How many lips does a girl have

But it can be uncomfortable or embarrassing, and it might make it difficult to keep the labia clean. Your doctor can advise you about simple solutions like wearing loose-fitting underwear or using an ointment to reduce any irritation. Labiaplasty is an option for women who are badly affected by labial hypertrophy. Fused labia is the term used when the labia majora are joined together.

It is quite common in children and normally develops at around the age of 1 or 2. The labia almost always separate by the time the child finishes puberty. The best thing to do is leave the labia alone. If the fusion is causing your child problems for example, with going to the toilet talk to your doctor about whether creams or massage can help. Surgery is a last resort because there's a high risk that the labia will fuse again.

If your labia are swollen, it could be the sign of a yeast infection, or an imbalance of bacteria in the vagina called bacterial vaginosis , an allergy or an infection. It could also just be due to friction from having sex. The Bartholin's glands are on each side of the vagina. If they get blocked, a cyst a tender or painful lump can form. The cyst can become infected, with a build-up of pus that will need to be treated with antibiotics. An abscess is an infection caused by bacteria underneath the skin.

Abscesses cause soreness, redness and swelling. Your doctor may recommend antibiotics, a procedure to remove the pus, and sitting in a sitz bath shallow bath , using a teaspoon of salt per litre of warm water, to ease the pain.

Many women and girls who have psoriasis elsewhere on their body also develop it on the labia. Psoriasis is a red, itchy rash, usually found on the hairy skin, and it can extend to the anus. It can be treated with a cream or ointment, but it often comes back. Genital warts are bumps that can appear on the labia and other parts of the genitals.

They are caused by the human papillomavirus HPV. The warts often go away by themselves but if they are painful or itchy, talk to your doctor about treatments, including special wart paint, freezing or laser treatment.

These treatments will only get rid of the warts, not the HPV virus. Read more: What's normal, anyway? GPs should discourage women from unnecessary genital surgery. Doctors advertise online , offering procedures including labiaplasty to reduce the labia minora, reduction of the clitoral hood, and plumping up of the labia majora. Our research team wanted to learn what was in popular websites advertising Australian clinics, and analysed 31 websites in The same or similar websites came up in our search this week.

Although most websites acknowledged that vulvas were naturally diverse, they used language that pathologised any appearance other than a Barbie doll. According to one doctor:.

The primary goal of labiaplasty is to reduce the size of the labia by surgically removing excess skin and shaping it into a more youthful and attractive form. These doctors reinforced the idea of binary sex, in which women must look undeniably female, with no visible clitoris. This pathway consists of the following: Vagina part of the birth canal , where sperm are deposited and from which a baby can The mons pubis is a rounded mound of fatty tissue that covers the pubic bone.

During puberty Puberty in Girls Puberty is a sequence of events in which physical changes occur, resulting in adult physical characteristics and capacity to reproduce. These physical changes are regulated by changes in the The mons pubis contains oil-secreting sebaceous glands that release substances that are involved in sexual attraction pheromones.

The labia majora literally, large lips are relatively large, fleshy folds of tissue that enclose and protect the other external genital organs. They are comparable to the scrotum in males. The labia majora contain sweat and sebaceous glands, which produce lubricating secretions.

During puberty, hair appears on the labia majora. The labia minora literally, small lips can be very small or up to 2 inches wide. The labia minora lie just inside the labia majora and surround the openings to the vagina and urethra. If the outer and inner lips are small and close to the inner thighs, the clitoral hood, which hides the clitoris, may be visible.

The inside of the vagina is like a long tube with folded areas that can expand and contract. Some doctors compare this characteristic to an accordion. Imaging studies reveal that most vaginas are narrower toward the vaginal opening and wider toward the cervix. Their vagina can seem wider or looser following childbirth. This is because the vaginal tissues expand to make room for a baby to pass down the birth canal.

The vagina may resume its pre-pregnancy size, or it may remain slightly widened. The vagina can change in size, or length, to accommodate a tampon, finger, or penis, for example. It does this by stretching and elongating. This also moves the cervix and uterus upward.

The length of the vagina varies, but the average length, when a person is not aroused, is just under 4 inches, according to an article in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. However, the length can range significantly from person to person, from about 2.

For example, a taller person may have a longer vagina. Skin colors naturally vary, including the skin of the vulva. Doctors report the following colors of the vulva:. The color can also vary, depending on blood flow. During arousal, the flow of blood increases, and the vulva may appear purplish.

Some people note color changes when they have certain medical conditions. A yeast infection , for example, may cause the vulva to appear purple or red. The following factors can also influence the appearance or smell of the vulva, and they naturally vary from person to person:. Pubic hair may help protect the genitals from bacterial illnesses.