Male thrush

Male thrush - yeast infection

Candida is naturally occuring in the body in several places and it is normally balanced by good bacteria so it stays on a low level and causes no problems.

When the delicate bacteria / Candida balance is disturbed though, there is a risk of developing a yeast infection, thrush. The most common yeast infection is the vaginal thrush but male thrush, or penile yeast infection can also occur and is not uncommon.

Men without foreskin are less likely to be affected because of the lack of humidity and moisture available for the Candida to grow.

Thrush in males can be sexually transmitted if you have intercourse with someone with a yeast infection but normally only if your own balance has deteriorated for some reason so you become receptive. Male thrush can also develop for other reasons, the causes of yeast infection that always apply like long cures of antibiotics, low immune defense etc.

Male thrush symptoms

• You may notice "spots" on the head of your penis which later grows to small lumps or craters if not treated with thrush cream
• The penis head becomes very itchy
• There may be penile discharge
• Discomfort or light pain when urinating
• Smegma may appear (looks like cottage cheese, smells yeasty)

Male yeast infections do not always have symptoms and can just go away again but as a precaution, if your partner has a candida infection it is wise to treat yourself as well. Even if your infection is small and causes no problems, it can still re-infect your partner after thrush treatment.

Treatment of male thrush

Check out with your doctor first that your symptoms really are male thrush and nothing else - as several STD's could have similar symptoms, at least initially.

Male Candida is treated with anti fungal cream, applied twice daily for approximately 1-2 weeks. By then the symptoms should have disappeared. Notice that you should keep treating your penis for a 5-6 days after the symptoms have gone away, or there is is a certain risk that the yeast infection will come back.

Male thrush cream brands are Clotrimazole, Canesten, Pevaryl etc. It is the same cream that is used by women so you can share the cream with your partner (who should use both cream and a suppository).

If you are somewhere where you cannot get hold of the thrush cream - then what? Here are a few tricks for treating thrush without thrush cream:

• Yogurt. Apply as you would the cream, but a few more times a day. Make sure you get natural yogurt with as few additives as possible. But even a raspberry yogurt is better than none.
• Athletes foot cream. It is usually the same cream, just rebranded. Check that the active ingredient is clotrimazole with a strength of 1-2%.

While you are under treatment for male thrush, you should avoid sex if possible or at least use a condom. Use condom even a while after the treatment as you will be more sensitive to re-infection and other infections for a shorter period.

Preventing male thrush

Same rules as for thrush in women apply to the diet - avoid anything with yeast, stay on low carbohydrate food, avoid sugar.

Other rules are also general for both thrush in men and women - use natural material underwear (cotton) etc.