We know that’s what most of you were thinking. Who the hell is sleeping in a thong? Surprisingly, a lot of people.
It seems harmless enough—besides how uncomfortable it sounds to everyone who doesn’t do it—but you might be shocked at some of the severe potential health risks of wearing thongs to bed.
Before we delve into the downside of sleeping in thongs, let’s discuss some of the positives, the reasons people do it in the first place.
Pros of Wearing Thongs to Bed
Yes, there are some pros. Believe it or not, people actually do have reasons for deciding to sleep in their thongs. They aren’t suffering. They prefer it.
It’s Comfortable—for Some People
We hear you shouting through the void, “But how?” We have no answers. It just is.
That’s the greatest beauty of being human; everyone is distinctly unique, has different preferences, and try as we might, we never quite fully understand each other.
Why else would there be as many different underwear styles as there are to serve the same general purpose? Everybody is different.
It’s Convenient—the Lazy Factor
Not changing underwear before bed is one less thing to do. Say you took a shower in the morning, put on your thong, and got dressed for the day.
At the end of the day, if all you have to do is change into PJs without changing your underwear, that’s one less step.
It sounds pretty silly, but sometimes after a long day, the laziness is that real for some people.
Best Underwear to Sleep In
Cons of Wearing Thongs to Bed
One of the largest concerns of sleeping in thongs is transferring bacteria from the anus to the urethra or vagina, causing infection.
Bacteria transferral can happen because the thong string actually moves around quite a bit during sleep and can absolutely travel far enough to transfer E. coli bacteria forward from the anus and cause infections, such as urinary tract infections or bacterial vaginosis.
However, it’s not just the thong style that’s the problem; it’s also the materials that thongs are most often made out of that cause problems, leading to infection.
Lace, lycra, nylon, and polyester are all non-breathable fabrics, which means they trap moisture, creating a breeding ground for bacteria in your underwear. These materials add to the cause of infection.
Urinary Tract Infections
If you have a predisposition to urinary tract infections, or have even been diagnosed with recurrent UTIs, then wearing thongs to bed is particularly risky for you.
Sleeping in thongs can cause urinary tract infections, as well as make it more difficult to clear a current infection if you have one and are taking antibiotic treatment.
Symptoms of a urinary tract infection include:
If a urinary tract infection has spread to the kidneys, a person might experience:
Bacterial Vaginosis
If you are prone to developing vaginal infections regularly, sleeping in thongs is probably not a good choice for you. It is likely adding to the problem or will add to the problem if you haven’t started sleeping in thongs yet.
As with urinary tract infections, thongs can cause bacterial vaginosis, as well as make it difficult to clear a current infection of vaginal bacterial vaginosis if you have one and are on Metronidazole, Clindamycin, or Tinidazole treatment.
Symptoms of bacterial vaginosis include:
However, many women who have bacterial vaginosis experience no symptoms at all.
Untreated Infections Lead to Pid and Infertility
While infections are uncomfortable and annoying, the grimmest downside of wearing thongs to bed is what sometimes happens when infections go untreated.
Untreated infections can lead to PID or pelvic inflammatory disease. PID can and frequently does cause infertility.
Pelvic inflammatory disease is an infection of the organs in the female reproductive system. In this case, it occurs when bacteria spread from the vagina to the uterus, to the fallopian tubes, and finally to the ovaries.
The signs and symptoms PID are often mild or subtle, or even completely nonexistent. Many women don’t realize they even have pelvic inflammatory disease until they have trouble getting pregnant or begin having chronic pain in the pelvic region.
If symptoms of pelvic inflammatory disease are present, they can include:
Should You Sleep in a Thong?
Some gynecologists recommend going commando while you sleep to let your vagina breathe and be completely free from any barriers that could trap moisture or be non-breathable.
The next best bet is one hundred percent cotton underpants—not a thong. You know, underpants: briefs, bikinis, boyshorts, hipsters, something with some semblance of coverage that doesn’t wedge itself right up your bum.
One hundred percent cotton is important for this because that’s really the only fabric that will be breathable for your vagina.
It’s worth noting that if only the crotch liner is one hundred percent cotton, and the rest of the underwear shell is one of the no-no materials (lace, lycra, nylon, polyester), that will affect the breathability of the underwear, and it’s probably not a good choice.
If you absolutely must sleep in your beloved thongs, you cannot part from them; gynecologists recommend that you make sure they are one hundred percent cotton and are well-fitting thong underwear.
The better fitting the thong is, the less it will move around and potentially transfer E. coli bacteria forward from your anus to your vagina or urethra, causing nasty infections and potentially lifelong complications.
References
- https://www.vice.com/en/article/xwxq3a/heres-the-deal-with-wearing-a-thong-to-sleep/
- https://www.elitedaily.com/p/can-you-sleep-in-a-thong-youre-probably-better-off-going-commando-heres-why-3220255/
- https://www.buzzfeed.com/carolinekee/is-sleeping-in-underwear-actually-bad-for-your-vagina/
- https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2013/10/55551/thong-health-dangerous/
- https://www.bustle.com/p/7-ways-wearing-a-thong-every-day-can-affect-your-health-69548/
