Probiotic capsules come in three capsule forms: gelatin, pure vegetable or enteric-coated vegetable.
Enteric-coated capsules are not vagina friendly and gelatin sometimes doesn’t dissolve as well in the vagina, so at My Vagina, we prefer our carefully chosen tested and trusted 100% pure vegetable capsules for vaginal use.
My Vagina vulvovaginal specialist practitioners use Life-Space Women’s Microflora Probiotic in patients vaginally, due to the vagina-specific strains of bacteria and the pure vegetable capsule.
If you’re using other brands of vaginal probiotic, you may need to switch the capsules over to pure vagina-safe vegetable capsules before using the probiotic powder vaginally.
Some brands do not clearly state that the capsules are enteric coated, so if you’re not sure, assume you have to transfer the capsules to be on the safe side.
Order size 00 pure vegetable capsules
Brands and their capsules
Jarrow, AZO and Culturelle are all enteric-coated even if they say vegetable capsules. Always switch or empty the powder out and make a paste with some water and use a finger to smoosh into your vagina.
Look at the sign above the yellow squares – “Coated with EnteroGuard”
Using gelatin capsules vaginally
Gelatin melts with your body heat, so using gelatin capsules vaginally is safe, but you may have issues with the capsules melting. This is particularly true when you are using gelatin capsules every day, sometimes more than once, with powdery dry ingredients.
If the treatments inside the capsules don’t get delivered to your vaginal tissues, it starts becoming a waste of time and money.
To get the probiotic powder into the new capsule:
- Do it by hand
- Use a capsule filling device
- Build your own capsule stand out of wood!
1. Filling capsules by hand
To switch capsules, you don’t need anything special. Get a small piece of paper with some sticky tape to use as a funnel and a flat, clean, dry working space.
Pull the top off the probiotic capsule, and using your funnel into the larger half of the empty vegetable capsule, empty the powder into your new capsule. Or, just free pour. You’ll work it out once you’ve made a few messes!
Remember it’s good practice to keep probiotics refrigerated in an airtight container.
2. Capsule filling machine
A capsule filling device means you get a plastic tray that holds your empty capsules steady. For this purpose, it’s a glorified capsule stand.
If you have unsteady hands, or would like to make up other types of capsules with your own supplements, you may get a lot of use out of a capsule filling device, easily available from online retailers.
3. Making your own capsule platform with a drill and wood – that’s what we did!
If you’re handy, you can make your own capsule platform using a drill bit and a piece of wood. You want a shallow hole that will keep a specific size of vegetable capsule steady while you fill them.
Because we do so many experiments with capsules testing amounts and ingredients here at My Vagina headquarters, we’ve ended up making a whole bunch of wooden capsule holders. They’re pretty neat! And they work well.
Your measurements will matter here, so make sure you know what size capsules you’ll be using and make your hole(s) a little bigger, and around half the depth of the capsule (otherwise they’ll fall down and be irretrievable!). You need space to push the lid on and pull them out.
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Specially formulated probiotic for vaginal application to promote a healthy vaginal microbiome.
Jessica is a degree-qualified naturopath (BHSc) specialising in vulvovaginal health and disease, based in Melbourne, Australia.
Jessica is the owner and lead naturopath of My Vagina, and is a member of the:
- International Society for the Study of Vulvovaginal Disease (ISSVD)
- International Society for the Study of Women's Sexual Health (ISSWSH)
- National Vulvodynia Association (NVA) Australia
- New Zealand Vulvovaginal Society (ANZVS)
- Australian Traditional Medicine Society (ATMS)