It is a pretty common notion that pregnancy gives your skin a glow. And some women do have better skin during pregnancy. But some other women go through horrible skin changes.
There are multiple skin changes and uncomfortable beauty issues faced by women during pregnancy, Like other pregnancy changes, skin changes can also be attributed to hormones. It is a price to pay for the health and growth of your baby’s skin.
During pregnancy, a woman goes through an increase in acne or face pimples. Traditional chemical treatments for acne might not be approved to be used during pregnancy. Also, most of these treatments can leave the skin dry making it more irritated than before.
Pimples are caused when an old, dry skin blocks a pore. This can be more prominent during pregnancy as your facial skin has become drier. Also, there is a reduction in the production of oil on your face. The oil on the skin prevents acne from occurring.
Treatment: For the natural treatment of acne during pregnancy, you can try fragrance-free lotion and a gentle face wash that is made specifically for sensitive skin. There are not many options available that are safe to be used during pregnancy. You can use gentle soap and water for keeping your face clean. If your acne starts to get out of control and turns into a painful cyst, the best course of action to take is to consult your doctor.
You should not take any medication derived from tetracycline as it can cause permanent discoloration of your baby’s teeth and even contribute to skeletal malformations.
Melasma is a skin condition where the skin gets naturally dark during pregnancy. This is because of increased hormonal production. It is very common to get blotchy and unevenness in your skin. For some women, skin discoloration can occur as redness on the soles of the feet and palms of the hands. During the second month of pregnancy, some women can have the bottoms of their feet and inside of their hands itchy with a reddish hue. This condition is called palmar erythema.
Other women experience freckles. Moles and freckles that existed before during the pregnancy can get bigger and birthmarks and brown spots can get browner. New moles can appear. If these new moles are dark, raised or have irregular borders, you should consult a dermatologist.
Apart from this, the nipples and areolas of your breasts will get a lot darker. Most of the skin will get back to their original color after pregnancy. However, areolas will remain somewhat darker than they were before the pregnancy.
Treatment: Sun rays can cause discoloration. So, to prevent this, you need to get a sensitive skin sunscreen. However, since your skin is now more sensitive to UVA and UVB rays, you will still get some skin discoloration after spending some time in the skin.
You might have to wear sunscreen even indoor for preventing melasma. UV rays can easily move through the windows. You should try keeping skin discoloration to a minimum by wearing protective clothing like long-sleeved shirts and hats with a brim. Also, it is important to stay cool during the summer months.
