Protecting Your Skin During Pregnancy

There are many changes that your body goes through when you enter pregnancy. These changes are caused by changing hormone levels that change to accommodate the growing baby.

One of the many things that these changing hormones impact is the skin, but unfortunately many of these changes are viewed as negative. A few of these of the changes in the skin that you may experience include increased acne, darker skin, stretch marks and so forth.

Fortunately, many of these skin afflictions will go away after your baby is born. Acne is a common affliction that women suffer from during the first trimester of pregnancy.

A few women are lucky and actually experience less acne than normal during this time. Another common change is that your legs will become blotchy or take on a bluish tint.

This is particularly common in colder areas. Likewise, the face will sometimes take on a brownish, darker color than the normal facial color before becoming pregnant.

This darkening is called cholasma, melasma, or the mask of pregnancy. Unfortunately, instead of looking like a nice tan, the hormones make your face appear blotchy.

The mask of pregnancy is generally observed more in women who have naturally dark hair and pale skin. These darker spots usually darken when you go out in the sun, but they normally go away after delivery.

A more positive side effect the skin may experience is called ‘glowing skin.’ Glowing skin is caused by the increase in blood that you body undergoes at the beginning of your pregnancy.

With the increase in blood, more blood move closer to your skin. It can lend you cheeks a beautiful blush. In addition, the oil glands can give your skin a waxy surface.

These two things combined are often described as a healthy ‘glow.’ This is one thing that can make a pregnant woman look stunningly gorgeous.

Another thing that you may experience is itchiness. This itchiness appears in the second and third trimesters, but quickly goes away when you deliver.

It is caused by the stretching your skin goes through as your baby grows. Of course, along with the stretching come stretch marks.

Stretch marks are areas where the skin turns a different texture and color because it was forced to grow so fast. When your skin has to grow so fast small tears occur in the tissue underneath the skin and cause the different texture.

These marks are unavoidable during pregnancy. However, they will fade after your baby is born. While some creams can be purchased to help avoid the development of these marks, scientists are still unsure if they are actually effective enough to bother treating yourself.

While there are many other changes that your skin will undergo, there are many things that you can do to help relieve and treat these conditions. Many conditions are unavoidable, but there are things you can do to relieve the discomfort in some cases.

The first thing you will want to do is clean your skin properly. This will help treat the early pregnancy breakouts.

This will include washing your face with a mild cleanser two or three times a day. However, if you wash your face too often it will dry out and make your acne problem even worse.

It is important that you do not take prescription medication for your acne without consulting your doctor. Some of the chemicals in the medication could be harmful to your baby.

In addition, it is important to protect your skin from the sun. Not only is your skin more susceptible to damage during pregnancy, but it can make some of the skin conditions you are suffering from even worse.

The sun can make your dark splotches darker and you will be more likely to develop a mask of pregnancy if you spend time in the sun. In addition, the sun can increase the amount of acne you have to fight.

It is important to wear sun block and cover up as much as possible when you do have to go out in the sun, even if you are only traveling to work. If you are normally used to exercising outside, you will have to consider exercising indoors.

This can be difficult for some people, but there are many machines that are designed to help you receive a great, full body work out indoors. In addition, many of these machines provide other things that can help you monitor your progress towards your fitness goals and motivate you to keep working out.

Ignacio Lopez is a personal trainer and has authored hundreds of articles relating to physical training and home fitness equipment. He has been a health expert and physical trainer for over 15 years.

Contact Info:

Ignacio Lopez

IgnacioLopez09@gmail.com

http://www.nordictrack.com

Protecting Your Skin During Pregnancy