Oral sex can be hot, steamy, and oh so pleasurable, but if you're in your head about how your vagina tastes, you're not alone. After all, if you follow wellness trends or browse social media at any given time, you're probably used to brands and influencers touting various foods (like pineapple) and supplements that can alter and improve your vagina's scent and taste.
The latest craze is brought to you by Lemme, Kourtney Kardashian's newest line of vitamins and botanical supplements, after it recently announced the launch of its vaginal-health gummies loaded with pineapple and vitamin C, captioning it, "Give your vagina the sweet treat it deserves (and turn it into a sweet treat). You know what they say… you are what you eat."
But what's the deal? Is it worth investing in vaginal-health gummies or loading up on pineapple, and can you really change the taste of your vagina? Don't worry, there's no shame in the game for wondering. Here's what experts told POPSUGAR.
What Does Your Vagina Naturally Taste Like?
Generally speaking, a healthy vagina can have many faint tastes and smells, including metallic, bitter, sweet, or salty, says Laura Purdy, MD, a board-certified family medicine physician and the chief medical officer of sexual and reproductive health company . "Given that the vagina is acidic, it's especially common for the vagina to taste metallic, especially soon after menstruation," she explains.
That said, if your vagina (including the vulva and labia) has any strong scents, like a fishy or foul smell, that can be a sign that something is wrong, including but not limited to a bacterial vaginosis infection, Dr. Purdy adds.
Can You Actually Change the Taste of Your Vagina?
Simply put, no. You cannot make your vagina taste like a "sweet treat." But your vaginal taste and odor can change based on your health, so maintaining proper hygiene and controlling illnesses can affect the taste of your vagina, says Adrienne Ton, FNP-BC, APRN-CNP, a family nurse practitioner at TBD Health, a sexual-wellness brand that provides affordable and shame-free reproductive care. "Besides that, I have yet to see a lot of high-quality evidence that anything like significant diet changes makes a difference in the taste of the vagina," she explains.
If your vagina does have a strong, new taste and you're concerned, check in with your doctor to rule out any taste that may be related to a vaginal infection like bacterial vaginosis, which can be treated with antibiotics, Dr. Purdy adds.
How Can You Make Your Vagina Taste Better?
Before you load up your Amazon cart with supplements, Dr. Purdy says the best way to avoid a strong, foul vaginal scent or taste is to preserve a healthy pH. "It's important to note that the vagina isn't supposed to taste or smell floral or fruity, but instead smell much more neutral," she explains. "Avoiding tobacco and drinking excessively, as well as washing the vulva with mild soap and water, are all ways to keep your vagina healthy and clean and to prevent your pH from being thrown off."
It's also best to stick with breathable underwear and avoid scented products, which can irritate the vagina and cause inflammation or an infection, Ton says. You should also monitor your sexual health and regularly test for sexually transmitted diseases or infections, since they can alter vaginal fluid and ultimately affect the taste, she adds.
It's also worth noting that taste is subjective. "The taste of your vagina can depend on the taste buds and preferences of the person who is tasting vaginal fluid or vaginal secretions, so if one person doesn't love the taste, this doesn't mean that others won't," Ton says. "It's not anyone's responsibility to make their vagina taste 'better' for someone else, and taking care of your own body can help you with your overall health and, in turn, the health of your vagina."
Do Certain Foods, Like Pineapple, or Supplements Make Your Vagina Taste Better?
Hate to break it to you, but there's limited research on whether specific foods or supplements can actually make your vagina taste better. "Few foods have a consistent impact on the taste of the vagina, but some have found that fermented foods like yogurt can increase the presence of healthy vaginal bacteria," Dr. Purdy notes.
And regarding the urban legend that pineapple can make your vagina taste better . . . it's also not a guarantee. "It is not scientifically proven that pineapple can actually improve vaginal taste, even though some have anecdotally stated that this is the case," Dr. Purdy says. "Some have found that fermented pineapple juice can increase the healthy bacteria in the vagina, but this is likely because of the fermentation process, rather than the pineapple component."
In other words, it's probably not worth investing in vaginal-health gummies, Dr. Purdy says. "At the end of the day, your vagina is supposed to taste just like that — a vagina — with a subtle metallic, salty, bitter, or sweet taste, and if anything, supplements that claim to use ingredients like pineapple to change the taste of the vagina are not scientifically proven to do so."