From a swollen nose to a bigger heart – the 5 weird changes your body goes through during pregnancy
THERE are certain symptoms you know to expect when you're expecting - morning sickness, weird food cravings, the pregnancy 'glow'.
But you might not be acquainted with a few less conventional ones.
"While some of the changes you’ll experience during pregnancy are less than ideal, they’re all designed to ensure the baby develops properly in the womb," Adam Taylor, a professor and director of the Clinical Anatomy Learning Centre at Lancaster University, wrote in .
And most of them disappear after you've given birth.
However, here are some of the weird and wonderful changes you may notice in your body during pregnancy...
1. A bigger nose
Women have recently taken to to share pictures of their "pregnancy nose", showing how they swell and change shape during pregnancy.
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Adam wasn't sure how common this was, but noted that everyone's body responds differently to pregnancy-induced changes.
Your nose might look different due to the significant increase in hormones that course through your body when you're pregnant.
One of these is oestrogen, which relaxes the blood vessels in all the body’s tissues and so allows more blood into the nose’s tissues.
This can cause it to expand and change shape, looking larger and puffier than it did pre-pregnancy.
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But don't worry - it's only a temporary change and your nose should be back to normal about six weeks after birth, Adam noted.
Your hormones might affect your nose in other ways too, he continued.
You might notice its runnier and stuffier, which is called pregnancy rhinitis. One in five pregnant women also get nosebleeds.
2. A bigger heart
Your nose isn't the only part of your body that might get bigger when you're expecting.
Your ticker will undergo a number of changes to accommodate your baby's growth, including changing size and developing thicker muscles, Adam said.
Your heart will have to work a lot harder to pump more blood around your body and to your little one, beating up to eight times more per minute.
For some, the amount of blood that circulates throughout their body to ensure there’s enough oxygen getting to the baby to support its development, Adam explained.
Your baby might also push your heart into a new position.
Adam said: "Just as the abdominal organs are squished and moved to make room for the growing foetus, the heart is pushed higher up in the chest as a result."
3. Skin colour changes
Most will have heard of the so-called pregnancy 'glow', which has expectant mums appearing to be lit from within.
But did you know three in four pregnant women might experience a common condition called melasma?
This is when the skin around the eyes, nose, chin and upper lip darkens.
You might be more likely to have melasma if you have a darker complexion, Adam said.
"These changes will vary between women, and will typically disappear shortly after birth or when they stop breastfeeding," he noted.
But it's not just your face that might change colour.
The skin around your nipples (areolas) might also darken when you're pregnant.
Though experts aren't exactly sure why this happens, it help new born babies find your nipple for feeding.
Newborns can't really distinguish between colours or see very far, but can tell the difference between dark and light.
"So the contrast of the dark areola compared the light surrounding skin may help them," Adam explained.
It's likely your nipples will remain slightly darker after pregnancy, he added.
4. Hair growth (or loss)
The added oestrogen in your body could give your hair a growth boost and make it look healthier, as it causes the hair follicles to remain in growth mode, Adam said.
But your luscious locks might also be accompanied by a furry upper lip, thighs, tummy and back.
Not to worry though, this is another symptom that'll disappear after pregnancy.
You might experience the opposite, however, and lose hair during pregnancy.
Adam said: "This process is typically caused by the shock of pregnancy on the body, causing the hairs to go into 'resting' phase then shed."
This'll usually subside later in your pregnancy.
Your oestrogen levels drop again after giving birth, so you might experience some hair loss then - this'll peak at four months post partum, after which your hair will return to normal.
5. Teeth problems
Even your teeth could be affected by your pregnancy, according to Adam.
If you experience morning sickness, your pearly whites might be more vulnerable to damage and cavities due to your stomach acid dissolving their protective lining.
And your hormones strike again in making your gums more susceptible to bleeding, infection and damage.
About 70 per cent of pregnant women experience gingivitis (mild gum disease), Adam said.
Your teeth might also feel more wobbly when you're expecting, due to an increase in oestrogen and another hormone called relaxin, which makes your ligaments more flexible to aid childbirth.
"But while this is useful in some parts of the body (such as the pelvis), relaxin also affects the ligament anchoring each individual tooth in place, causing teeth to feel loose," Adam explained.
It's rare that you'll lose teeth but it can happen if you've been pregnant multiple times or had poor oral health beforehand.
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The NHS detailed a number of which are normal to experience during pregnancy. While most are harmless, there are some you should keep an eye out for.
Common pregancy symptoms
You might have a number of symptoms while you're pregnant.
Some of these include:
- constipation
- cramps in your muscles and feet
- back pain or headaches
- peeing a lot or experiencing incontinence
- skin and hair changes
- varicose veins
The NHS advised you call your midwife or GP immediately if you experience .
And though morning sickness is common, the NHS also urged that you contact your GP, midwife or 111 if you're vomiting and:
- have very dark-coloured urine or have not had a pee in more than 8 hours
- are unable to keep food or fluids down for 24 hours
- feel severely weak, dizzy or faint when standing up
- have tummy (abdominal) pain
- have a high temperature
- vomit blood
- have lost weight
Increased can also be common, but you should get help if it smells strange or unpleasant, if its green or yellow and if you feel itchy or sore around your vagina.