Kaboutjie SA Mommy Blogs by Lynne Huysamen
Everything changes when you are starting your journey to motherhood. When you are feeling exhausted most of the time, your self-care routine tends to slip away. Moms who are nursing especially know this. Many moms are in the dark as to which products are safe to use. Keep in mind when you are breastfeeding, everything that you put on your skin or consume can affect your baby. That is why we are sharing a few useful skincare tips while pregnant or breastfeeding with you to keep you skin looking beautiful while keeping your baby safe and healthy.
*** This post is sponsored by Natralogic ***
- Cleansing your skin
When you are nursing your baby, make sure that all residue from your skincare products has been taken washed off. Always make sure the nipple area is clean before nursing your child. No matter how safe a product claims to be, it is better not for baby to ingest it, especially young infants.
- Giving Vitamin C a try
During pregnancy countless women experience a condition called melasma. Melasma is a kind of hyperpigmentation that be triggered by hormonal fluctuations in the body when pregnant. In most cases, the melasma will clear up on its own, but in some instances, it can last longer, even after pregnancy. Topical home treatments, including those that contain Vitamin C, are usually the best options for breastfeeding moms. Vitamin C helps with brightening the skin and evening out skin tone with continued use, leaving your skin glowing long after pregnancy.
- Moisturizing is key
When you are a new mom, you’ll be washing your hands way more regularly than usual. Between feedings, cleaning and diaper changes, your skin can be stripped from its natural oils, especially if you are washing with harsh soaps. They can dry out your skin fast. Contingent on the gravity of the dryness, you may be at risk of infection. You can tackle dry skin by using a heavy moisturizer during the night. Steer clear from alcohol-based sanitizers as your skin will not respond well to them due to the heavy concentrated alcohol content.
- Utilizing your breast milk in clever ways
Did you know that breast milk is chock-full of nutrients which is excellent for your skin? It contains various minerals and vitamins that your body needs. Many new moms use breastmilk as a gentle makeup remover and face wash. And by adding a couple of other healthy ingredients it can easily be turned into a lotion, lip balm or a home remedy for eye puffiness.
- Be mindful about the ingredient lists
Everything that you use on your skin can be ingested by your baby when you are pregnant or nursing. That’s why it is crucial to look at the ingredients found in your skin care products. The best option is to go for a natural skincare range like Natralogic that is specially designed for women that are pregnant or breastfeeding.
What ingredients are considered safe to use during pregnancy and breastfeeding?
It is very important to note that while the following ingredients may be considered safe to use you must always check with your doctor before using them.
- Benzoyl Peroxide – one of the safer acne-combatting ingredients that nursing moms can use for acne due to hormonal changes. Many of your body’s tissues comprise of enzymes that naturally breaks down peroxide substances.
- Lactic acid – another ingredient that is used in several acne treatments to lessen the appearance of scarring and help peel away the skin. Doctors have deemed it safe for using during nursing.
- Zinc Oxide – an ingredient found in sunscreen is safe for use during pregnancy and nursing since its absorption is minimal when used on unbroken skin.
What ingredients must be avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding?
- Petroleum – a baby’s delicate skin can be prone to skin irritation when using products that contain petroleum.
- Parabens – preservatives used for prevention of germs contaminating cosmetics such as make up and skincare products. Parabens build-up in the body over time and can lead to an abnormal amount of chemical accumulation that can affect a baby’s endocrine system.
- Formaldehyde – another compound which is used as a preservative in skincare products and should be avoided since they can result in severe allergic reactions in nursing babies.
- Retinoids – often used in anti-aging products. Oral retinoids have been associated with birth defects and topical retinoids must be avoided when nursing.
- Salicylic Acid – light topical use every now and again for acne should be okay. Face masks on the other hand can leave residue on your skin and since they are highly concentrated it is recommended to avoid them while breastfeeding.
Always check product labels to ensure the products don’t include the above-mentioned chemicals. They are often listed under alternate names on the labels, so be on the lookout for these names:
- Petrolatum
- Ethylparaben
- Butylparaben
- Isobutylparaben
- DMDM-hydantoin
- Differin
- Methylparaben
- Propylene glycol
- Mineral oil
- Heptylparaben
- Hydroxymethylglycinate
- Methenesmine
- Isopropyl alcohol
- Retin-A
- Retinyl
- Retinol
- Paraffin
- Propylparaben
- Tazorac
- BHA
- Beta hydroxy acid
This was chalked full of great information! Now that Im older and know better I really focus on ingredients and how they react with my skin. I think half the battle is paying attention to changes when using products that way you can catch early on what works and what may be causing an issue.
I believe that going all natural all the time is best anyway. And I think you are right, getting older is part of it. I am a lot more aware than I was 20 years ago when I would use anything. Now it is really important to me that I go as natural as possible and I really love products that are approved by Beauty Without Cruelty. There really is no need to make use of any products that test on animals and unfortunately so many brands test on animals.
Natralogic is an amazing brand that really takes care of all the things that are so important – safety for pregnancy and ethical.
I have said this time and time again, these products are amazing. So much care and research has been put into these products. If you not pregnant, purchase them for your baby shower gift and if you are pregnant, you have to have these on your shopping list without a doubt!
I’m loving my Natralogic products Julie – they are fantastic!
Valuable tips, Lynne! Reading the label on everything we use during pregnancy is so important. I did know that breastmilk is amazing for many things (including eye infections – just a drop clears it up) but did not know one can add a couple of ingredients to make lotions and lip balms. Interesting. Considering we end up with wet bras sometimes from leaks, ingenious ways to take advantage of this literally manna from heaven. Dry skin is a major problem during pregnancy, thanks to the hormones and sometimes aggravated by the weather too! I remember using a homemade oil on myself during that time. I also used to be very careful with my diet and took good care of my health. The only major misery was a strep throat that got so bad I had to go through two rounds of antibiotics. Ugh!
That list of ingredients to avoid is gold!
Oh no Vidya! That is awful. Being sick is no fun during pregnancy. I remember getting flu and being so miserable.
And yes breast milk is fantastic for many things. I even used it for my baby’s bum rash once when I had nothing else at home and it worked wonders!
That’s an informative one. I am sure nursing mothers can help so much from this post. Frankly, I see that there are so many chemicals in the products that we use that all of us can do better by switching to natural products. So I am going to use your post as a key to what to avoid 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
You’ve said it right there, yes of course we need to pay extra care during pregnancy and breastfeeding but we should also be going natural as far as possible even when not pregnant and breastfeeding. It is the best thing for our skin and our health.
Thank you! Good information that I didn’t know before. After I became pregnant, I was very aware of the ingredients in the products I used and even learned how to make my own products. I would never have thought to use breastmilk as a face wash! I will have to try that the next time around.
Breast milk is incredible Vicki! We used it for diaper rashes and for my daughter when she had a stuffy nose. You can use it for ear infections and eye infections too. Amazing stuff!
It’s nice that there are skincare tips for pregnant women. It’s hard to keep track of skincare when there’s a lot going on.