Pregnancy and Skin Problems

What about that term “glowing skin” during pregnancy? There is a simple explanation for this.  The increased volume of blood, increased number of blood vessels and increased secretion from the oil glands of the skin make the skin appear as rosy and shiny.

The pregnant women may face many skin related problems during pregnancy. Most common are development of stretch marks and dark areas. Due to expansion of the layers underneath, these marks appear as pink or purple shaded bands.

The areas of skin that are dark in texture may become darker. The moles and freckles may become more prominent. Similarly, the nipples of the breasts become darker. These changes in skin texture come back to normal once pregnancy is over.

Palmar erythema is the term used for the condition in which the sides of the hands and bottom of the feet swell to become red and increase in size. It is completely normal during pregnancy and signs appear in second month itself.

Those with oily skin type may experience acne due to on-going hormonal changes in the body. Even the dry skin may become too dry.

One major problem will be sitting in air-conditioners for long. Both air humidifiers and air-conditions will have a bad effect on the skin. Women with dry skin can either avoid them or wear lots of moisturizer. Those with oily skin must drink plenty of water and try to keep skin as clean as possible.

Due to excess sun exposure, chloasma may occur. It is the increased pigmentation on the forehead, upper cheeks and/or upper lip. It appears more a as a tan.

Linea nigra is not something that will happen during pregnancy but appears a few months after the pregnancy. The bone, linea alba is a white line that runs from the naval tip to the center of the pubic bone. It is invisible otherwise. They disappear on their own.

Most of the skin problems during pregnancy can be handled by understanding the skin type.  Women need to maintain their calm and carry on doing normal skin care routine since these changes are mostly temporary.