I’m sure when most people find out they’re pregnant the last thing on their mind is their skincare. Me on the other hand, I was thinking about how I would have to throw my retinol away lol… All joking aside, when you’re pregnant, you obviously have to be cautious about the ingredients you put on your skin since you don’t want to use anything that can potentially harm the baby.
For me, the main ingredient I totally and completely avoided was any derivative of vitamin A (retinol). Since I couldn’t use retinol I found myself using a lot of AHAs and plant-based retinols (which are not real retinols they have no vitamin a) that were safe. And although not necessary, I tried to stick to mostly clean beauty.
Aside from doing my own research, I work directly in the beauty industry so I was able to chat with multiple doctors, dermatologists, formulators, skincare experts, skincare brand founders to learn more about what ingredients were safe and unsafe to use throughout my pregnancy. It’s important to also know there are many ingredients out there that are in the grey area so I want to be clear that this was what I was comfortable with using. Keyword, I! I believe you should always do what you’re comfortable with. If you’re not comfortable with anything on my list, then don’t use it- don’t even second guess. Some doctors are more conservative, some are more open so always discuss with your doctor to make sure you’re doing what’s best for you. If you want a full list of products I love non-pregnancy related you can see this post here!
Here are some of the things that I used:
CLEANSERS:
Glow Recipe Blueberry cleanser:
- I actually used this entire bottle. Loved it so much. It lathers really nicely and deep cleans my face. A little bit goes a long way.
- Contains vitamins and antioxidants plus it has a little bit of AHA so it helped tighten up my pores and buff away dead skin.
- A really nice gentle yet effective cleanser. Something about this cleanser is really really nice. How it lathers, how it washes, the mild scent, everything about this was pretty amazing. Bottom line, it cleaned my face without feeling striped or dried out.
- I personally always double cleanse at night.I always use an oil and then my cleaner after. I tried this one out during my pregnancy and it was great for removing all my makeup, sebum, and skincare residue.
SERUMS:
- I only got a quarter way through this serum during my pregnancy so I can’t tell you 100% if it worked for me or not, but I did use a good amount of it and I loved the texture and how it laid on the skin. I think for $20 it’s worth trying out consistently.
- Nothing new there. This is the same vitamin C I used before pregnancy as well. Already reviewed this serum here.
- This is a vegan lactic acid serum that’s gentle, but powerful AF holy moly! Lactic acid (AHA) enhances skin cell turnover and exfoliates to make skin appear smoother. This was a holy grail of mine during pregnancy. This kind of replaced my retinol. Biggest take away with this serum was it tighten up my pores, helped prevent acne and gave my skin a youthful glow.
- This serum has AHA and BHA. It unclogs pores and removes dead skin cells to improve overall skin tone, texture and lines. When my face looked dull, this would help brighten and smooth my complexion.
Biossance Plant-Based “retinol” :
- Don’t let the word retinol scare you here. Biossance uses a plant-based alternative to retinol called Bakuchiol which is NOTHING like the real thing. It does however help with anti-aging, targets fine lines, wrinkles and sun damage. It tightens the skin, while remaining gentle and non-irritating. I have to say before this serum I was totally against plant-based “retinols” but I have to say this one did pretty similar things for my skin in lieu of my retinol.
Moisturizers:
Biossance Probitic Gel Moisturizer:
- Probably one of my faves! IIt was weightless, yet hydrating and the probiotic technology left my skin looking overall healthier & brighter.
Farmacy Daily Greens Oil-Free Gel Moisturize:
- This one was super lightweight, gel like texture, hydrating but didn’t leave my face oily. Love that this one has hyaluronic acid which hydrates your skin.
EYE CREAM
- Biossance Marine eye:
- I’m pretty picky with my eye creams since I have very sensitive eyes. I liked that this one is lightweight yet hydrating. It sinks into the fine lines and keeps your eyes smooth. I will say though, that I don’t have much eye wrinkles or dark circles so I can’t vouch for it’s complete efficacy but I do enjoy using it and how it feels on my skin.
SPF
- As I’m sure you guys know, I am super picky with SPF! This is one of the SPFs I used. It’s super lightweight, non comedogenic which doesn’t clog your pores, no white cast, and not greasy at all. It’s like a gel like texture which I really liked!