Pregnancy-Safe Options for Dry Skin
Many things change during pregnancy — your skin included!
One of those changes is a loss of natural hydration, leading to dryer, itchier skin.
Before reaching for your usual moisturizer, make sure the ingredients you’re using are pregnancy-safe. To help, here are a few of our Skin Pharm must-haves to manage dry skin — they’re pregnancy-safe and will leave you feeling good, too!
What changes happen to the skin during pregnancy?
Although we often forget, the skin is also an organ. The skin is constantly working to protect the body and keep it functioning smoothly — just like the heart and lungs do!
When pregnant, the body works overtime to provide enough blood and nutrients to the developing baby. And as the body grows along with the pregnancy, the skin tries its best to keep up with the changes. Sometimes, the growth occurs too quickly, leading to stretch marks and scarring along the abdomen, thighs and chest.
There is also increased blood flow to the skin during pregnancy, responsible for achieving that pregnancy glow.
Got it! So why does my skin feel so dry?
During pregnancy, the hormone balance in the body changes. While many people associate this with mood swings, it’s also responsible for more subtle changes, like a lack of skin elasticity and moisture. Think of it this way — you still have the same amount of skin, but it’s being stretched across a larger area.
In most cases, the skin feels the driest over the abdomen. However, for some women, that dryness extends to the chest and thighs, too. These are areas where the skin stretches the most, so they tend to be drier than other parts of the body.
Choose pregnancy-safe skin care
For people already dealing with dry skin prior to getting pregnant, pregnancy can exacerbate the situation, making dry skin on the face even more noticeable. In these cases, it’s important to find the right skin care products and treatments to help hydrate, moisturize and soothe.
We love treating mamas-to-be, and we created our Pregnancy-Safe Kit with that in mind. We wanted to provide our go-to pregnancy-safe skin care products in a simple routine kit!
Pregnancy-safe skin care is something we’re very familiar with. Our Pregnancy-Safe Kit includes our Gentle Soothing Cleanser, Crystal Clear clarifying pads, Eye Sculpt, Youth Serum, Glow Factor, and 100% Mineral Tinted SPF. Each product is pregnancy-safe and ideal for breastfeeding mamas, too.
We only include ingredients considered safe by The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), like azelaic acid and AHAs/BHAs, such as salicylic acid and glycolic acid.
Are there any pregnancy-safe cosmetic treatments?
Mamas-to-be deserve TLC, too. And good news — a number of Skin Pharm treatments are pregnancy-safe! They include:
- BBL Photofacial: A fast, effective facial with immediate results and nonexistent downtime. BBL photofacials use light to stimulate skin cell regeneration and collagen production.
- Gold Infusion: This cosmetic treatment “stamps” the skin with antioxidants and hydrating ingredients to tighten pores, refine skin texture, and moisture the skin. This is an excellent treatment to treat dry skin pregnancy issues!
- Microneedling: Microneedling helps promote collagen production and can even reduce the appearance of stretch marks!
- PRP: This treatment boosts collagen and elastin by harnessing the power of your own blood! It can be used on its own or combined with microneedling for even more impressive results.
(As always, we recommend getting clearance from your OB-GYN prior to scheduling your treatment!)
What else can I do about my dry skin?
Dry skin during pregnancy can be annoying, but there are a few easy ways to change up your routine and get it back under control.
TAKE SHORTER SHOWERS—
At the end of a long day, it’s tempting to want to take a long, hot bath or shower to relax. While we strongly support a self-care moment (especially for mamas-to-be!), longer bathing routines can actually dry your skin out even further. Hot water dries the skin and can also break down the natural oils, known as sebum, on its surface.
If you can find a way to reduce the length of your routine and turn the water temperature down even just a few degrees, you’ll be able to keep your skin more hydrated.
USE THE RIGHT CLEANSER—
Most regular cleansers contain harsh dyes and fragrances that smell and look nice, but ultimately dry out the skin. When you’re pregnant, that can be an even more significant problem.
If you're in the market for a new cleanser, look for one that's fragrance- and dye-free. Good news — all Skin Pharm products are formulated to be synthetic fragrance-free and dye-free, too! We recommend our Gentle Soothing Cleanser for mamas-to-be and love pairing it with Youth Serum for added hydration.
HYDRATE—
Speaking of hydration, this one might be obvious, but using the right moisturizer for your skin goes a long way in mitigating those dry skin symptoms you might feel during pregnancy!
Those with normal to combo and oily skin should try our Face Whip, a luxe moisturizer that offers intense hydration while instantly absorbing into your skin. If you're more acne-prone, our Youth Serum is a great, lightweight option.
To wrap things up...
Dry skin pregnancy complaints are some of the most common people have. While it’s an expected part of pregnancy, there are certainly treatments and skin care to hydrate, calm and soothe its effects!
After all, we want you to look and feel your very best — now more than ever.
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