Campus Health Checklist

With college in full swing, managing your class schedule and social life can be a juggling act. Sometimes thinking about your health takes a back seat. Here is your health checklist for your busy campus life.

1. Get Regular Paps: Growing up and moving away means having to do some “adult” things, and this includes setting up and going to regular check-ups, especially paps. Once you’re all settled on campus you should find a local gynecologist or consult your school’s student health center and make an appointment. But make sure that’s not the last time you visit your gynecologist before graduation, regular check-ups are a must.
   
   
2. Practice Safe Sex: There are all sorts of different birth control options out there from the pill, to the ring to an IUD. Your gynecologist can help find the right choice for your lifestyle. If your hate the daily chore of taking a pill at the same time then another option might work better for your lifestyle. Also, it is important to always use condoms to avoid STI’s.
   
   
3. Refresh Your Shower Routine to Avoid Irritating Your Sweet Spots: Women can’t just grab any soap or body wash in the dorm shower. In fact, most body washes aren’t designed with your sweet spot in mind.  Most soaps have a pH of 10; your vagina has a pH of 4 – this in addition to harsh ingredients like sulfates and glycerin can irritate and disrupt your natural chemistry. My tip is to visit the Feminine Hygiene aisle and find a natural, pH balanced body wash that doesn’t use sulfates or glycerin. This one minor change in your shower routine can help stop vaginal odor, yeast infections, and vaginosis from happening.

These tips will help you stay healthy as you navigate campus life!