Contents
Pregnant women often wonder if tanning during pregnancy is safe for the developing baby. The harmful effects of sunlight are being questioned. According to experts, pregnant women do not have to give up exposing their pregnancy belly to the sun.
- For a safe tanning process, sunbathing should be used in moderation and sensibility
- How should you sunbathe during pregnancy so as not to harm your baby’s health and life? Can Excessive Solar Radiation Affect Your Pregnancy?
- Below you will find answers to the most common questions about tanning during pregnancy
- More current information can be found on the Onet homepage.
What happens to the body while sunbathing?
Sunbathing is a process that protects our skin cells from damage. As a result of the action of ultraviolet rays emitted by sunlight, the body reacts physiologically, darkening the skin. Melanocytes, i.e. cells found in human skin, are responsible for this process. Too much sun exposure can cause burns. While sunbathing the skin’s blood vessels also dilate, which causes erythema on the face, and as a result, small vessels may burst, which is a cosmetic defect. Too high and frequent dose of ultraviolet radiation can cause premature skin aging.
Tanning during pregnancy – how does tanning affect the mother’s body?
There are various hormonal changes in the body of a pregnant woman. These changes lead to a situation in which the body of the future mother is more sensitive to temperature changes, and in particular to a stronger reaction to excess heat, and thus to solar radiation. This, in turn, can cause your body to overheat. It should not be forgotten that the body temperature of pregnant women is usually slightly higher than the average human body temperature (36,6 degrees Celsius). If a pregnant woman leads to a situation in which sunbathing is frequent and intense, the risk of disorders in the proper development of the baby may increase. In extreme cases sunbathing during pregnancy it can also cause premature labor (premature labor contractions) or even miscarriage. This applies not only to sunbathing during pregnancy, but also to enjoy long, hot baths in the bathtub or shower.
Moreover, sunbathing during pregnancy There may be a risk of sun damage (chloasma), which usually disappears some time after childbirth, usually up to several months. Until then, however, they can make life difficult because they look quite unsightly. Some women suffering from chloasma decide to undergo laser treatment to remove discoloration.
Some scientists talk about the harmful effects sunbathing during pregnancy to the body of the future mother and the developing child in terms of lowering the level of folic acid in the blood. As is well known, folic acid, or vitamin B9, is designed to protect the child from improper formation of the neural tube. In turn, neural tube defects strongly affect the appearance of other, very serious congenital developmental changes, e.g. spina bifida, anencephaly, cerebral hernia, defects of the urinary or cardiovascular system. It is worth bearing this in mind.
Tanning during pregnancy – how to safely sunbathe?
First of all, during sunbathing during pregnancy sunscreen should be used. The sunscreen prevents harmful ultraviolet rays from penetrating the deep layers of the skin, but is mostly reflected. This allows you to get the effect of an even tan. The sunscreen should be used not only when going to the beach, but also on hot days. It should also be remembered that we will provide proper protection against excessive ultraviolet radiation if the cream we choose has a minimum SPF 30 filter. However, in order to protect yourself from excessive radiation, you should choose creams with a higher filter, e.g. SPF 50 or SPF 50+.
During sunbathing during pregnancy drink plenty of water. This will allow not only the mother’s body to be properly hydrated, but also the baby’s. Consuming water will also allow you to gently cool the body.
The time of day it should be is also important sunbathing while pregnant. You should resign from sunbathing between 11:15 and 16:XNUMX. Then, solar radiation shows the highest UV index during the day, which may endanger the body of the future mother and child. It can also quickly dehydrate the body through much more intense sweating processes, which are quite intense in future mothers.
Sunbathing during pregnancy it should not be uniform. This means that you should not lie idly on a blanket and bask, but take a short walk along the seashore or simply hide in the shade on a deckchair. Especially when the sunlight is very intense. Therefore, a better choice will be to go to the beach in the morning or evening hours when the air temperature is not too high.