this question about a million times during our preteen or adolescent years.
Paramount Pictures / Via giphy.com
In case you missed sex education class, let's briefly go over how getting pregnant works. The most common way a person gets pregnant is through unprotected vaginal intercourse, when the penis ejaculates semen into the vagina.
The semen contains sperm, which travel up the vaginal canal, through the cervix, and into the uterus. If there's an egg present, then the sperm can fertilize it. Once the fertilized egg implants in the lining of the uterus, voilà — you're pregnant.
But the question remains: Could sperm still enter the vagina and cause a pregnancy without the whole penis-in-vagina sex preamble? And we aren't talking about insemination or IVF – we're focusing on the crazy mishaps and accidents that could maybe technically theoretically lead to pregnancy.
NBC / Via ifc.com
"Unfortunately, there are a lot of crazy myths out there just to scare people, so it's important to understand the real scenarios where it's possible to get pregnant without having sex, and why," Dr. Mary Jane Minkin, clinical professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences at Yale School of Medicine, tells BuzzFeed Health.
"It's important to talk about sperm first, because people might not know that there can be thousands or even millions of these little guys in just one drop of semen," Minkin says. So semen is pretty sperm-potent.
Just to give some context, Minkin says, a "low sperm count" is anything less than 20 million sperm per 1 mL of semen — and 10 or 15 million per 1 mL is still a lot of sperm. "So even a tiny bit of ejaculate can cause a pregnancy if it gets inside the vagina," Minkin says.
But what about the pre-ejaculate? "Research shows that there's very few, if any sperm in pre-ejaculate, but there's so little time between pre-ejaculate and ejaculate that they often mix and you can never be 100% sure it's only pre-ejaculate with no sperm," Minkin says. So it's better be safe than sorry, and assume there could always be sperm lurking in there.
Ilexx / Via gettyimages.com
Because knowing your status should be as easy as, well, peeing in a cup.
Getting tested is pretty much always a good idea — whether you just got into a new relationship with someone, you recently had unprotected sex, or you're just not totally sure what your status is.
Ideally, you should start getting tested after your first sexual encounter and then between partners in the future. STIs can be spread through oral, anal, and vaginal sex — and sometimes just through skin-to-skin genital contact or sharing sex toys. So if you're engaging in any of these sexual activities, it's probably time to think about getting tested — even if you think you and your partner are STI-free.
*FYI: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) essentially mean the same thing, though many experts choose to use the term STI since a disease is something that comes with a certain set of symptoms, and STIs are often symptomless.
Planned Parenthood / Via instagram.com
So, yeah, they're pretty damn common. According to the 2015 Surveillance Report from the CDC, STIs have reached an all-time high in the US, meaning the total combined cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis reported in 2015 reached the highest number ever.
Even though young people only make up a quarter of the sexually active population in the US, they account for more than half of the 20 million new STI infections each year.
Franckreporter / Via gettyimages.com
"One of the most important things people need to know is that most STDs have absolutely no symptoms at all," Elizabeth Torrone, PhD, epidemiologist at the division of STD prevention at the CDC, tells BuzzFeed Health.
Plus, symptomless STIs aren’t necessarily harmless. If infections continue without being treated, this can lead to more serious health complications or increase your risk of contracting other STIs or HIV.
"Untreated chlamydia and gonorrhea can cause very poor health outcomes in women, such as pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), ectopic pregnancy, and infertility," Jessica Frasure-Williams, director of programs and partnerships at the National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD), tells BuzzFeed Health.
Planned Parenthood / Via instagram.com
“I’m in a constant battle to help women and it can get exhausting sometimes, but the good days outweigh the bad ones.”
BuzzFeed Health reached out to abortion providers across the country to find out what they wish people understood about the job, the procedure, and the women they treat.
We heard from physicians who practice in conservative Southern states, liberal coastal cities, the rural Midwest, and in between. The following is a selection of perspectives and anecdotes from 11 physicians (some of whom asked to remain anonymous) that illustrate their day-to-day and the current landscape of abortion care in the US.
Drew Angerer / Getty Images / Via gettyimages.com
[Editor's note: This article is meant to be informational and educational, but it does not speak on behalf of all providers or all patients. Although all quotes are from physicians, this is not meant to replace advice from a medical professional. If you are seeking an abortion or have any questions about abortion, talk to your doctor or a health educator.]
"The majority of my practice is full-scope OB-GYN care, so I provide abortions but I also work in infertility, obstetrics, gynecological surgery such as hysterectomies, family planning, abnormal uterine bleeding, and I also work at a local country jail providing gynecological care for incarcerated women. People only think I terminate pregnancies but I deliver babies too, and I love that part of my job."
—Dr. Rachna Vanjani, OB-GYN, San Francisco, California, fellow, Physicians for Reproductive Health
"I get to care for women during these monumental times throughout all the stages of their lives. That may mean providing prenatal care, helping a woman through a miscarriage or stillbirth, helping women who choose adoption, providing care during menopause, or safely terminating pregnancies — and for me, it's a great honor."
—Dr. Lisa Perriera, OB-GYN, Philadelphia Women's Center, Pennsylvania, fellow, Physicians for Reproductive Health
Dola Sun for BuzzFeed News
Are you protecting your penis?
Just because vaginas get gynecologists and annual exams and all that jazz doesn't mean you can just forget about your penis health. In fact, there are a lot of problems that can arise if you don't look after your penis properly.
So to find out more about how to keep your penis as healthy as possible, BuzzFeed Health spoke with two board-certified urologists: Dr. Harry Fisch, clinical professor at Weill Cornell Medical College and New York-Presbyterian Hospital and author of Size Matters; and Dr. Abraham Morgentaler, director of Men's Health Boston, clinical professor at Harvard Medical School, and author of The Truth About Men and Sex.
Here are some common mistakes, bad habits, poor hygiene practices, and behaviors they'd suggest ditching ASAP.
Apatow Productions / Via reactiongifs.com
New bumps, rashes, blisters, warts, or discoloration on the penis should never be ignored, especially if they're red or painful or itchy. "Red is not right," Fisch tells BuzzFeed Health.
This could be a sign of a sexually transmitted disease, a bacterial or fungal infection, an allergy, or something else, so you should get it checked out ASAP. Even if it turns out to be nothing, it's better to be safe than sorry. "If you have open blisters or sores, these can also increase the risk of transmission for certain STDs," says Fisch.
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Since the penis is an external organ, it doesn't have the same magical ~self-cleaning~ mechanisms that the vagina has to keep bacteria and other stuff out. Plus, the penis and surrounding area can get pretty warm and sweaty, which makes it easy for bacteria and fungus to grow.
"If you don't shower or clean the penis enough, especially if you're sweating a lot, you can end up with a rash and irritation, or fungal infections like jock itch," says Fisch. Not to mention, the buildup of bacteria down there can also cause an unpleasant odor, Fisch says, and smelling bad is never fun.
"A lot of men don't realize that they can also get yeast infections which look like red patches on the penis," says Morgentaler. "Our bodies are naturally covered in fungus (candida albicans), which can grow out of control if the area is too moist."
According to the experts, you should be washing your penis with soap and water at least once a day (depending on how dirty and sweaty you get). You should also be washing your penis after you have sex, because fluids from your partner might allow more bacteria to grow. Here's more info about cleaning your penis.
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If you're uncircumcised and your foreskin is long enough to cover the head of your penis, you'll want to make sure to keep it clean under there. "If you have poor hygiene, bacteria and fungus can get trapped under the foreskin," says Morgentaler. This can result in inflammation of the foreskin (posthitis) or inflammation of the head or glans of the penis (balanitis).
"Sometimes if there's a bacterial or yeast infection under the foreskin, it can cause a buildup that looks like cottage cheese," Morgentaler says. To prevent this from happening, Morgentaler suggests washing your penis with soap and water at least once a day, making sure to withdraw the foreskin and clean underneath, then drying it off well.
Fuji Network System / Cartoon Network / Via giphy.com
“Sorry, I didn’t quite get that.”
I also set my Siri voice to a male with an Australian accent (don't ask), so imagine all of these answers in that voice if you can.
The best part is that instead of saying "Mmmm" as one sound, my Siri just said repetitive "m" sounds so it sounded like "em em em em."
Caroline Kee / Via BuzzFeed
FYI, the Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines tuber as: a" short fleshy usually underground stem bearing minute scale leaves each of which bears a bud in its axil and is potentially able to produce a new plant." Apparently this includes potatoes, sweet potatoes, and cassava. Good to know.
Caroline Kee / Via BuzzFeed
Emergency contraception for half the price and 2-day shipping, with one catch: possibly getting pregnant.
Vice's Motherboard reports that a 25-year-old former EMT who identifies himself as "Jeremy A." ordered six boxes of a generic form of emergency contraception called Opcicon One-Step on Amazon from the vendor Opcicon. When he received his shipment about a week later, he noticed there was a sticker where the expiration date should've been printed, and underneath was a patch where the date had been scratched off.
After calling the drug company and inspecting another part of the box, Jeremy learned the pills had expired in July 2016, six months before he ordered them from Amazon. Other Amazon users who ordered from Opcicon left similar complaints in the review section, claiming that the product had been tampered with and the expiration date removed.
It's unclear whether these vendors are actual pharmacies or just people reselling expired products. Either way, most of them do not seem reputable. For example, one vendor is called "Plan B," — but the real Plan B One-Step is made by Teva Pharmaceuticals, and they don't sell their products on Amazon — they only sell Plan B One-Step at authorized retailers.
"They might be cheaper on Amazon, but they aren't from reputable vendors — so buyer beware," board-certified OB-GYN Dr. Alyssa Dweck, author of The Complete A to Z for Your V, told BuzzFeed Health.
According to Motherboard, Jeremy notified Amazon of the situation and left a claim with the FDA; he was offered a refund and the product has been removed. However, Opcicon still appears on Amazon through other vendors. There's no way of knowing if the product sold from these retailers is expired — or if it even has an expiration date on the box.
Amazon / Via amazon.com
"If the Plan B is expired, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s dangerous and it probably won't cause harmful side effects, but it does mean it’s going to be less potent and less effective," said Dweck.
Artisticcaptures / Getty Images / Via gettyimages.com
What really happens when IUDs fail?
In the original Facebook post, the mother shared the photo with the caption "Mirena fail!" followed by her baby's weight and height, and a note that the "IUD was found behind the placenta." Given the last detail, the photo was most likely staged and the baby did not come out actually holding the mom's IUD.
However, the photo has already been shared thousands of times on Twitter, Instagram, and Reddit without the original source or any context — which has undoubtedly led to some confusion among people about the IUD and pregnancy.
BuzzFeed Health reached out to expert OB-GYN Dr. Jennifer Gunter, to find out more about getting pregnant with an IUD.
Sarahmirk / Via commons.wikimedia.org
Unfortunately, no birth control method is 100% effective. "We know the IUD is incredibly effective but there are still failures — we even see failures with tubal ligations, and that's just because there's no completely perfect method out there," Gunter told BuzzFeed Health.
There are several kinds of hormonal IUDs, the most common ones in the US being Mirena and Skyla (a slightly smaller version). Mirena is 99.8% effective for up to five years with a failure rate of 0.2%, and Skyla is 99.6% effective for up to three years with a failure rate of 0.4%. Both options are inserted into the uterus and release a type of progestin hormone called levonorgestrel to prevent pregnancy. There's also the copper IUD, which is 99.2-99.4% effective, so the failure rate is about 0.6-0.8%.
The failure rates for IUDs are very, very small but they still exist — meaning some people just get unlucky. A 2011 literature review from the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) found 36 reported cases.
Lalocracio / Via gettyimages.com
"It could be that it shifted or moved somewhere in her uterus where it stopped working, or since the IUD works by changing the cervical mucus, maybe her partner's sperm had some incredible strength and mucus-penetrating ability, who knows," Gunter said.
Just to clarify, we're talking about the IUD failing to prevent pregnancy while it is still successfully implanted in the uterus. This is not the same as an IUD failing to implant or "IUD expulsion," which can occur in 2-10% of women in the first year after insertion. This is why doctors recommend checking the IUD threads once a month to make sure it's in place.
Willsie / Via gettyimages.com
The first risk, an ectopic pregnancy, means that the fertilized egg grows outside the uterus and the pregnancy occurs in the fallopian tubes instead. This is an emergency that requires immediate medical attention — if left untreated, ectopic pregnancy can cause internal bleeding, infertility, and even death.
If the fertilized egg successfully implants in the uterus and you continue the pregnancy with a hormonal IUD, there are different risks. These include infection or sepsis, says Gunter, and also miscarriage, premature delivery, or very rarely, death. However, just because these can happen doesn't mean they will happen.
"We do know there's a slightly higher risk of a negative outcome with the pregnancy if you still have a hormonal IUD, but we don't know how high or have any percentages because there just haven't been many studies on this yet," Gunter said. So if you have an IUD and think you're pregnant, don't panic — just go see your doctor as soon as possible.
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Did you feel yourself poop tho?
CBS / Via popsugar.com
Lionsgate Films / Via popsugar.com
E! / Via popsugar.com
NBC / Via popsugar.com
Medicine has come a LONG way, we’ll just leave it at that.
Ken Tannenbaum / gettyimages.com / Via BuzzFeed News
“Instead of just having senseless vandalism, we can inform people about an important issue [STIs] and give them a laugh.”
Instagram: @momablast / Via instagram.com
"I walk around the city a lot and catch the tube every morning, and I started to notice a lot of vandalism with penises," the art director (who wishes to remain anonymous) told BuzzFeed Health.
"It infuriated me because a lot of them were at school bus stops where kids gather, and it just shouldn't be the norm to just have your wang out, especially unprotected — I just thought it sent the wrong message," he said.
So he began to take pictures of the penises he found and kept track of their locations in a notebook, noting that the city wasn't removing any of them.
Instagram: @protectcitycocks / Via instagram.com
"I find them on public buildings, boarded-up windows, bridges, bus stops, everywhere — I keep it all in a list of the penises and their locations so I know which ones I haven't gotten to yet," he said. He likes to use bright colors like pink and red, which are better at catching the eyes of people passing by.
Of course, what he is doing is also vandalism and illegal — but he said there have been no problems so far. "I've had a couple of close calls, but I've been very strategic about it so I don't get caught by the police," he said.
Instagram: @protectcitycocks / Via instagram.com
“It’s like trying to poop out a pineapple the size of a bowling ball.”
We heard from women all over the US and UK who've had natural births — either by choice or because it was too late to receive an epidural. This collection of submissions does not speak to all natural births, but we hope it can illustrate the wide range of experiences and feelings. Here are some of the best responses:
—@SandiKShelby, Twitter
Lionsgate / Via popsugar.com
According to a new report, most adults swim after having diarrhea. THIS IS WHY WE CAN’T HAVE NICE THINGS.
bTV / Via imgur.com
The survey, conducted by the Water Quality and Health Council, found the following:
Before we get into these findings, let's quickly talk about pool germs. When you get in a pool, everything on your body — sweat, dirt, oil, bodily fluids — ends up in the water, like a big bathtub. So yes, most pools are full of germs, and for the most part it's not a big deal. We don't live in a sterile world and most germs are harmless. Plus, we have chemicals like chlorine to keep pools clean.
However, there are bad germs that you do not want in a pool — these are pathogens, or any bacteria, virus, or other organism that causes infection or disease. These can get in the pool from our bodies or fecal matter and infect other swimmers, leading to outbreaks of waterborne diseases.
Roman Sigaev / Getty Images / Via thinkstockphotos.com
Yes, two weeks sounds like a lifetime, but the CDC warns that this is the amount of time during which the body can shed diarrhea-causing pathogens that can make other people sick.
"Even if you feel better and you don't have symptoms, you can still be shedding millions, even billions, of diarrhea germs into the pool," Kelly Reynolds, PhD, germ expert at the University of Arizona, previously told BuzzFeed Health.
Unfortunately, not many people know about the two-week rule nor do they follow it. Given that about 89 million people are swimming in pools each summer and 25% of adults would swim right after having diarrhea, that means the risk of contamination is pretty high. This is why it's key to shower before swimming and avoid swallowing pool water — but people don't always follow those rules either, which we'll get to in a bit.
Instagram: @miekoc.harr / Via instagram.com
Besides struggling to make it through this entire post without getting distracted.
[Editor's note: ADD/ADHD is a neurological disorder characterized by difficulty sustaining attention, lack of self-control, impaired working memory, and a range of other symptoms. It’s now more often classified in medical literature as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but lots of people (including some doctors) still refer to it as ADD. For more information regarding ADHD, click here or find resources here.]
Nickelodeon / knowyourmeme.com / Via Twitter: @CarolineDKee
Caroline Kee / BuzzFeed / Via memebase.cheezburger.com
