Ask A Pro: Skincare And Pregnancy
This is a sensitive topic as pregnancy and motherhood are such personal, unique, and beautiful experiences. I address this question often among my friends and even with my long-time clients who are welcoming their first new edition to the family, what skincare is safe to use during pregnancy?
While there isn’t really one clear answer, we can narrow it down to general rules of thumb to all things. For example, can you exfoliate during pregnancy? Yes, and you should definitely exfoliate your whole body to help with circulation, but there are certain ingredients you want to stay away from.
Before I get carried away and dive right into the yes’s and no’s, let’s first understand what happens to the skin during pregnancy, and afterward.
There is a lot that goes on with our bodies when we are bringing new life into this world. I won’t go into all of them, but there are some major ones that do affect the skin.
Firstly, there is the influx of hormones. Our body needs these as they are internal messengers, and things like tissue repair, but they definitely affect the skin.
We all know there are two types of hormones, estrogen, and testosterone. In the skin, these two play very different roles.
Estrogen is considered the female hormone but is present in both men and women. This hormone functions to aid the skin in appearance, strength, and overall health as well as supporting vision, bones, and even the nervous system. This could explain why when some women take birth control their skin improves, or when they stop taking it they have a sudden upsurge in breakout activity. Our skin’s health is in large part regulated by our balance of estrogen in the body.
Testosterone, or androgens, on the other hand, considered the male hormone even though again, we both have it, these stimulate our oil glands, think teenage boy acne. This surge of oil (aka sebum) creates a feeding frenzy for bacteria, a huge reason for teen boy acne. The flip side of this is that when our body goes into flight-or-fight response, the body creates more testosterone to support us. However, a lot of times this flight-or-fight is kicked in too often, resulting in excess testosterone pumping through our blood creating sticky, sweat oil for our bacteria to feed on, cue adult acne.
Now let’s get back to pregnancy.:
“When you first become pregnant, progesterone and estrogen, hormones that are a part of your normal menstrual cycle, rise dramatically, and a new hormone, one that’s special to pregnancy, called human chorionic gonadotropin, begins to be produced.
Progesterone is important for getting pregnant in the first place because it prepares your uterus lining forthe egg to implant and it acts as a muscle relaxant, preventing your uterus from contracting until the onset of labour. But those same muscle-relaxing properties can also cause constipation, as it slows down your digestive tract, says naturopathic doctor Kinga Babicki-Farrugia.”
- Kate Daily, ‘How Pregnancy Hormones Affect Your Body In Each Trimester’, www.todaysparent.com
Ok, now I didn’t mention anything about Progesterone…what the heck is that? It is released by the ovaries following our monthly ovulation during our period. In large part, it controls our fertility and menstrual cycle, its main function being preparing the uterus for the egg. If the embryo is fertilized, then the body keeps making progesterone, so the body does not produce any more eggs. Towards the end of pregnancy, it works to help prepare the breasts for milk production. Basically, a more “female” hormone than “male” and overall pretty helpful. Having low levels of this could result in problems conceiving, and abnormal periods to name a few.
The thing with hormones is like they are like sweets and treats, you want enough to keep you balanced but not too much and definitely not too little. When it comes to pregnancy though, most of these levels are through the roof.
“The changes that your body goes through while pregnant are beautiful, yet they can also be daunting. As your body changes it’s easy to feel fat or uncomfortable in your own skin, however, when you are holding your precious little baby in your arms it makes it all worth it.”
Ok, sounds great, but in the meantime, you can’t ignore all these changes to your body. What should you do as holding your bundle of joy is not going to take skin issues away??
Now, I don’t have a kiddo, I don’t plan on making babies, I have always wanted to adopt so that is on my future goals list, but I do work with many pregnant women and have had many a pregnant woman friend, and preggers sister. So I have heard, seen, and worked on a lot of what you will experience.
Here are some common myths about your skin and pregnancy:
Every woman gets that pregnancy glow: Maybe, but what the glow is is not what you might think. Increased blood levels, hormone fluctuations, and that sticky, sweet skin oil can make you appear to “glow”. But those things can also lead to acne, pigmentation, and hair growth which don’t make you glow, it’s all perspective.
My acne will clear up: This is based on those hormone fluctuations and as there is no way to say how much of each hormone your body will specifically produce during pregnancy, there is no way to say that being pregnant will result in clear skin.
I broke out during pregnancy: Similar to the above statement, this is a toss in the bag as you won’t know how your hormone levels will play out. I can’t say if you have a girl you’ll have clear skin and acne with a boy, as it’s based on your hormones, not just the babies.
Pigmentation appeared during pregnancy and disappeared after: Ok, this is a tough one because this does happen for some women, just as much as it doesn’t happen for others. The pigmentation I am talking about is called Melasma, it is triggered by hormonal fluctuations and is commonly called “the pregnancy mask” as it has a similar pattern to butterfly wings painted on the face. It mirrors itself, and can diminish after pregnancy, or not…
Is it true that your body will change, yes. Is it true that you’ll be magically ok with it when you have your bundle of joy in your arms, maybe not? Dealing with what is going on, or going to happen to your body is important, and it’s important to take the right steps in treating it. The issue that comes up is “pregnancy safe”, what is safe to use during pregnancy?
To make this as simple as possible, I am going to break up this section into three groups: Skincare Ingredients to Avoid, Skincare That’s Essential, Body Care That’s Safe.
Skincare Ingredients To Avoid:
Acids: Lactic, Glycolic, Salicylic are the most common, but really the only “acid” you should use during pregnancy is Hyaluronic Acid, which is not an exfoliating acid but the proper name for a super hydrating ingredient. Retinoids also fall under this category as they are a category of chemical exfoliating ingredients.
Hydroquinone: A common skin lightening ingredient, you might use this when you are not pregnant for pigmentation and discoloration, but definitely not while expecting or nursing.
Essential Oils: This is up to debate as some oils are safe during pregnancy:
There’s a common concern that essential oils can metabolize into toxic compounds when absorbed through a mother’s bloodstream. However, experts have generally determined that when used in the right dosages, this isn’t an issue.
The key is sticking to recommended amounts and following all suggested guidelines
- healthline.com, ‘Using Essential Oils Safely During Pregnancy’
Guidelines for Essential Oils:
Dilute Essential Oils in carrier oils like jojoba, coconut, or almond
Opt for aromatherapy and do not ingest oils
Follow the dosage suggestions through your oil provider, or as recommended on the bottle
This list is much more plentiful than what you want to avoid, the main idea is to avoid anything that is a chemical, chemical exfoliants (except certain enzymes), and even chemical SPF’s. Even though this list of pregnancy-safe skincare is longer, I am only going to focus on a few major helpful ingredients/products/tools that will help the whole term. Before we dive in, one important note: always check your label and make sure it says “safe during pregnancy”. On my skincare shop site, you can search for specifically safe products for pregnant or nursing women.
Skincare Safe During Pregnancy:
Hyaluronic Acid: An amazing ingredient that deeply hydrates skin, and all skin needs hydration.
Vitamin C: Another brilliant ingredient that helps brighten skin tone, also helps by adding a healthy glow to the skin.
Fruit Enzymes: Raspberry, Pumpkin, and Coconut are my favorite, but they also make a really great alternative to chemical exfoliation.
Chamomile: Great for calming down angry skin, also anti-inflammatory which can help with any excessive redness in the skin.
Body Care During Pregnancy:
Shea Butter/Cocoa Butter: These are great hydrating moisturizers that will help your skin as it expands and adjusts. A lot of the reason we see stretch marks is because the skin expanded suddenly and wasn’t prepped, or softened. Think of lasagna, if left al dente they can snap and break, when perfectly cooked soft they are pliable. Our skin is similar.
Massage: It is important all the time, but very helpful during pregnancy, and best done by a professional. The only catch- do not to go to get a massage during the first 8-10 weeks of pregnancy, it can induce a miscarriage. There are also certain spots to avoid, but I was told by a massage therapist that you would have to intentionally and with a lot of pressure hit these points to cause problems.
Dry Brushing: This can help with circulation, especially in the legs, just remember to keep the pressure light and follow with a hydrating moisturizer (remember the first tip in this section)
“Dry Body Brushing is a great way to detox the skin during pregnancy as it deals with detoxification of the skin and assists in eliminating toxins from your body. It aids in reducing cellulite and stretch marks and removes dead skin & impurities.”
- https://stassandco.com/, ‘Pregnancy & Dry Brushing”
I know this might seem like a shortlist, but I am definitely no expert on what women should do during pregnancy, just on how best for them to care for their skin. If you would like to dive deeper into certain topics discussed here, check out my blogs Ask A Pro: The Tools of Lymphatic Drainage and Winter Skin Series: January & Essential Oils.
The main takeaway is that it is crucial to know what is in the products you're using on your body, regardless if you are pregnant this is important. But while you are pregnant and nursing, knowing which ingredients could be harmful and staying away from them is major. Practice what is good for you regularly, making you a priority throughout the pregnancy and after. “Me time” is something that can get hard to hold space for as you raise a new life in this wild world, but it will serve not just you but your little one(s) as they will learn from your example the importance of taking care of oneself and being able to better show up for others.
As in all things, be good to your skin and even better to your whole self,
xx eri