Vagina

Vagina is a Latin word that means a sheath or scabbard. A vagina is the muscular canal that extends from the cervix to the outside of a woman’s body. Its size usually ranges from six to seven inches in length. The vaginal opening is located below the urethral opening.

The walls of the vagina under normal circumstances touch each other. The vagina is not a cavity in the body. The walls of the vagina are lined with mucus membrane. This mucus membrane is a thin layer of tissue covered with a thick slippery fluid. The vagina contains two vault like parts, the front or anterior vaginal fornix and the rear or posterior vaginal fornix. Together these create a circle shape. The cervix raises slightly into the vagina. A very small hole in the cervix allows the sperm through to the reproductive organs. The vagina also contains many tiny glands that can secrete fluids. The vagina is a self-cleaning organ and these secretions provide lubrication, clean the vagina and maintain proper acidity.http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=5951http://www.livestrong.com/article/12495-the-vagina/

The vagina is referred to as the birth canal while in childbirth. The vagina is the passage to deliver the baby from the uterus to life outside the body of the mother. The vagina is amazingly elastic and can stretch to several times its normal width during childbirth. During labor the cervix is also consider part of the birth canal. During the first stage of labor, the cervix opens to almost 4 inches or 10 centimeters. The baby exits the uterus and enters the vagina. The birth canal stretches to accommodate the width of the baby. Muscles in the birth canal help push the baby out of the mother’s body. The baby’s body changes also. The soft spot on a their head is so their heads can be squeezed with out harm to the baby.http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-birth-canal.htm