Your vulva, or pubic area, comes in all shapes and sizes. Fat down there serves a purpose – it acts as a cushion during childbirth and helps protect the delicate parts (labia majora, labia minora and clitoris) from injury.
However, fat in the upper pubic area can become unsightly and difficult to lose. Thankfully, there are several effective treatments for FUPA.
1. Hormones
The word “hormone” refers to the group of substances that are key to your body’s regulation. They stimulate or suppress various functions that are essential for your well-being, including how your vulva grows and what its shape is like. These hormones are released by the adrenals, pituitary gland, thyroid, ovaries, and spleen. The turn of the 20th century saw the formation of a new medical discipline called endocrinology, which helped improve the way scientists understood these organismic regulatory processes.
When you have a fat vagina, it is because your body has naturally accumulated fat in this area. The mons pubis, or the part of your genitalia where you keep your labia majora (or outer lips), is usually fatty and a very important part of your vulva. The size of this area depends on your overall body weight, as different people tend to store fat in different areas.
Some OB-GYNs have gone as far as telling women their vagina is too fat to give birth, and this is a very harmful stereotype to spread. It goes against the feminist principles that say all bodies are normal and beautiful, and it is particularly hurtful to hear it from a medical professional. It also leads to a lot of self-esteem issues among women who have been told this. This is why Milli Hill, author of How To Give Birth Like A Feminist, says the concept of fat vaginas needs to be questioned. There is a screaming lack of peer-reviewed evidence to support the idea that having a fat vagina makes it harder for women to have natural deliveries.
2. Weight Gain
As women gain weight, the fat may accumulate in certain areas of the body, including the vulva. The area above the labia, called the mons pubis, is a naturally fatty area, but women with different body types have varying amounts of fat there. Women who weigh more tend to have a fatter mons pubis than thin women, but there are many other factors that can contribute to this, such as hormones and diet.
When people say they have a “fat vagina,” what they usually mean is that their vulva is larger than it should be. This can include the outer and inner lips (labia majora and labia minora), the upper part of the vulva, or the clitoris. Women’s genitalia come in all shapes and sizes and colors, which is totally normal and what makes them unique. The size of the vulva changes throughout life, depending on what is inside it. The vulva is not open all the time, it only expands to accommodate whatever is inside of it, like a penis or toy. It’s only when something is in there that the vulva can be considered full and enlarged.
3. Stress
When you feel stressed, the vulva (the external genitalia that includes the labia majora and minora—the outer and inner “lips” and clitoris) and the urethra—where you urinate—change. They become thin and saggy, the clitoris may shrink and become pale pink or brown and your pelvic floor muscles weaken. Those muscles get even more weakened by pregnancy, menopause and high-impact exercise, which can further change the shape of your vagina.
Some medical professionals—including OB-GYNs and midwives—believe that fat vaginas can block or obstruct labor, increasing the risk of cesarean sections. This harmful stereotype has a lasting effect on women’s body image and confidence around their genitalia, especially since it’s often perpetuated by medical professionals who are supposed to be using evidence-based practices. But is the fat vagina theory really true?
4. Exercise
As we all know, a healthy diet is essential to our health and well-being. However, some people are still spreading the myth that women should be super slim down there. The truth is that fat on your mon-pubis area (that’s what you call your vulva) serves a purpose — it creates a cushion for the pushing down there during labor, and helps prevent tearing. Even worse, there are reports of medical professionals telling patients that their vagina is too fat to give birth safely, resulting in lasting trauma. That is so not ok. Click for more information about this harmful belief.
