If you don’t feel like going commando, the Department of Health advised women to wear cotton underwear instead to avoid fungal infections amid the hot weather.
Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said the suggestion of Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin for women not to wear underwear at home has “basis.”
“Moisture allows fungal infection to proliferate. So that suggestion has a basis. Related to the fungal infection and the heat, if you perspire, there is moisture in our private areas of women, so it can lead to candidiasis or itchiness in the genitalia,” Herbosa said.
“Our usual advice for women suffering candidiasis is really to wear cotton underwear. If you don’t want to go commando, wear cotton underwear because it also does not trap moisture,” he added.
Health Undersecretary Maria Francia Laxamana also encouraged the use of feminine wash to help prevent the growth of fungal infections.
Garin, a former Health secretary and a physician, advised women to go commando if they are just in the confines of their homes.