Can You Use Vitamin C Serum While Pregnant? Find Out If It’s Safe For You

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Pregnancy skincare should not be anything complex if you go by the rules of what to use and what to avoid. Vitamin C serum makes the list of skincare ingredients that remain beneficial to the skin even while pregnant.

Pregnancy does modify the body and skin needs. It comes with occasional skin changes that make you want to alter your skincare ingredients. Vitamins are essential nutrients needed for the health and appearance of the skin.

During pregnancy, the skin experiences a lot of changes in complexion, elasticity, and texture. While you ingest drugs, topical products like vitamin C serum are necessary to improve the appearance of your skin.

Pregnancy skincare doesn’t have to be overwhelming. All you need to do is use the right ingredients to enjoy great skin during your preggy days.

Can you use vitamin C serum while pregnant?

Yes, you can.

Vitamin C serum is the best swap for retinoids which aren’t good for pregnancies. That’s because pregnancy is accompanied by skin tone and texture changes.

Although natural, these changes could pose a cosmetic problem, and not everyone can tolerate them. Nonetheless, vitamin C is one of the vitamins needed for prenatal.

It helps to increase immunity against infections and strengthen muscles and among many other things. Topical vitamin C is also safe during pregnancy.

Retinoids and vitamin C perform similar functions, but retinoids have been ruled out as prenatal ingredients. It enters the bloodstream and causes birth defects. To replace it is vitamin C serum, which is mild and works just as effectively as retinoids.

What does vitamin C serum do for pregnant women?

Vitamin C serum is a skin-brightening serum, and it does the same for the skin of pregnant women.

During pregnancy, some women develop hormonal acne, hyperpigmentation (pregnancy mask), and other skin issues that distort skin complexion.

Adding vitamin C serum to your skincare routine can help manage these skin concerns. Although vitamin C is not a cure for hormonal acne, it can replace retinol and help improve the appearance of acne with its anti-inflammatory properties.

It soothes the skin and makes acne less visible. In addition, pregnancy makes the skin photosensitive and develops a type of hyperpigmentation called melasma.

Vitamin C serum helps to clear off these dark patches and even your skin tone. This serum also helps to prevent the development of this photodamage.

Vitamin C is an antioxidant. It also stimulates the production of collagen, which is necessary to enhance skin elasticity. This is one of the key roles of retinol in any skincare routine.

You don’t have to ditch retinol and carry sagging skin about. Vitamin C serum is a good replacement and is just as active as retinol in giving your skin a balanced youthful look.

Is skincare necessary while pregnant?

Yes, it is.

Pregnancy doesn’t excuse you from skincare routines. A good skincare routine is necessary to enhance your skin and keep it healthy. Pregnancy changes a lot about the body and skin. Therefore, it is necessary to keep your skincare routine flexible for this reason.

The skin and body changes will influence your skincare ingredients and products. This is why you should work closely with a doctor on what you should and shouldn’t use on your skin during pregnancy.

Hormonal imbalance causes skin flares and subsequent acne breakouts. Sometimes, it’s a skin discoloration with dark patches or acne scars. Because of bloating, the skin may look saggy after childbirth.

Building a routine with the right products will help keep your skin in good condition during and after pregnancy.

What should you avoid using when pregnant?

Retinoids

Retinoids are powerful, and it seems they are the solution to everything that plagues your skin during pregnancy. However, you have to ditch every retinol product until after the delivery of your baby; oral and topical retinoids inclusive.

It has been confirmed that products that contain retinoids have caused serious birth defects that affect the baby’s development. Examples of such retinoids include retinol, Retin-A, and retinyl palmitate.

Salicylic acid

It’s easy to want to turn to alpha-hydroxy acids or beta-hydroxy acids (AHAs or BHAs) to treat hormonal acne. However, they may not always be the best ingredient for addressing acne woes during pregnancy.

Use salicylic acid to treat acne in sparing concentrations and with a doctor’s prescription. When more than 2% of salicylic acid enters the bloodstream, it could affect the development of the unborn baby.

Benzoyl peroxide

When compared to salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide is a no-no for treating acne in pregnant women. It is too strong and can greatly affect the health and development of the baby.

When buying spot treatment creams, always look through the ingredient list to be sure benzoyl peroxide is not on the list (even in the least concentrations).

Accutane

Accutane is one of the vitamin A derivatives available in prescription strengths. Just like with retinol, you should avoid using Accutane during pregnancy.

Although doctors will not prescribe it to you, you should watch out for this ingredient in medications. The best way to avoid using Accutane is to always work with a doctor’s prescription.

Essential oils

Essential oils may be therapeutic, but they are not a great idea for facial oils during pregnancy. Some women find inhaling them soothing for morning sickness and body pains. However, these oils are concentrated and should be used with great caution and an expert’s guide.

Always discuss any essential oils you like to use during pregnancy with your doctor. The doctor will guide you on which oils are least likely to harm you and or what concentrations are recommended.

Hydroquinone

Hydroquinone is a skin-brightening ingredient in products that help with the appearance of dark spots. This ingredient quickly absorbs into the skin (and the skin of a pregnant woman is already sensitive). This absorption rate doesn’t work too well for the unborn baby.

Dermatologists advise that pregnant women should rather use vitamin C to treat hyperpigmentation instead of hydroquinone.

Parabens

Parabens and phthalates are not safe ingredients during pregnancy. Without pregnancy, there’s a caution that goes with products (makeup, skin lotion, and shampoo) that contain these ingredients. They penetrate the skin and can harm the baby.

If these chemicals get to the baby, they could cause developmental issues like decreased body weight and body length.

Are there any side effects of using vitamin C serum while pregnant?

Vitamin C serum is the perfect fit for your skin during pregnancy. It rarely shows any side effects on your skin. A few cases report a burning sensation that happens with people who aren’t pregnant. These side effects go away within a few days.

One thing to note, however, is that pregnancy makes the skin very sensitive. Therefore, if you didn’t experience any side effects from using vitamin C serum before pregnancy, you may experience some during pregnancy.

FAQs

can you use vitamin c serum while pregnant

Can you use face serums while pregnant?

Yes, you can.

There is no rule against using face serums during pregnancy. However, there are some ingredients you shouldn’t use. The ingredients in your products can penetrate your skin, enter the bloodstream, and cause harm to the baby.

Can you use too much vitamin C while pregnant?

Although it is not so likely to happen, you can use too much vitamin C without any adverse effects for the unborn baby and you.

Furthermore, applying too much vitamin C serum can only acne breakouts, accompanied by skin irritations at most.

How often should you use vitamin C serum while pregnant?

You should apply vitamin C serum to your face every day during pregnancy to brighten your complexion, improve the health of your skin, and keep it glowing.

Conclusion

Vitamin C serum is safe for use for pregnant women. It makes a good replacement for retinoids in your skincare routine. Retinoids are usually turned to when you need skin rejuvenation for an improved complexion.

However, it can cause birth complications. Experts recommend vitamin C serum as one of the products in pregnant women’s routine. It is mild and perfectly fills in the role of retinoids without any effect on the health of the mother and unborn baby.

Thanks for reading.

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