Scarleteen

A friend of mine recently sent me a message that said "Glycerin is everywhere! I can't escape!!". She was standing in the middle of a CVS drugstore, in the 'family planning' aisle, staring at the different types of lube that they had available, trying to find one that didn't have glycerin listed as an ingredient. Her gynecologist had just helped her treat yet another yeast infection, and they had discussed a potential cause being the lube that she had been using that had glycerin in it. She continued to stand there in the store while I frantically Googled for her which lubricants and condoms had glycerin in them.

What is glycerin, you ask? In short, it's an ingredient added to a lot of water-based lubricants that acts as a preservative and prolongs the moisture of the lube. While glycerin isn't the same thing as sugar, the body can treat it that way and it may cause yeast infections in people who are prone to them (like my poor friend).

Thankfully, she was able to find some glycerin-free lube, and some non-lubricated condoms that she and her partner could lubricate themselves with said lube. And she has since happily reported that the irritation that she was experiencing after using it was now gone. She's a happy camper and thanks to her, I know a lot more about sugar alcohols than I ever learned in high school chemistry class.

For more info on glycerin-free lube and lube in general, check out Lube 101: A Slick Little Primer here on Scarleteen: http://www.scarleteen.com/article/bodie ... tle_primer

Yes!! I personally have ALWAYS used glycerin (and paraben) free lubes, because I'm a sensitive soul who gets yeast infections easily so I figured knowing my luck, they'd probably not do well for me. I've found that my local super-feminist female-and-lgbtq-focused sex shop has an AWESOME selection of lubes, with a great assortment of glycerin- and paraben-free ones. So if at any point anyone struggles to find a lube with those qualities at a drugstore, have a look around at some sex shops, it's definitely worth it.

My personal favourite lube EVER IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD SERIOUSLY IT'S JUST SO AWESOME IN EVERY SINGLE WAY is Sliquid! It doesn't smell weird and gross like.... like 90% of lubes. I have a sensitive nose Plus it's glycerin- and paraben-free and also vegan (no animal testing! Woop-woop!). Plus the ingredients are so good, like, you could eat it and you wouldn't die. Which sounds really weird. But then if you think about it, that crap is getting absorbed into your mucous membranes so...I feel like that's an important factor... although it's not like I've tried eating other lubes so I guess maybe they wouldn't kill you either but still I DIGRESS. It's like, vitamin e, hibiscus, aloe, green tea, sunflower seed, citric acid. Sounds like something you'd WANT to eat. So I just like it so much :')

Good Clean Love is another glycerin-free (also: vegan!) brand that's awfully nice and has very few ingredients in it. It's aloe-based, so also a nice choice for folks with sensitive skin.

Wow.
I think I learned something new.
I don't wanna be a Debbie Downer, but I siriusly didn't know people could get enthusiastic about lube.
I mean, it's important to know which kind is right for you, it's enhances sexual fun, etc etc but I'm just kind of surprised.
Going to fade into the background now.
-M

Indeed, we can! It's not that hard to get enthusiastic either, especially since some kinds of sex without lubricants don't feel all that great at best, and at worst, result in pain or injury.

Like I always say, nobody ever got hurt from using too much lube...

Except for that time I slipped on the floor when I didn't realize a bottle had leaked all over it, agreed. (But then, there's almost nothing on earth I haven't managed to find a way to be a klutz with so far.)