Published: July 15, 2023
Pregnancy skincare can seem like a minefield. With your hormones throwing your skin so out of whack, it’s not all about that pregnancy glow. Instead, there are so many not-so-beneficial issues that you’re likely to encounter, from increased sensitivities to hyperpigmentation.
What makes things trickier is that certain skincare ingredients shouldn’t be used during pregnancy. However, since pregnant women cannot participate in clinical trials, there’s still a fair bit of ambiguity surrounding the facts. This means that much of the advice out there is very conflicting and confusing.
If you’re not sure how to begin navigating the world of pregnancy skincare, you’ve come to the right place. Read on as Avinichi shares some top tips to help ensure that your skin looks beautifully luminescent both during and after your pregnancy.
Be Cautious About Certain Skincare Ingredients
The most important aspect of pregnancy skincare is safety, for both you and your baby. Since certain skincare ingredients can potentially impact fetal health, it goes without saying that you need to be cautious about the products that you’re applying to your skin.
One ingredient to be wary of is retinol. However, this is only when it comes to prescription forms of the ingredient. These are able to cross the placental barrier, which could lead to birth defects.
On the other hand, retinyl palmitate in low doses isn’t able to cross the placental membrane. This means that it can be used safely during pregnancy. You’ll find the ingredient in the Avinichi Hydrating Multifruit C-Serum. Not only will this serum help to keep your skin hydrated, but it will also tackle the appearance of acne and hyperpigmentation that can often accompany pregnancy.
Chemical sunscreens should also be avoided during this time. The UV-blocking agents used in those formulas are potential hormone disruptors, which can interfere with how your baby’s nervous system develops.
Essential oils can be dangerous too. Granted, this is only when they’re used in high concentrations. However, since they’re not regulated by the FDA, you never really know what you’re getting when you buy a pure essential oil.
SPF Can Help to Reduce the Look of Melasma
Often referred to as the ‘mask of pregnancy’, melasma is a skin disorder that results in the skin producing excess pigmentation. This gives certain areas of the skin a darker color, leaving the complexion looking blotchy.
Why is melasma such a common problem when it comes to pregnancy skincare?
It all comes down to the hormones that rage through the body. They stimulate pigment production, and all of that extra pigment needs to go somewhere. The fact that the skin is often also more sensitive to sunlight during pregnancy doesn’t help either. This makes it even more vulnerable to hyperpigmentation, fueling the melasma even further.
Since there’s also a genetic element to melasma, it’s a difficult condition to prevent. However, keeping your skin protected from the sun’s UV rays will make a huge difference. Even if it doesn’t completely prevent your melasma from appearing, you won’t have to deal with discoloration that’s quite so dark and obvious.
Of course, as mentioned above, chemical sunscreens are a no-go when pregnant. Instead, add a mineral sunscreen to your pregnancy skincare routine. Keep it with you throughout the day so that you can apply it on the go. You never want to find your skin unprotected, especially while you’re pregnant!
Regularly Exfoliating Can Keep Your Skin Tone Looking Even
Another pregnancy skincare tip that can help to prevent melasma from looking quite so noticeable is to regularly exfoliate.
This is something that you should be doing anyway, but many women stop exfoliating once they’re pregnant. Why? Because some hydroxy acids, which are used in chemical exfoliants, should be avoided during pregnancy.
However, this doesn’t apply to all hydroxy acids. While you should practice caution around salicylic acid and glycolic acid, the other alpha-hydroxy acids are far gentler.
Mandelic acid, in particular, is a favorite in pregnancy skincare routines. Derived from bitter almonds, mandelic acid has a much larger molecular size than other alpha-hydroxy acids. This means that it isn’t absorbed into the skin at quite the same rate, making it much safer.
To give mandelic acid a try, check out the Avinichi Noni Polishing Peel. This exfoliant can be used twice a week to clear the skin of dead skin cells, excess oil, and deep-seated dirt. It helps to keep the skin tone looking bright and even, giving the skin a gorgeous radiance.
Diminish the Appearance of Hormonal Acne With a Good Cleanser
All of the hormonal changes that you go through when you’re pregnant can cause havoc to the skin. Some women experience severe dryness because sebum production slows down while others notice the opposite; excess sebum production leads to a greasy complexion, as well as frequent acne breakouts.
Worse still, many of the go-to ingredients when it comes to treating the appearance of acne, such as retinol and salicylic acid, shouldn’t be used during pregnancy. So, you’ll need to go back to basics when dealing with your breakouts, and this begins with a good cleanser.
Cleansing your skin twice a day will help to stop all of that excess sebum from building up on your face in quite the same way. This then means that you won’t end up with so much of it in your pores, which will help to cut back on the appearance of breakouts.
Since over-cleansing your skin can trigger it into producing even more sebum, make sure that your pregnancy skincare routine contains a gentle cleanser. The Avinichi Noni Mousse Cleanser is renowned for its mild nature. Its coconut-derived cleansing agents moisturize the skin while they cleanse. At the same time, the numerous plant extracts and oils in this formula will give your skin the antioxidants that it needs to glow.
Pregnancy Skincare Should Focus on Calming and Soothing the Complexion
Not only do the hormonal changes that you experience during pregnancy mess with your skin’s sebum production, but they can also cause your skin to be more sensitive than it usually is. This means that you may notice your skin suddenly reacting to certain skincare products, even if you’ve already been using them for years.
It doesn’t help that the skin is also more prone to hot flushes and redness during pregnancy too. This is down to how the volume of blood in the body dramatically increases. This is what gives the skin its plump and radiant pregnancy glow. However, all of this extra blood flow can also impact your blood vessels, leaving them, as well as your face, looking redder.
One way to tackle all of these problems at the same time is by using a face mask designed to soothe the complexion, just like the Avinichi Noni Advanced Hydro-Gel Face & Eye Mask. Being a hydrogel mask, this product will immediately feel cool and soothing when applied to the face. This will help to calm the feeling of any hot flushes that you’re experiencing while also evening out the look of redness, inflammation, and irritation. Infused with Irish moss powder, lavender oil, and noni fruit extract, this mask will also help to give your skin a plumper and smoother finish.
Use Humectants to Boost Skin Hydration Levels
If you’ve noticed that your skin has been looking quite dull and sallow, then there’s a good chance that it’s feeling a little dehydrated. This is common during pregnancy, making it vital to have a few hydrating products in your pregnancy skincare routine.
When trying to boost skin hydration levels, it always pays to use humectants. These are ingredients with moisture-binding properties. Apply humectants to your skin and you’ll notice that it quickly looks fuller, plumper, and brighter. Your skin cells will feel deeply quenched while your complexion takes on a dewy and more luminescent appearance.
Sodium hyaluronate and glycerin are famed for being two of the best humectants out there. They’re able to hold onto an extraordinary amount of water, especially when combined.
This is why we’ve included both ingredients in the Avinichi Hydrating Antioxidant Serum, which can be found in our Phyto Thermal Collection. This serum also boasts a variety of different peptides. They’ll help your complexion to feel stronger and more resilient as you progress through your pregnancy skincare journey.
Plant Extracts Can Fade the Visibility of Stretch Marks
For many women, one of the biggest downsides of pregnancy is the stretch marks that snake their way across the body as the stomach expands. They’re usually purple-ish when they first appear, turning lighter in color once the pregnancy is over. However, those light streaks often remain in place permanently afterward.
There’s nothing wrong with having stretch marks. They’re a cosmetic concern, meaning that they’re not going to impact your health in any way. Many women also proudly embrace their stretch marks. They’re a sign that your body has carried a child, which is always something to celebrate!
However, if you’re hoping to reduce the appearance of stretch marks as much as possible, you have a few options. Vitamin E is one, with this ingredient popular for how it can help to even out the look of skin striped with stretch marks.
That said, recent studies have also confirmed that plant extracts can help to fade the visibility of stretch marks too. Applying products rich in plant extracts and vitamins to your stretch marks can make them far less noticeable over time.
Although Avinichi’s Liquid Lift Overnight Melting Mask is designed for the face, there’s no reason why you can’t treat the stretch-marked areas of your body to this no-rinse formula too. You would struggle to find a body care formula that contains quite as many plant extracts as this one, making it well worth considering. It’s packed with vitamin E too, giving you everything that you could need to ensure that your stretch marks look as invisible as possible!
Summary
There’s no denying that pregnancy skincare can seem quite confusing. With your skin going through so many changes, it can be difficult to know exactly how to respond to this. However, keep the tips above in mind as you progress through your pregnancy and you’ll be equipped with all of the knowledge that you need to keep your skin looking soft, bright, and beautifully radiant, even after your child has entered into this world!
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