Yeast infection in men?
#27
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I advise you to use cold pressed coconut oil rather than a lotion.
Over several years I tried various prescription ointments made with unpronounceable ingredients with zero results - good old pure coconut oil applied before every ride and all is well.
My theory is that riding causes skin damage caused by friction and coconut oil reduces the friction and also nourishes the skin. The anti fungal component is a bonus.
#29
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I use organic cold pressed coconut oil. I smear it on and give it 5 minutes or so to soak in before I put on my gear.
#30
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Not sure witch hazel is a good choice. Seems to me that may dry things out a bit. I would (and do) wipe down with baby wipes after riding if unable to take a shower. A&D ointment could be helpful, as well as any jock itch type topicals. No way would I use any powders before a ride. I could see that going south real quick. You don't need to add any abrasion components.
Seems you have a plethora of info and advice & you're already indicating some relief so I won't add anything on that front other than the above. Good luck.
Seems you have a plethora of info and advice & you're already indicating some relief so I won't add anything on that front other than the above. Good luck.
#31
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Witch hazel doesn't dry! It's pretty amazing as an astringent. We often don't put our window air conditioner in in the summer, and when it gets hot, I wipe myself down with witch hazel to cool off.
This thread has been helpful. I may have some yeast or fungus going on, so I'll try some of the remedies mentioned here.
This thread has been helpful. I may have some yeast or fungus going on, so I'll try some of the remedies mentioned here.
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Tom Reingold, tom@noglider.com
New York City and High Falls, NY
Blogs: The Experienced Cyclist; noglider's ride blog
“When man invented the bicycle he reached the peak of his attainments.” — Elizabeth West, US author
Please email me rather than PM'ing me. Thanks.
#32
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Thread Starter
Glad I'm not the only one^. Well not glad, but makes me feel less annoyed.
Okay, I'm mostly better but still not full cured. Still have some soreness and chaffing where my inner thighs/undercarriage meet the saddle. Been using the pH soap and coconut lotion, but will have to try to coconut oil.
I didn't even ride last weekend on a long loop, just commuting to my office. I think I'm going to schedule a dermatologist appointment. This is now many weeks, something has to be going on. And I'm tired of the discomfort, it's making cycling less fun and I really don't like that!
Okay, I'm mostly better but still not full cured. Still have some soreness and chaffing where my inner thighs/undercarriage meet the saddle. Been using the pH soap and coconut lotion, but will have to try to coconut oil.
I didn't even ride last weekend on a long loop, just commuting to my office. I think I'm going to schedule a dermatologist appointment. This is now many weeks, something has to be going on. And I'm tired of the discomfort, it's making cycling less fun and I really don't like that!
#33
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Okay, tried something new and I feel almost 100%.
Showered and used pH body wash down there. Let it fully dry. Then put on tea tree oil and let it full dry. Then put on some diaper rash cream overnight while I slept. ZERO pain or discomfort during this morning's commute. Oh man, it has been weeks since I've ridden with such joy!!
Showered and used pH body wash down there. Let it fully dry. Then put on tea tree oil and let it full dry. Then put on some diaper rash cream overnight while I slept. ZERO pain or discomfort during this morning's commute. Oh man, it has been weeks since I've ridden with such joy!!
#34
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dunno 'bout all that, never happened to me, but I always find a hot soak with plenty of epsom salt (& foaming bath soap of your choice) to be quite soothing. (I like Dr. Teal's)
#35
Okay, tried something new and I feel almost 100%.
Showered and used pH body wash down there. Let it fully dry. Then put on tea tree oil and let it full dry. Then put on some diaper rash cream overnight while I slept. ZERO pain or discomfort during this morning's commute. Oh man, it has been weeks since I've ridden with such joy!!
Showered and used pH body wash down there. Let it fully dry. Then put on tea tree oil and let it full dry. Then put on some diaper rash cream overnight while I slept. ZERO pain or discomfort during this morning's commute. Oh man, it has been weeks since I've ridden with such joy!!
Was the tea tree oil proof? I hope there weren't any scruffed skin there! I prefer tea tree lotion as the least risky option.
#36
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Only when its solid. It turns to a clear liquid at around 74+ degrees.
I use organic cold pressed coconut oil. I smear it on and give it 5 minutes or so to soak in before I put on my gear.
Its good that you mentioned cold-pressed because all coconut oil is not the same. Many lower quality coconut oils manufacturers use chemicals to extract the oil -- not good. However, you don't have to use the highest quality for topically application. I save cold-pressed for ingestion and us the expeller-pressed (a bit cheaper, but still good) for external application. However, both can be consumed or used externally.
BTW, if you want to give those nasty fungi the double whammy you might also add some apple cider vinegar (ACV) to the mix. Another all natural and potent anti-fungal that can be used both ways and is filled with many other healthy and medicinal benefits.
About 2 tsp./day (in divided doses), should be sufficient to keep the doctor away. Again, get the raw organic unfiltered kind. Also, don't forget the spare pair of undies.
I use organic cold pressed coconut oil. I smear it on and give it 5 minutes or so to soak in before I put on my gear.
BTW, if you want to give those nasty fungi the double whammy you might also add some apple cider vinegar (ACV) to the mix. Another all natural and potent anti-fungal that can be used both ways and is filled with many other healthy and medicinal benefits.
About 2 tsp./day (in divided doses), should be sufficient to keep the doctor away. Again, get the raw organic unfiltered kind. Also, don't forget the spare pair of undies.
#37
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Preparation H and generic antifugal clears me up. I live in a hot humid climate so this issue arises frequently.
#38
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Sounds good. Now try 1 percent hydrocortisone cream every morning when you get up. That should take care of the rest of it.
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#39
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The thing is... you have to keep the treatment up for probably a week. It's one of the great weaknesses we have -- as soon as it feels good again, we stop the medicating. Happens all the time with legitimate antibiotics (which, of course, don't apply in this case). Then it flares up again for no apparent reason.
Was the tea tree oil proof? I hope there weren't any scruffed skin there! I prefer tea tree lotion as the least risky option.
Was the tea tree oil proof? I hope there weren't any scruffed skin there! I prefer tea tree lotion as the least risky option.
The trouble with anti fungal medicine as with antibiotics is that if one doesn't see the treatment through, the fungal strains can become resistant and that is not a good place to be in.
The tea tree thing reminds me how I finally ended my circle of yeast infections. Well, actually it was with surgery but before that the way I ended the whole circle of infections so I could actually have surgery without an active flareup was a DIY concotion specifically made to target fungal infections without disturbing the local bacterial flora too much.
Basically it was
tea tree oil,
oregano oil,
frankincence,
clove oil
and lemongrass oil
all mixed up in cold pressed coconut oil and a bit of jojoba oil.
Man now that I think of it that seems like some new age bs. But I did do some studying on the subject (actual scientific papers and publications from pubmed, not some new age hippy websites) and while not all essential oils have antifungal properties (obviously), the ones above apparently do, some of them being pretty potent. They have different working mechanisms and ways to target the candida strains and it's biofilm so I just combined all of them. Jojoba oil doesn't have any antifungal properties but it's just good for my skin.
Anyways it worked like a charm and actually worked better than fluconazole or miconazole ever did.
One thing to note though is that all of the above oils require quite a bit of diluting. Especially the oregano oil is extremely burney so quite a bit of suspension oil is required to make essential oils skin safe. There are probably some charts or whatever but I went with trial and error. The errors were not pleasant
I used coconut oil because it too apparently has some antifungal properties but in my case they were too mild to make a difference in reining in an actual infection (tried pure coconut oil before adding the essential oils)
And then there's the fact that some essential oils, like the tea tree oil are highly toxic so oral ingestion is a big no no and washing hands after use is mandatory.
Hydrocortizone doesn't do anything for yeast infections except maybe treat the secondary dermatitis but it's really not necessary to treat that since it'll heal by itself. People should in general be more cautious in using hydrocortizone as a cure-all skin treatment because it doesn't work for as many ailments people think it does and it thins the skin as a side effect.
#40
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I had the problem describe in the OP for a while and using benzalkonium chloride wipes a couple times a day on and around the affected area helped a lot and after an oral yeast medication got rid of the problem the wipes kept it away. You can get the antiseptic wipes pretty cheap, and the antiseptic doesn't burn at all. Some wipes are better than others - I don't remember the brand, but one brand I bought the wipes were almost dry.
#41
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The person that mentioned gold bond hit the nail on the head.
First, a few thoughts: 1) Using antibacterial soap will exacerbate a fungal problem - because good bacteria keep fungus in check. 2) Washing too frequently; same deal - because it kills the good bacteria.
A little background: I had to take a strong antibiotic after a surgery about a year ago. About a month later, I got itchy spots in random places (this did coincide with winter and dry season, where I get dry spots anyway) including my scalp. I hate doctors, so I self-diagnosed it as the start of fungus over growing from the antibiotic. That said, I did a lot of research on the subject.
What I found was that an ingredient that’s both in head and shoulders and gold bond - fights fungus. That ingredient is zinc. (Research the beginnings of anti-dandruff shampoo, and you’ll see that researchers believe that fungus causes dandruff and itchy scalp too).
In either event, I just use head and shoulders now, and put gold bond on before and after a ride. More of a preventative measure. But I’m a pretty firm believer in this method. In fact, sun screen contains it too :-)
So if anyone is still looking for recommendations, try getting head and shoulders (make sure it has the 1% zinc). Also get the gold bond (it lists menthol as the active ingredient, just keep reading to ensure it has the zinc too). Form doesn’t matter (salt, pyrithione, oxide, etc) because this is just preventative, and not intended to replace a doctors recommendation or anything.
In either event, read further here, if interested:
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/drp/2014/709152/
First, a few thoughts: 1) Using antibacterial soap will exacerbate a fungal problem - because good bacteria keep fungus in check. 2) Washing too frequently; same deal - because it kills the good bacteria.
A little background: I had to take a strong antibiotic after a surgery about a year ago. About a month later, I got itchy spots in random places (this did coincide with winter and dry season, where I get dry spots anyway) including my scalp. I hate doctors, so I self-diagnosed it as the start of fungus over growing from the antibiotic. That said, I did a lot of research on the subject.
What I found was that an ingredient that’s both in head and shoulders and gold bond - fights fungus. That ingredient is zinc. (Research the beginnings of anti-dandruff shampoo, and you’ll see that researchers believe that fungus causes dandruff and itchy scalp too).
In either event, I just use head and shoulders now, and put gold bond on before and after a ride. More of a preventative measure. But I’m a pretty firm believer in this method. In fact, sun screen contains it too :-)
So if anyone is still looking for recommendations, try getting head and shoulders (make sure it has the 1% zinc). Also get the gold bond (it lists menthol as the active ingredient, just keep reading to ensure it has the zinc too). Form doesn’t matter (salt, pyrithione, oxide, etc) because this is just preventative, and not intended to replace a doctors recommendation or anything.
In either event, read further here, if interested:
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/drp/2014/709152/
#42
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Thread Starter
Ugh, didn't realize it was a few years ago at this point. Seems like my issue is back! A hot summer, daily commuting to my office, guess I wasn't being careful enough.
Been treating it for a few days, already feels better. I went mtb biking last weekend and just wore merino wool boxer briefs, think that was a bad idea, seemed to make things worse, I guess the friction stirred things up. Wore some chamoised shorts this weekend, was better.
Hoping to avoid a trip to my doctor, but I think I could go to my GP rather than my dermatologist for this. It's considerably cheaper to go to my GP.
Been treating it for a few days, already feels better. I went mtb biking last weekend and just wore merino wool boxer briefs, think that was a bad idea, seemed to make things worse, I guess the friction stirred things up. Wore some chamoised shorts this weekend, was better.
Hoping to avoid a trip to my doctor, but I think I could go to my GP rather than my dermatologist for this. It's considerably cheaper to go to my GP.
#43
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You need to be riding with materials that will wick the water away from your body. And I'd think if you are commuting, as soon as you get off the bike, you need to get out of anything you rode with, particularly shorts and any underwear you really shouldn't wear with bike clothes ( in my opinion).
Moist or wet skin and clothing will only make your issues worse quicker.
Moist or wet skin and clothing will only make your issues worse quicker.
#44
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Thread Starter
Thanks!
I'm good about getting out of my riding clothes as soon as I get to my office. I think it's just been so hot this summer that I needed some sort of cleansing of the area after I ride, rather than just letting it air out. I ride in shorts, t-shirt, merino boxer briefs year round, I think the hot summer just caught up with me.
I'm good about getting out of my riding clothes as soon as I get to my office. I think it's just been so hot this summer that I needed some sort of cleansing of the area after I ride, rather than just letting it air out. I ride in shorts, t-shirt, merino boxer briefs year round, I think the hot summer just caught up with me.
#45
Senior Member
Thanks!
I'm good about getting out of my riding clothes as soon as I get to my office. I think it's just been so hot this summer that I needed some sort of cleansing of the area after I ride, rather than just letting it air out. I ride in shorts, t-shirt, merino boxer briefs year round, I think the hot summer just caught up with me.
I'm good about getting out of my riding clothes as soon as I get to my office. I think it's just been so hot this summer that I needed some sort of cleansing of the area after I ride, rather than just letting it air out. I ride in shorts, t-shirt, merino boxer briefs year round, I think the hot summer just caught up with me.
#46
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Is there any chance you aren't getting all the detergent out of your stuff when you wash it? I always run my cycling stuff through the washer a second time with no detergent, just water.
Actually the first time through the washer, I only use Oxyclean, the original formula, besides being a color safe bleach it is is a sanitizer and will kill any microbial things that might be growing in them.
Actually the first time through the washer, I only use Oxyclean, the original formula, besides being a color safe bleach it is is a sanitizer and will kill any microbial things that might be growing in them.
#47
Newbie
If you decide to see a doctor I'd perhaps go straight to the dermatologist, because I've had issues with general practitioners before simply because they're not all experts in this field. Practitioners think it's one thing, then the specialist says it's totally something different, in which case they're right. Happened to me many times with skin, feet, gastro and joint/muscle issues. Good luck.