When you are pregnant, the once-familiar terrain of your body changes. Curly hair, craving foods you’ve never liked, burping and snoring, drooling, and sweating are all unusual pregnancy symptoms, don’t you think?
As a result, it may appear normal to you if you look in the mirror one day and notice a dark line on your abdomen known as the linea nigra.
Linea alba is a band that runs down the front of the abdomen, between the belly button and the pubic region, on all people, including infants, children, men, and women. Simply put, visibility is usually excessively bright. During pregnancy, the linea alba darkens and becomes more visible as melanin formation increases due to increased estrogen levels produced by the placenta.
According to research, approximately 75% of pregnant women have linea nigra at some point during their pregnancy.
The linea nigra is typically 1/4 to 1/2 inch wide and becomes lighter as it rises to the belly. (source) Every woman has a distinct color or level of pigmentation.
When Did Linea Nigra First Appear?
Linea nigra typically appears in the second trimester, or around the fifth month. It may become longer and darker as your pregnancy progresses. Some mothers claim that their linea nigra had reached the top of their bellies by the end of their pregnancies.
When Does Linea Nigra End?
It usually begins to fade shortly after the baby is born, probably within a few months. Because your body is still producing more hormones while nursing, it may take longer. When a woman’s hormone levels are balanced, her linea nigra will disappear. However, if you become pregnant again, it will almost certainly return.
Linea nigra cannot be stopped. However, the following daily routines can help reduce hyperpigmentation because some people produce more melanin than others:
Wear a coverup or sunscreen. Avoid peak hours (12 p.m. to 4 or 5 p.m.) and stay in the shade whenever possible. Because too much sun can worsen hyperpigmentation, your skin tans (or burns) after being exposed to it.
Consume a lot of folate-rich foods. Dark leafy greens like spinach, collard greens, and kale, asparagus, broccoli, and citrus fruits like grapefruit, oranges, and papaya have the highest folic acid concentrations.
What Causes Linea Nigra?
Higher levels of estrogen and progesterone stimulate the melanocytes in your skin, increasing the amount of melanin they produce. As a result, parts of your skin become darker (including the linea nigra). Freckles, darkening nipples, darker areas of the face, darker skin, and even a darker vulva may also be noticeable in pregnant women.
People with darker skin are more likely to develop a dark linea nigra because they naturally produce more melanin, but people with lighter skin may also be more aware of it due to the contrast in skin tones.
