Please Add ‘Detox Pearls’ to the List of Things You Should Not Put in Your Vagina

In the worst-case scenario, disrupting the vaginal ecosystem could lead to toxic shock syndrome, a very rare but serious bacterial infection, Dr. Gaither says. Toxic shock syndrome can cause flu-like symptoms such as a high fever, vomiting, diarrhea, a sunburn-like rash, muscle aches, and headaches. If it’s not treated quickly, the infection can be severe and potentially deadly.

Toxic shock syndrome is specifically caused by some types of staphylococcus and streptococcus bacteria that produce toxins, the Mayo Clinic explains. Using certain types of menstrual products, such as tampons and menstrual cups, for prolonged periods of time can make toxic shock syndrome more likely. That’s not because those products directly introduce toxin-producing bacteria to the body, but because they create a type of environment that allows the bacteria to flourish, according to current thinking. The worry with products like detox pearls, which are designed to be left inside the body for up to two days at a time, is that they might also produce a favorable environment for potentially dangerous bacteria.

In response to claims that the detox pearls could affect the vagina’s pH, Goddess Detox tells SELF via email that, “It is possible that your pH can be disrupted as with anything inserted into the vagina, so if a user is experiencing something like this, remove our product and seek medical attention. We explain on our website some of the cons users may experience using our products.”

It’s also not possible for a vaginal product to “cleanse” you of things like sexual trauma.

As for the claim that Goddess Detox’s vaginal pearls can remove “old trauma, past sexual partners, and abusers” from “the womb,” Maria Sophocles, M.D., ob-gyn and medical director at Women’s Healthcare of Princeton, calls this “frighteningly inappropriate” because sexual trauma cannot be healed by any vaginal product. “I have seen many women who are victims of sexual trauma, and there’s no cleanser on the planet that can undo the emotional damage that sexual trauma causes,” she says.

“As far as anything herbal cleansing you of a bad relationship, no,” Mary Jane Minkin, M.D., clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Yale University, tells SELF. If you want help working through that kind of thing, she recommends a resource like a therapist—not a so-called vaginal detox.

“Many women have found great benefits physical, emotional, and spiritual benefits from using our products. We do not say that our Goddess Vaginal Detox Pearls is a cure-all for anything as we cant medically guarantee this,” Goddess Detox tells SELF regarding the claims that the product cannot heal sexual trauma. “Our products should be looked at as an option for users who wish to try something more natural,” the company says.

Finally, vaginal detox products likely won’t make your vagina wetter or tighter.

There is no evidence that suggests the detox pearls would improve vaginal wetness, according to Dr. Minkin. Instead, using lubricant is a safe and efficient way to help treat vaginal dryness. Here’s how to pick the best lube for you.

And when it comes to marketing claims about improving vaginal tightness, these tend to play into ridiculous tropes about tightness being necessary for good sex and the idea that a person’s worth is defined by their vaginal tightness. In reality, having vaginal sex or giving birth vaginally won’t permanently ‘“stretch out” the vaginal muscles. (Of course, there may be longer-lasting changes to the muscle after a particularly difficult vaginal birth, and there are other common changes, like dryness, that can occur after giving birth that may affect sex.)