Darkening armpits during pregnancy

A woman's body often undergoes many changes after pregnancy. Especially in the early stages of pregnancy, because each woman's physical fitness is different, some women often experience darkening of their armpits. Or you may experience frequent nausea, confusion, fatigue, and severe vomiting. But these are all relatively normal because this is how a woman's body reacts during pregnancy. So pregnant women don’t need to be nervous. But what is the reason why armpits become dark during pregnancy?

1. Reasons why pregnant women’s armpits turn dark

Pigmentation such as spots and freckles appears because of the presence of melanocytes under the skin that produce melanin. Due to the influence of estrogen and progesterone, the number of activated melanocytes increases significantly. Therefore, as the pregnancy progresses, pregnancy spots, mainly pigmentation and freckles, will appear under the eyes. Moreover, obvious pigmentation will form in areas where melanin is concentrated. The white line in the center of the abdomen will turn brown, and it is not uncommon for black to appear around the nipples, areolas, and armpits.

Melanocytes are not only activated by hormones, but also greatly increase in number due to external stimuli such as ultraviolet rays.

The pigmentation that occurs during pregnancy varies from person to person, but it will gradually lighten after delivery. However, most of them will not disappear completely, and some may only become lighter after a long time.

2. What to do if your armpits become dark during pregnancy

Some women will experience darkening of their armpits in the early stages of pregnancy. This is because female hormones change due to pregnancy, causing the precipitation of melanin. Due to the increase of estrogen in women, the skin color in the skin folds (armpits, etc.) becomes darker. Estrogen levels naturally decrease after pregnancy is over and then return to normal. This is caused by endocrine system and will gradually return to normal after giving birth, so there is no need to worry too much.