why is the scrotum so itchy

My balls have been itching so bad i carry a wire brush in my pocket. Tourmaster

****I KNOW THIS IS A LONG MESSAGE, BUT TO SOME OF YOU IT WILL BE WORTH THE TIME...****

 

Hi guys, I suffered from the same thing.  I've been dealing with this problem for more than 5 years as well. During the first 2 years of my problem though, I had intense itching on the sides and under my scrotum.  I even developed folliculitis in my pubic area which grew large abscess that drained with blood and pus.  I finally got the courage to see a doctor.  She prescribed me with Jock itch cream (Clotrimazole) and the itchiness went away. Even the folliculitis went away mysteriously. I was symptom-free for about 1 year until the itchiness started coming back...

I also have had a history of long term antibiotics for acne back in high school and I read that people who take antibiotics for months are prone to contracting yeast, fungal infections, and yes, folliculitis.  This is because antibiotics not only kill bad bacteria in our body, BUT THEY ALSO KILL THE GOOD BACTERIA AS WELL, and we need the good bacteria to help fight off yeast

Yeast infections are mostly common in women, but men can also get them too. One thing that yeast thrive on is... SUGAR. Like many of you described, you tend to get itchy after consuming sugars.  This itch can get pretty unbearable and its very embarrassing when you have to secretly itch your scrotum at work or at school.  I find myself scratching so deep into my skin that my scrotum gets inflamed, even gets cut, dries up, then sloughs off and becomes flaky.  Soon after though, the cycle starts all over again.

**Here's a simple yeast test you guys can do at home:**

Before bed, fill a clear glass with water and set aside next to your bed.  When you wake up in the morning BEFORE BRUSHING OR EATING, drop a little bit of spit from your mouth into the cup and observe what happens after 30 minutes.

If your spit stays at the surface of the water, (-) yeast,

However, if you notice that skinny thread-like strings from your spit begin to sink down to the bottom of the cup this means that you may have a yeast infection (+) yeast

There is a one-time oral tablet called Fluconazole or Diflucan that you can take to take clear the yeast right up.

**Alright so all in all, this is what I did, and this is what I recommend you guys atleast try... a lot of you, just like me are desperate for anything, so it cant hurt to try...**

1. Take the one-time tablet Diflucan (Fluconazole) to cure the yeast right up if you tested positive.

2. Apply Clotrimazole to the itchy area (anti-fungal cream) up to 7 days straight, or whenever itchy.  (However, avoid taking long-term because since its a corticosteroid, it will cause thinning of your skin which can make the problem worse.)

3. Cut down on sugars and go for complex sugars such as wheat bread, brown rice, potatoes, etc. (Sugars, especially simple sugars will make the YEAST thrive, and you don't want this to happen cuz the itch will return with a vengeance)

4. Cut down on caffeine (Just like sugar, Caffeine will also make the itch worse and it tends to stimulate yeast)

4. Avoid tight underwear, shorts, pants, etc (Poor ventilation in your genital area will lead to moisture and warmth... FUNGUS love this environment, and it will lead to jock itch and ITCHY SCROTUM)

3. Avoid spicy food (I also noticed that my itch and symptoms would flare after eating spicy food. After a little research, I learned that spicy food actually KILL THE GOOD BACTERIA IN YOUR GUT THAT HELP FIGHT OFF YEAST INFECTIONS... I believe the combination of my antiobiotic history + my addiction to spicy food significantly decreased the number of good bacteria in my gut.. this lowered my immunity to yeast..)

4. Take showers regularly and pat dry or air dry your scrotum before putting your underwear on or applying Clotrimazole cream. (I go "commando" when Im at home to help prevent fungal development, and put underwear on when I go out.  Sometimes I even go to bed naked as it also helps with ventilation and keeping your genitals dry)

5. Exercise more (I know this is starting to sound cliche and off the topic, but during that year i had no flare ups, i was exercises while eating clean, and nothing popped up. It was only then when I stopped exercising and eating less clean that my symptoms slowly started coming back... after exercising though, don't forget to wash and properly dry the affected areas..)

6.  Last but not least, this is a bonus and its correlated to the "good bacteria" in our gut... It's been shown that fermented vegetables such as sauerkraut and kimchi contain the 'good bacteria' in our gut that help fight off yeast.  Adding fermented or pickled vegetables with minimal added sugar will actually increase the number of good bacteria such as Lactobacillus Acidophilus and Lactobacillus Bifidobacterium.. increasing the numbers of these good bacteria will help fight off yeast flare ups... Intermittent Fasting 1-3 times a week is also good for our gut and will clean it while making you burn fat at the same time.  When I fast, its usually from 6pm-12pm the next day (18 hours).

I hope this information was somewhat helpful to some of you out there going through the same thing.  I know how bad this burden can affected our lives and our productivity at work and school.  Let me know if it helped you!

Guys, the 'good bacteria' that I mentioned numerous times in my post refers to the more widely known term "Probiotics"
There are anti-biotics, which fight bad bacteria, and there are pro-biotics which are good bacteria.. You can buy probiotic supplements online or at health stores..

I suffered from terrible nightly scrotum itching for many years and I always thought it was some sort of fungus or allergic reaction. I tried many different creams and stopped eating sugar. Nothing really helped. A couple of years ago I finally found a solution that stops my itching and is incredibly simple. I simply keep a bottle of cold water by my bed. As soon as the itching starts, instead of scratching, I douse my scrotum and surrounding areas with a little bit of COLD water and leave it exposed for about a minute before I cover up again. My itching goes away. I think the small shock caused to the nerves in the area is what triggers the itching to stop so I suspect a problem with the nerves is what was causing my itch. Hope this helps someone.

TRY this regiment:

Intake:

1.  Eliminate ALL dairy, eggs, wheat,  & sugar (including fruit & fruit juice) from your diet (for at least 2 weeks).  Make sure to eat 3 proper meals per day and take a complete supplement daily as directed on the bottle.

Hygiene:

1.  Replace ALL of your underwear with NEW underwear.

2.  When you wash your underwear, make sure your water heater is set to the highest temperature level & you wash your underwear with HOT water, you use the PROPER quantity of detergent (I use Purex), and you use fabric softening sheets in the dryer (I use 2 per load).

3.  Make sure to change your underwear at least once per day.

4.  Cleanse your scrotum 2x per day (once if your skin is sensitive):    

In the morning:

Use (Kirk's Original Coco Castile Bar Soap).  Lather & wash for less than 30 seconds, then rinse.  Lather & wash again (using a wash cloth) for < 15 seconds, rinse.  Towel dry & let air dry.  Put on your underwear (or clean underwear if you wish).  Fold 6 or 8 continuous sheets of toilet paper into an area that is about 3 inches by 4 inches and place it into your underwear (below your scrotum) to absorb perspiration. NOTE:  If this soap becomes too harsh for you, then use a milder soap until your skin returns to normal for a day or so and then retry this soap.  I use this soap because it is an effective skin exfoliater.  You may also need to apply lotion after you allow your skin to air dry.  If you choose to do that, then use DermaHealth Barrier Cream & lotion or Gold Bond Body Lotion (Triple Action Relief).  Alternating between those 2 lotions seems to be best.

 

In the evening:

Use (Polmolive dishwashing soap (the original green stuff--I know it's weird, but try it).  Lather & wash for less than 30 seconds, then rinse.  Lather & wash again (using a wash cloth) for < 15 seconds, rinse.  Towel dry & let air dry.  Put on your underwear (or clean underwear if you wish).  Fold 6 or 8 continuous sheets of toilet paper into an area that is about 3 inches by 4 inches and place it into your underwear (below your scrotum) to absorb perspiration. NOTE:  If this soap becomes too harsh for you, then use a milder soap until your skin returns to normal for a day or so and then retry this soap.  I use this soap because it is an effective skin exfoliater.  You may also need to apply lotion after you allow your skin to air dry.  If you choose to do that, then use DermaHealth Barrier Cream & lotion or Gold Bond Body Lotion (Triple Action Relief).  Alternating between those 2 lotions seems to be best.

 

Note:  Try the above steps for at least a week & perhaps as long as 2 weeks to determine if it is helpful to eliminate your itching.  Post comment here to document your progress.  If you itch goes away woohoo!  Then you can start adding dairy, eggs, wheat, etc back into your diet (one item at a time each week) to see if any of them cause your itch to return. 

 

If the above step only provide you with some relief, you may need to try one or more of the following:

Benadryl -- Use for about two weeks straight.  It can permanently stop scrotum itch for some people.

Sanafitil -- This is an anti-fungal and the active ingredient is undecylenic acid.  It has been show to be helpful for some people.  Start with the liquid form & then switch to the cream.  Use it 2x per day for 2 weeks.

Protopic 0.1% - This is a non-steroid based ointment that works for some people.  You will require a prescription from your doctor for it.  This product can cure their itch, but for other people, they must use it a minimum of 3x per week to keep their itch at bay.Best wishes to you all.

Best wishes to you all.

I developed this "itchy ball syndrome" about 3 or 4 days ago.  I thought they were just really itchy... but the itch NEVER stops.  Its so annoying.  The sack region doesn't appear different, I don't see any rashes or the sort... but it still itches like crazy.  Sometimes I just can't help myself, and I'll go to town scratching them (I HAVE to) and now they will hurt after a good scratch... so I'm really making an effort to stop itching.  I've purchased Cortizone10Plus, hopefully that helps.  I'm not sure what it could be... the weather has gotten very cold as of late... but ive been in all types of weather and this hasnt happened.  No new soaps/detergents.  I'm stumped... and itchy!

I think some anti-bacterial soaps can cause that problem.
I also think food allergies are a cause of the problem for many sufferers.

I think I've narrowed it down to a yeast allergy, it seams that when I drink certain beers I get itchy scrotum a few hrs later, I've talked to a few guys and that seems to be the general consensus.

got exactly the same thing with the little white bump that looks like a wart. im going to head to doc because ive had this for about 2 years and the bump just started about 2 months ago. i will let you know what doc says hell im not bashfull

i confirm ua post same experiencewith the same sh*t

I have had an itchy scrotum for months.  I found the only thing to stop it was gabapentin.  I also take water tablets as I have heart failure.  With the gabapentin despite my water tablets my legs and feet and stomach all retained excesfluid. My toes were so big they rubbed together which meant I struggled to walk.  So I had to find an alternative to gabapentin.  I tried Canesten .  I found by drying the area thoroughly then applying Canesten (Clotromazole) it greatly reduced the itching.   It is more commonly used by the ladies for thrush.  It is an antifungi.  I also think it has itch relief ingredient.  This is probably going intoa US site so I suggest you find out the name used in US for same cream.

i eat heaps of sugar and mines madening i mean lots i might try

try tcp ointment, I find it works for everything

Have had the same problem for years; my dermatologist couldn't find a remedy based on the fungus approach. Finally noticed the itiching occurred if I hadn't shaken myself off completely after urinating, particularly when sitting on the toilet. Urine contains uric acid after all and sensitive skin is irritated by contact with acid. Found that cleaning my scrotum with a baby wipe after urinating, particularly at night, helps a great deal.

I have tested this problem that I also have had for several years. come to find out that it's ACID in my diet. too much orange juice , tomato sauce , potatoes , apple juice...any thing with acid in it. once I stop eating or drinking those things, in at the least , three days later everything returns to normal