How I Finally Tested Negative for Group B Strep in My Third Trimester
pregnancy
How I Finally Tested Negative for Group B Strep in My Third Trimester
here’s what worked for Alaina to proactively reduce the likelihood of GBS
After testing positive for GBS during both of my first two pregnancies, I was determined to try something different the third time around. I made a very intentional effort to support my body and microbiome *PROACTIVELY*. And guess what? I finally tested negative. Cue me and my baby fist-pumping like we were on Jersey Shore (no joke - I did this).
What even is GBS?
Group B Strep (GBS) is a bacteria that can live in the body without causing problems. For adults, it’s usually harmless — most of us don’t even know we have it. But if you’re pregnant, GBS can potentially be passed to your baby during delivery. If a mom is GBS-positive and not treated with antibiotics during labor, her baby has a 1–2% risk of developing early GBS disease. With antibiotics, that risk drops to 0.2%.
About 6.9% of full-term infants with early GBS disease die from the infection. In preterm babies, the number is closer to 19% (Nanduri et al. 2019). This is a great article if you’d like more info.
This is why expecting mamas are tested for it around 36–37 weeks. If GBS is detected, the standard recommendation is IV antibiotics during labor.
Straightforward, right? You would think!!!!
Why this felt so heavy for me
One of the hardest decisions I faced in pregnancy was testing positive for GBS and not knowing if antibiotics were the right choice. I agonized over it. Lost sleep. Googled way too much. Asked my midwife & doulas a million questions. Flip-flopped with my decision 15x. The pressure was real…especially when you’re already hormonal, exhausted, and trying to get your head wrapped around the fact that you’re about to have a child. Wiping out a mother’s gut microbiome with antibiotics shouldn’t be taken lightly. As the mom, YOUR microbiome plays a huge role in seeding your baby’s microbiome at birth. It also impacts your own postpartum recovery…. and not just physically, but mentally too.
A study of over 620,000 women found that just one round of antibiotics during pregnancy was linked to a 43% increased odds of postpartum depression (PMID: 38831623). And I felt that so deeply in my plums…. After getting antibiotics during both my first & second births, my health during my postpartum recoveries was rocky. I’m talking yeast infections, food sensitivities, mood dips, and a gut that needed a hot minute to collect itself. It made me feel like something was off… and I didn’t want to go through that again.
I wanted a different outcome this time… for me and my baby. So for pregnancy #3, I went into full-on PROACTIVE mode. Not in a fear-based way, but in a “I can do something to prevent this!!!” way. In terms of timing, I personally started focusing on the below tips in the second trimester after my nausea went away and I felt "normal" again. So about 16-20ish weeks along? That being said, I think it's never too late to implement these tips. From what I’ve learned along the way, you can improve your microbiome pretty quickly!
And if you’re a mama who has tested + for GBS in your third trimester already, don't be afraid to advocate for yourself and ask your care team if you can retest before birth. It's worth trying to see what they say! I've heard that it's common to test positive one week and test negative the next.
OK, so here’s what I did differently in my third pregnancy…
*Disclaimer: This isn’t medical advice — I’m just a mom sharing what worked for me, with full respect for whatever path you choose. Especially if you’ve experienced trauma or loss related to GBS.*
Raw Garlic
Yep. I was that pregnant lady eating raw garlic on toast (I smelt like your local Italian restaurant). Every day, I ate 1–2 cloves of it…. fresh & minced.
Important note: It needs to be raw and chopped to activate allicin, the compound that gives garlic its natural antimicrobial powers.
I’d put it on buttered sourdough with honey. Kind of weirdly good. When I asked our audience, some moms said that they chop it and swallow like pills to avoid the taste.
Pro tip: make your partner eat it, too. That way no one can complain about the breath.
2. Targeted Probiotics
I took a probiotic with Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Lactobacillus reuteri — two strains known to support vaginal health and reduce GBS colonization. I rotated between Seed Daily Synbiotic (code: BALANCEDBEYARS25) and Needed Prenatal Pre/Probiotic (code: BALANCEDBEYARS) because they gave mama the strains she needed.
3. Fermented Foods
I was tighttttt with sauerkraut and kefir. Every morning, I had a cup of kefir on an empty stomach. Throughout the day, I’d grab forkfuls of kraut straight from the fridge. They’re rich in probiotics and help make your gut’s ecosystem stay “favorable”, making it less GBS-friendly.
4. Whole Food Vitamin C
Vitamin C supports a healthy vaginal pH, which helps good bacteria thrive and GBS get the hint that “you can’t sit with us”. I took this supplement Vit C made from acerola cherry and camu camu, and also loaded up on whole food sources from:
Kiwis
Cherries
Bell peppers
Oranges
Acai
Strawberries
Anything else that looked like it belonged in a tropical smoothie
5. And all the while I was focusing on foundational habits for gut health and vaginal microbiome health…
Stayed consistent with the basics:
Whole, nourishing foods
Less refined sugar
Sleep (lol, or at least trying while tending to our 2 boys in the middle of the night who are not the best of sleepers)
Keeping digestion moving
Other proactive & “natural” tactics to reduce chances of GBS
That I’ve heard are effective.
Drinking raw ACV (it’s antimicrobial & contains acetic acid, which can stop the growth of bacteria). Have ½ tsp in a glass of water before you eat.
Doing an ACV rinse! Dilute with water and apply it vaginally daily.
Wear 100% cotton undies (the other junk fabrics can encourage bacterial growth).
Inserting 1 garlic clove vaginally (once).
Having 1-2 tbsp of coconut oil daily (antiviral).
Again — these are things I heard about through my research. Definitely do your own and talk to your care provider to see what’s best for you.
The results. Drumroll, please…
After months of doing all this, I got the test results back — GBS negative. I cellyyyyyed. I danced. I may have thrown my garlic toast in the air. Was it a pain in the buns to put in all this effort? Undeniably. Was it all worth it? 100%.
Final thoughts
If I could change anything about how we approach GBS in pregnancy, it would be this:
Test earlier. Test twice in pregnancy. If a woman knows she’s GBS positive early in pregnancy, she actually has time to implement lifestyle and dietary changes that might help reduce colonization and potentially test negative by the time she gives birth.
Educate from the start. Gut and vaginal health matter for everything, not just this one test. We’re talking about improving mom & baby’s health long-term here!
Think critically about antibiotics. Not to scare anyone — but to empower us to make informed decisions and how to strategically support our recovery postpartum if we do need them (it’s such a sensitive season for moms as it is!). We need more education around this.
And for the love of Pete, can we please normalize talking about how confusing and emotional this decision is?
Whether you opt for antibiotics, opt out of taking them, try every holistic hack in the book, or you’re just doing your best to survive the third trimester — you’re doing amazing. I truly mean that. No judgment here ever.
— Alaina
We’re not gurus, we’re guides.
We’re Alaina, Carly, and Julie — three sisters, three very different journeys, and one shared mission: to make every phase of womanhood feel a little clearer and a lot less lonely.
We’re menstrual health & FAM educators, but our real strength comes from lived experience. We’ve been through the hormone confusion, the trial-and-error seasons, the “why did no one tell me this?” moments and we’ve learned what actually works along the way.
With our powers combined, we offer thoughtful, practical guidance that blends education, intuition, and real life. We’re not here to fix you. We’re here to walk with you, one phase at a time.
every phase, together
