Pregnancy acne affects about 42 percent of pregnant women. It happens mainly because of big changes in hormones and the body’s immune system.
When you get pregnant, your body makes a lot more progesterone. This hormone helps the pregnancy grow but also tells your skin’s oil glands to work harder. The glands pump out extra oil, called sebum. This oil mixes with dead skin cells and can clog your pores. Bacteria get trapped inside, leading to red, swollen pimples.
Progesterone also thickens the lining inside hair follicles. That makes it easier for dirt and bacteria to stick around and cause breakouts. These pimples can show up on the face, neck, chest, back, shoulders, or even the butt.
Your immune system shifts during pregnancy too. It gets easier for bacteria to grow and for swelling to happen fast. That turns small clogs into big, painful acne spots.
Most acne starts in the first trimester. That’s when hormones like human chorionic gonadotropin, or hCG, progesterone, and estrogen jump around a lot. Things often calm down by the third trimester as levels steady out and skin gets used to them.
Other things can make it worse, like stress or too much sugar and dairy in your diet. But hormones are the main trigger.
Sources
https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a69307596/pregnancy-acne/
https://www.aol.com/articles/pregnancy-gave-cystic-acne-actually-122400849.html
https://www.drbatras.com/hormonal-acne-what-causes-it-and-how-to-treat-it
https://www.uvahealth.com/healthy-balance/skincare-in-pregnancy
