5 Tips for Postpartum Skin Rejuvenation

After giving birth, most new mothers are so tied up with taking care of their newborn that they forget to look after themselves. By the time they realize that it’s time for self-care, some skin problems might have already gotten far out of hand. This is why prevention is always better than having to cure it after the fact.
 

What are typical postpartum skin problems for new mothers?

Dehydrated skin

For the first two to three weeks after giving birth, a mother’s skin may feel drier than usual due to the loss of fluid retained during pregnancy. Edema may appear to be reduced, but there are still some subsequent skin problems that remain, like dehydrated skin. You can detect early signs of dehydrated skins from dry and flaky lips, dry mouth, and dry skin. The hair may also become brittle and break off easily, plus relatively low breast milk production.

Skin darkening in many areas of the body 

During pregnancy, two in five women experience the development of dark spots on many areas of their bodies, such as the neck, underarms, thighs, nipples and the surrounding skin, and the genital area. There are also chances of melasma, freckles, dark blemishes, and dark circles. All of these are caused by changes in female sex hormone levels during pregnancy, which can darken certain areas of the skin. After the baby is born, those dark areas remain the same; it can take at least three to six months until they appear lighter naturally. 
 

Sensitive Skin

The level of multiple hormones increases during pregnancy. That’s why it’s common to experience inflamed acne and allergic rashes more than usual. The skin also becomes more sensitive to sunlight, thus increasing the chances of developing melasma and freckles.
 

5 Postpartum Skincare Tips

1. Avoid being in direct sunlight if possible since it contains UVA rays (which damage collagen, causing the skin to become weathered), and UVB rays (which causes melasma, freckles, dark spots, and sunburn). If you have to go out, make sure that you apply sunscreen with a minimum SPF of 30 and Protection Grade against UVA rays (PA) higher than 3+.

2.