Dry skin during pregnancy

Definition

Dry skin is often tense, feels rough and is often accompanied by itching. Because the skin lacks moisture and water, it often looks wrinkled. In addition, it is very brittle and quickly develops small cracks that can develop into larger wounds with inflammation. In addition, finer scales can form. If it is very pronounced, a dehydration eczema with itching and redness can also develop.

Introduction

With the beginning of pregnancy, the female body undergoes numerous changes, which are particularly caused by hormones. These changes include increased water retention, increased blood volume and changes in skin and hair. Many pregnant women get a different skin appearance due to these changes.

The improved blood circulation makes the skin look rosier and smoother. But not all pregnant women react to the hormonal changes during pregnancy in the same way. So the opposite reactions can also occur. Some pregnant women then tend to have dry, chapped or impure skin with blackheads.

Causes of dry skin during pregnancy

The hormones estrogen and progesterone are particularly responsible for the changes during pregnancy. They trigger many processes so that the female body can optimally adapt to the fetus. However, these changes also lead to other processes that can have an influence not only on various metabolic processes, but also on the skin and hair.

For example, the hormonal changes can also lead to dry and brittle skin. The development of dry and cracked skin is additionally supported because the body of a pregnant woman stores more water. One might think that it prevents the skin from drying out, but the outer layers of the skin are literally deprived of water, so they need special care during this time.

Another cause of dry skin during pregnancy can be various new reactions to soap or detergents. The general changes during this period also make the skin much more sensitive. Thus it can happen that a pregnant woman unexpectedly reacts sensitively to soap or even care products with dry skin, although she has been using these products for a long time and is coping well with them.

Ingredients that normally did not cause problems can now cause irritation to the skin. If they do occur, they should be closely monitored, especially if you need to find out what is causing them. In this case, the pregnant woman should pay attention to when the irritation occurs and consider possible causes.

These can be face care products, washing powder or fabric softener, various creams and soaps. In addition, cosmetic products or certain clothes can cause such problems. Since the body temperature of a pregnant woman can also change or fluctuate during pregnancy, clothing that breathes and feels good on the skin should be worn.

Clothes that are especially synthetic can lead to increased sweating and thus also to irritation of the skin, which promotes drying of the skin. Another possibility of skin dehydration is UV radiation. In general, a little sunbathing during pregnancy is considered harmless.

However, the skin can be more sensitive during this time and should therefore be better protected. On the one hand, the sensitive skin can dry out more through the sun’s rays, and on the other hand, a pigmentation disorder can also occur due to the increased sensitivity. If itching occurs all over the body during late pregnancy, which is long-lasting and very unpleasant, one must think of pregnancy cholestasis, as these symptoms are very typical of it.

A pregnancy scholestasis is a temporary liver dysfunction. Cholestasis is the reduced secretion of bile acids. In this disease, the excretion of bile acids is temporarily impaired because in most cases there is a mechanical obstruction of the bile flow in the draining bile ducts.

In this case one speaks of extrahepatic cholestasis, the problem is therefore outside the liver. In intrahepatic cholestasis, the obstruction is still in the liver. In many cases, the excretion of bile acids by the cells is directly impaired.Hereditary genetic changes play a role here and at the same time the increasing estrogen during pregnancy additionally reduces the removal of bile acids.

The bile acids accumulate in the blood and cause severe itching. This is particularly severe on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. Scratching and rubbing is often used to alleviate the itching.

In most cases, a change in the skin only becomes apparent then: it turns red and scratch marks appear. In very rare cases, other liver values also increase in the blood. These may include bilirubin, a blood pigment.

If it exceeds a certain concentration in the blood, jaundice (icterus) may develop. It is usually the first thing to be diagnosed when the blindfolds (sclerae) turn yellow. Afterwards, the skin on the entire body can also turn yellowish.

Pregnancy scholestasis should be regularly examined by a doctor as long as the child has not yet been born. The doctor checks the blood and checks the levels of bile acids and liver. To protect the child from complications, it should also be regularly examined by a gynecologist.

One treatment option is the drug ursodeoxycholic acid, which has not yet been approved in such a case, but is the drug of choice for many doctors because it normalizes the excessively high blood values of bile acids. This would be particularly useful for the unborn child so that it does not suffer any damage to its health. Moisturizing creams can be used to combat itching.

After the birth, the mother’s estrogen level drops back to normal and thus the itching usually stops, as the bile acids on the body can be removed properly. However, the problem remains due to the influence of the hormone estrogen on the removal of bile acids. Intrahepatic cholestasis can occur again when taking the contraceptive pill.

The mother should therefore decide together with the treating gynaecologist whether it would be sensible to stop taking the pill and try another contraceptive. Dry skin manifests itself individually and to varying degrees. Brittle skin often looks tense and wrinkled.

It also feels rough and can develop smaller or larger scales that fall off on their own. If the dry skin of a pregnant woman is not properly cared for, it can continue to develop small cracks, so-called rhagades, due to increasing stress. These generally offer a small risk of an inflammatory reaction if they are contaminated or not maintained with appropriate products.

The fine cracks then quickly recede. Dry skin becomes additionally irritated and can cause itching. Itching can occur from time to time and is generally normal for dry skin.

Scratching can relieve the itching for a short time, but it also puts additional strain on the skin and should be avoided because of the risk of the skin getting open spots or becoming sore. The better help are caring creams. Especially in the face, changes can be observed during pregnancy.

While some women maintain a smooth and pure skin or even refine the skin texture, other women react more with a deterioration of the skin to the hormonal changes during pregnancy. In addition to pimples, oily skin and increased occurrence of blackheads, dry skin on the chin, forehead and around the nose is particularly common. It is not uncommon for the skin to become reddish and itchy.

Cosmetic products, soap or washing lotion can now also more frequently trigger a rash on the face because the skin is much more sensitive than usual. The pregnant woman should possibly use other care products to find out what causes the rash. The hormones can also cause various pigment disorders during pregnancy.

On the face, they are particularly often caused by sunlight. The skin discolors somewhat darker or a discoloration of one area of the skin occurs. Both variants are possible and most of the symptoms usually disappear after pregnancy. Dry skin makes the body generally more sensitive to invading bacteria or skin fungi. It is not unusual for some pregnant women to develop a fungal infection due to irritated skin, which must then be treated accordingly.Dry eyelids – cause, symptoms, therapy