Pregnancy affects every area of your body, including your skin. Some women are fortunate enough to enjoy glowing and perfect skin during pregnancy, but this is rare, despite pregnancy myths. For most women, skin changes are not so pleasant.

The glow of pregnancy that we all hear about is actually caused by increased oil on the surface of the skin. The increased blood flow to the skin combined with hormones cause the pres to release more oil. For some, this results in a glow to the skin. Unfortunately, for other women this only results in the skin breaking out.

Acne is a problem for many women. Hormonal changes are responsible for breakouts in some women. Others find that their skin is clearer than ever during pregnancy. Some women find that they tend to break out more frequently in early pregnancy. After the first trimester, the skin often improves significantly.

The best way to treat acne during pregnancy is to keep the skin clean. Use a mild cleanser and wash your face more frequently to help get rid of excessive oil. Many prescription acne products and some over the counter treatments may not be safe during pregnancy. Check with your health care provider before using acne products to be sure they are safe for your baby.

Stretch marks are the biggest concern for some women. Stretch marks occur when the skin stretches to allow room for the baby to grow. The marks are caused by microscopic tears in the deep skin tissue. The stretch marks are the result of the tearing and skin attempting to heal the injury.

It really isn't possible to prevent all stretch marks. You may be able to keep them to a minimum by not gaining an excessive amount of weight. Gaining a lot more than the recommended 25 -30 pounds will result in more marks later. There are creams that are advertised to reduce or eliminate stretch marks.

Varicose veins or spider veins can appear on the legs. Spider veins may also appear on the arms and face. These are caused by the increase in blood flow during pregnancy. Heredity can also play a role in the severity of changes in the appearance of veins. Some women appear to be more prone to this problem than others.

You can reduce problems with the veins in your legs in a few ways. Sitting or standing for extended periods of time contributes to the development of both varicose and spider veins. You can help by avoiding long periods of either sitting or standing. If your job requires you to sit at a desk, get up and take a short walk as often as possible. This will help increase the circulation and may help prevent further damage. In most cases, these problems resolve after pregnancy.

Skin discoloration is a problem for some women. This is called melasma or the mask of pregnancy. The discoloration generally occurs on the face, but can appear in other areas as well. Women with lighter skin are more prone to the mask of pregnancy. You can help prevent discoloration by using sunscreen and avoiding the sun. There isn't much you can do to treat it, but the problem goes away after the birth of the baby.

Happily, most skin problems during pregnancy go away after the baby is born. The one exception may be stretch marks, which usually remain. The good news is that even these marks fade over time. Realizing that the changes are not permanent can make it easier to live with it now.