If you've ever suffered from a yeast infection, at least you know you're not alone. According to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, GA, seventy-five percent of all women experience at least one vaginal candida or "yeast" infection during their lifetime.

The signs of a yeast infection include the following:

• Vaginal itching
• Vaginal burning and soreness
• Thick whitish vaginal discharge
• Pain or discomfort during intercourse.
• Vaginal itching
• Vaginal burning and soreness
• Thick whitish vaginal discharge
• Pain or discomfort during intercourse

The good news is that a yeast infection is not dangerous. It is usually not sexually transmitted. It does not spread to the ovaries or uterus. And it does not cause infertility.

Yeast's Preferred Environment
"Yeast may be present in the vagina in small amounts, and there will be no symptoms. But if there's an increase in heat, moisture or blood, yeast grows more rapidly," according to William Parker, M.D., clinical professor at University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine and author of A Gynecologist's Second Opinion (Plume, 1996). Wearing panty hose, nylon underwear, tight clothing, or wet bathing suits traps heat and moisture, creating the tropical (think warm and moist) climate that yeast loves. Wearing loose fitting, cotton clothing may be your best bet if you want to avoid a yeast infection.

You're more susceptible to infection during and after your period because the candida feeds on the nutrient-rich menstrual blood. For some women, it's a recurring problem, although medical experts really don't know why, says Parker.

The following factors can also upset the pH balance of the vagina, increasing your odds of developing a yeast infection:

• Taking birth control pills or antibiotics
• Being pregnant
• Having diabetes
• Using douches
• Stress

The Quick Fix
Don't try to diagnose your very first yeast infection. Leave that to the medical experts. If you've had more than one, however, you've probably learned to recognize the symptoms. And you probably know what works best for you. Most infections do respond to over-the-counter drugs, antifungal medications administered directly into the vagina via creams, ointments, and suppositories. There is also a stronger oral medication available in the form of a pill (it's pink, of course). If the symptoms don't go away in five to seven days, visit your doctor for a check-up. The soothing cream you picked up at the drugstore might be masking a more serious sexually transmitted disease, such as chlamydia.