Everything You Need To Know About Anal Itching

Chances are you’ve never heard anyone talk about anal itching before. After all, it’s not really the best topic to share with others. Interestingly enough, a lot of people have experienced this at some point. In fact, it’s much more common than you might think.

What is anal itching?

The medical term for anal itching is pruritus ani. However, anal itching is the term most people would use. This is one way of naming this annoying problem, but what exactly is it?

Anal itching is a form of itching that occurs in the area around the anus. This usually causes redness, swelling and of course a lot of itching. Both men and women can suffer from this annoying condition. However, it is usually more common in men.

Causes of Anal Itching

First of all, it is important to know that anal itching is not linked to nutritional deficiencies or diseases of your anus. Rather, it relates to the skin tissue in this area.

In general, there are many things that can cause this phenomenon. In this article we summarize the most important ones for you.

Irritation or a chemical allergy

The anal area comes into contact with a lot of chemicals. However, most people don’t even know how and what chemicals these are. Most personal hygiene products contain a lot of these types of ingredients and these chemicals can unfortunately cause allergic reactions in the skin tissue.

Examples of these types of products are:

• toilet paper
• medical powders
• soap (for the intimate parts or regular soap)
• perfume
• creams

Cleaning yourself too vigorously

Hygiene is a very important factor for people. This is especially true for the anal area. After all, this area gets quite dirty with the stool. As a result, it is wise to clean yourself thoroughly afterwards. The problem is that this can sometimes be bad for your skin.

Trying to clean yourself too stubbornly with toilet paper can cause you to use too much force. This friction can cause cracks in the skin and irritate the skin. Eventually this will cause anal itching.

If possible, try cleaning yourself with water after going to the bathroom.  In addition, make sure that you always have soft toilet paper at home.

Poor hygiene

This is the other extreme of the spectrum regarding hygiene in this area. If you don’t keep yourself clean, it can cause all kinds of problems.

Make sure you always wipe your buttocks well. However, be careful not to use too much force.

If your stool is not completely wiped away, it will remain in your anus. This will almost immediately cause you to experience itching. This problem is usually more severe when you have diarrhea.

Irritating Diets

Some foods are just not good for your body. Which foods these are, however, differ from person to person. Things don’t always affect everyone in the same way.

Your anus can get irritated by various products. Some ingredients that you might want to avoid are:

• spicy or acidic foods
• drinks that contain caffeine
• chocolate
• spices

How can you prevent anal itching

Fortunately, there are also several ways to combat anal itching naturally.

Garlic

The antiseptic and antibacterial properties that this ingredient has are perfect for treating itching in the anal area.

You can eat garlic raw or you can use it in various dishes.

aloe vera

In the case of aloe vera, we are mainly talking about the soothing and moisturizing properties that this plant has, which can help to combat pain, inflammation and itching.

At the same time, applying aloe vera gel can help treat hemorrhoids.

Yogurt

Not all yogurts are good for treating anal itching. In this case, we recommend using plain yogurt that contains a lot of probiotics (these are bacteria that are good for the body). These organisms promote well-being in this area and counteract problems associated with anal itching.

To reap the benefits of yogurt, apply the yogurt directly to the affected area (at least two cups of yogurt per day).

Fiber

By including more fiber in your daily diet, you contribute to the digestive process. This ensures that your bowel movements are healthy, not too thin and not too hard.

As time goes by, this will also help treat anal itching.