Creams for pregnant women: prohibited and recommended – We help you know which creams pregnant women should avoid due to their ingredients. But there is a solution: you can replace them with others. Objective: pregnancy without unforeseen events.
Pregnancy is an important stage of changes in the skin of women.
Sensitivity accentuated in this phase, and many of the ingredients you use daily are kept in the drawer for up to 9 months later. And not only that but many familiar elements in your routine are discouraged during these months for your baby. We help you discover what they are and the recommendations that studies and experts have given about them.
Cosmetics during pregnancy: prohibited ingredients
retinol creams
Retinol or vitamin A is a perfect anti-ageing ingredient in many serums and creams. If you have been using it in your daily routine and become pregnant, it is best to put it aside until your baby arrives. Even though it might not be dangerous in low concentrations, it is best to prevent and, and let’s be honest: you can go nine months without retinol because you will be radiant in return!
Just so you understand: vitamin A is a fat-soluble ingredient capable of intervening in numerous biological processes (from pregnancy to cell differentiation, vision, and even reproduction). It not only found in your cosmetics. You will also find vitamin A in certain foods of animal origin and some of plant origin (carotenes).
Depending on age and time in life, vitamin A needs vary. According to data from the Fundación 1000 on congenital disabilities, the recommended vitamin A dose during pregnancy is 2,700 international units (IU)/day to reach 8,000 IU with the amount you include with food.
Studies have shown that when pregnant women use doses of less than 10,000 IU daily, there is no reason to worry. However, if the amount is higher, significantly above 25,000 IU, congenital disabilities may occur.
Suppose you have been exposed to high doses during the first trimester due to dermatological treatments. In that case, it is best to tell your gynaecologist so that they can perform high-resolution ultrasound studies that can detect risks.
In the same way, you will avoid certain creams with high doses of vitamin A during pregnancy; medical recommendations include responsible consumption of pates and liver.
caffeinated creams
If the orange peel does not give you a break during pregnancy, you can continue using anti-cellulite creams … but with a particular precaution: they do not contain caffeine. And is that caffeine is a stimulant ingredient that can pass into the bloodstream and reach the fetus. What’s more, avoiding caffeinated creams will be part of the recommendations during pregnancy and during the lactation period.
And not only in anti-cellulite creams. Caffeine is also frequently found in eye creams. Take a look at the labels on your toiletry bag.
Creams with essential oils
Essential oils are not entirely prohibited, but there is a blocklist of them that you should avoid as they are especially discouraged during pregnancy, especially in the first months. We are talking about the essential oils of sage, oregano, clove oil, geranium, menthol or rue.
You will probably find them in minimal concentrations in many cosmetics (less than 0.10%, for example). In that case, they’re not that much of a problem, although you’d better avoid them altogether for the first few months.
Creams with salicylic acid
Salicylic acid is excellent as an anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antiseptic. It helps to regenerate the skin and inhibit ageing. You can find it in many cosmetics for topical use, such as some products to remove pimples or blackheads, and you probably have the odd one in your vanity bag in addition to the aspirin blister.
However, it is also part of that blocklist of ingredients that are not recommended during pregnancy. Doctors are usually quite strict with it, especially in high concentrations (in medicines), since in addition to negatively affecting the skin of the pregnant woman due to its greater sensitivity during pregnancy, it can be transported by the blood. To the placenta and enter the fetus.
Creams with glycolic acid
Due to its properties, glycolic acid is used mainly in exfoliants and other cosmetic treatments that fade spots and provide luminosity to the skin. If it is already an ingredient with which sensitive skin suffers more than usual when abused during pregnancy. At this time, a woman’s skin practically “mutates”; it is also not recommended. In high concentrations, it can also enter the bloodstream and reach the placenta. Tell your doctor if you need it urgently.
Other information of interest if you are pregnant
We take advantage of this review to remember that if you are pregnant, avoid cosmetic touch-ups. Especially the Botox grafts. Animal studies have shown that its use in some pregnant females caused low birth weight in the pups and spontaneous abortions in others. Although there hardly any evidence in humans, its use by specialists discouraged.
Other treatments not recommended during pregnancy include seaweed wraps -used to prevent fluid retention. They can cause contractions due to the dehydration they generate. Neither are jacuzzis or saunas due to excessive vasodilation.
hair dyes during pregnancy
We open a small parenthesis to discuss treatments and hair care during pregnancy. What about the myth of dyes and pregnancy? Well, that’s not entirely true. Nine months with grey hair is long, and if you use reliable dyes, there will be no problem. That is, those that do not contain ammonia or lead salts. Be sure to ask your hairdresser.
For its part, if you are pregnant and follow a treatment with minoxidil to combat hair loss, this also interests you. Despite a few reported cases of congenital anomalies in pregnancies exposed to minoxidil, the FDA has assigned it to the pregnancy category C drug group. The reason is animal studies. Although they have not allowed us to find evidence of teratogenicity, they observed a reduction in conception and an increase in incidences due to fetal absorption in animals that received doses up to 5 times higher than humans.
If there is no alternative, it is better to park it until after breastfeeding. Because yes, during this period, incidents have found. Minoxidil is excreted in breast milk, and the same manufacturer recommends discontinuing treatment due to reactions in nursing babies.
