Pregnancy involves so much more than just your baby

 

growing inside you - it affects every system in your body.   Changes can occur at any time in pregnancy

 and for some women, they continue all the way through.

 

Over the next 7 weeks we will tell you about some new change you body will go through.

 

 

Skin

Some women find that their skin "glows" in pregnancy, while others find their skin getting dry or spots.

In around 90% of women, the pigmentation increases in their skin during pregnancy, which may mean their

freckles become more pronounced, while others develop the ‘mask of pregnancy’ or chloasma. This is when the

 skin develops a brownish stain, usually across the nose, cheeks and forehead. Don’t fret, this will fade after your baby

is born.

 

Many pregnant women also develop a brown line that stretches from their pubic area to their navel. This is called the

linear negra and again, will also fade after the birth of your baby, but will never completely disappear.

 

" It was a few days before I realised that the marks on my stomach weren’t ‘imprints’ from my yights but were, in fact, stretchmarks! My midwife told me all about my skin type and that even if I’d spent a fortune on skin creams, I’d have still ended up with them."

 

-Nadia, 25, 36 weeks  

 

 

 

 

Hair

You may find your hair appears to be thicker than usual. This is because most mums-to-be lose less hair each day than they usualy would.

After your baby is born, though the tables turn and you may feelthat you’re losing hir at an alarming rate. But for most of you, it’s simply a case of losing the hair you would have lost over the previous months.

 

"After I had Esme, it seemed as though I was losing a lot of hair. I used to check the pillow as soon as I woke up and it appeared to be covered with it. After a few weeks it settled down, but it was worrying at the time."

-Nolene, 37, mum to Esme, 10 weeks

 

 

 

Teeth

The high levels of progesterone can make your gums more vascular and increasingly prone to bleeding. If this happens, continue to brush your teeth regularly with a soft bristle toothbrush.

Because of the changes, gums can feel soft and spongy and may become more prone to infection, so good dental hygiene is essential. 

 

"I’m a dental nurse and I have seen the changes that can happen in pregnancy. Every day I eat a piece of cheese. Not only is it high in calcium, but cheese helps stimulate saliva, keeping your teeth cleen!"

- Moira, 31, 32 weeks pregnant 

 

 

 

Stomach

 

In the first few weeks of pregnancy you might feel constipated. This is due to the hormone progesterone which relaxes the muscle in the intestine, causing it to become sluggish. Drink plenty of water and improve your circulation generaly with light exercise such as walking.

This relaxation of the muscle is also responible for heartburn or indigestion. Also as your baby grows, your stomach tends to become squashed, which can make heartburn worse as your pregnancy progresses. As a result of the relaxation of this muscle, varicus veins and haemorrhoids can occur.

 

"I had the most awful heartburn from around the 15th week of pregnancy. Yoga really helped: it improved my posture and circulation. It’s only now that the heartburn’s starting to creep back."

-Tara, 27, 36 weeks pregnant

 

 

 

 

 

All information is taken from the March 2007 Edition of Practical Parenting magazine.