April 28, 2021 • 34 mins
Whether it’s pregnancy pimples, rashes, sensitivity, an itchy belly, or stretch marks - most expectant mothers can expect their skin to change. This week, Heidi is joined by dermatologist Dr. Jessica Wu to break down your biggest pregnancy skin problems, the solutions she recommends to her patients, and the ingredients she wants you to steer clear of during pregnancy.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Who baby A baby? I need you, Oh Hell, I
need you. What to Expect is a production of I
Heart Radio. I'm your host Heidi Murkop and I'm a
mom on a mission, a mission to help you know
(00:21):
what to expect every step of the way. You've probably
heard about the pregnancy glow, but maybe your skin hasn't
gotten a message. Whether it's pregnancy pimples, full on acne
or magne rashes, sensitivity, an itchy belly or blotchy face,
or the stretch marks you're finding a stretch to embrace.
(00:44):
Most moms can expect their skin to change when they're expecting,
and often not for the better. We're here to help
you and your pregnant skin out. Joining me today to
break down the most common pregnancy skin problems, why they
have been and how to treat them safely so you
can love the pregnancy skin you're in, or at least
(01:05):
like it a little more. Is dermatologist, author of Feed
Your Face, and a friend of the What to Expect community,
Dr Jessica Wou. Thanks so much for being here. We
have so many moms with so many questions. First of all,
let's face facts. Many moms find that they're more pimple
(01:27):
than an eighth grader when they're pregnant. And just like
back in middle school, I think we can blame the hormones, right,
that's right. Anytime your hormones start to slare up, whether
it's puberty or pregnancy, skin shows the effects. And what's
a moment to do? I mean, how do you treat
pregnancy acne? Well, I think, as as in other times
(01:51):
of your life, the number one thing to do to
help get clear skin is to start by taking good
care of your skin. And the biggest myth of out
pregnancy acne that I hear from my patients is that
you get acting because your skin is not clean, and
that leads to scrubbing and over scrubbing and irritation, which
then makes you break out more. And in fact, your
(02:13):
skin is more sensitive during pregnancy. So I would say
number one is to be gentle on your skin and
use a gentle cleanser rather than trying to scrub your skin.
And it's the best to skip the athne washes that
you've been find over the counter, because many of those
are geared towards oily teenage acne skin, and some of
them contain ingredients that should be avoided during pregnancy. Yeah,
(02:36):
that's true. And and even if you're feeling super oily,
it's still not going to help, and it's probably gonna
over strip your skin. That's right. And some oil is
good for you, helps to keep your skin and plump
and moist and useful. I like the way that sounds.
So you talk a lot in Feed your Face about
well feeding your pregnant face and what can you do
(02:59):
just it wise to help clear up your skin. I mean,
I think we all heard, you know, growing up, the
things like pizza and French fries actually caused agne, And
then there was the change of position and and dermatologists
were saying, no, foods don't cause agne. And now we're
sort of back at the place where what you eat
(03:20):
can affect what your skin looks like. So you want
to tell us a little bit about that, yes, yes,
And and the reason for the pendulum swings is that
years ago it was a very simplistic understanding of how
the skin works. We thought, well, if we ate oily food,
then it would show up as oil and clogging on
our skin. And now we realize that, yes, and facts
(03:44):
some of those quote unquote a bad yet delicious foods
can be harmful for your skin, but not in the
way that we originally thought. It's not like you eat
pizza and the oil goes directly to your face. But
it turns out that pizza contains ingredients that can cause
(04:04):
inflammation and can increase oil production in your skin. For example,
pizza dough tends to be white flour, or even if
you get whole wheat, it's still a starch that gets
broken down into sugar that increases levels of infulin and
infulin like hormone in your skin, which we know stimulate
(04:24):
your skin to pump out more oil. Those you are
going to have pizza, I recommend uh choosing whole wheat
or whole brain varieties of dough, So go ahead and
have that pizza if you're having a craving while peppers, yes, yes,
red pepper. Foods that are high and zinc are also
(04:46):
good for athne because zinc is a natural anti inflammatory,
so add some protein onto your pizza. Some chicken um also,
different types of leu are good for acne as well
because they they're high in zinc, So have a salad
with some galbonzo beans or lentils on the side if
(05:07):
you're gonna have pizza. And then for those of you
who like anchovies on their pizza, antovies are wonderful for
acne because there are several studies showing that certain oily
fish that are high in Omega three, fatty acids can
help to calm the inflammation of acne. But of course,
(05:28):
make sure you choose your fish carefully because you you
want to avoid mercury. Yeah, and small fish like antovies
are a good bad salmon as well, but I don't
know that many people put salmon on their pizza. Moderate
their French fries. Moderate the French fries because French fries
are starchy and starches break down into sugar that can
(05:49):
aggregate your skin. And also unless you're making them yourself
and your air fire, which would be the best thing. Um,
you're not quite sure what they're coating the French rise
with and frying the fries in. It could be high
and saturated fat, which is nothing for your heart held
or your skin. Help, let's bake or air fries some
delicious sweet potato fries, because those we know are good
(06:12):
for you and good for baby. So what about backne
and test acne? That's a tough one because the skin
is thicker on your chests in your back, and so
the oil glands and the pores tend to get more
clothed on your chests in your back. So you can
actually go ahead and scrub your chest and back, but
(06:32):
I would look for physical scrubs like your sugar scrub
for example, or a wash cloth, which would be too
harsh on your face. One of my favorite ways to
explowlyate for facial acne is a muslin cloth, or you
can use a burp cloth, the baby burp cloth. Oh,
because you're buying your head anyway, exactly because they're made
(06:54):
from muslin and it's very, very fine, and yet they
give you a little bit of a scrubby test. Good
for baby, good for you, that's right. What about topicals
those zips zappers like benzel peroxide, you know, clerosol or
salacilic acid, Are those safe for pregnancy? Definitely stay away
(07:15):
from south folic acids during pregnancy. That's that's a definite
no no. And also stay away from retinoids. So retinoids
include of the counter of retinal if your doctor has
prescribed prescription retin a or try to know in or
different or tasack, you should stay away from those during
(07:36):
pregnancy as well as after you finish breast feeding. There's
some difference of opinion among dermatologists and OBEs as to
whether topical antibiotics and topical benzel peroxide are safe. Many
doctors feel that both of them are in limited quantities
and limited areas if you're using them just a spot treat,
(07:57):
for example, if you do choose the spental peroxide, stick
to less than two point five percent. Now, in terms
of ingredients that I like for acne and the big
span of as a like acid, as like acid is
a type of an ingredients that's naturally found in wheat,
so wheats and barley and rye, and our skin produces
(08:22):
it naturally. We all have yeast living on our skin,
and our skin yeast organisms naturally produced as leg apid.
So so most germs and OBEs are okay with as
le acid either prescription strength which is prescribed by your
doctors or now more recently, there are over the counter
(08:43):
versions of tempercent as like acid um in a variety
of different formulas, so as always check with your doctor first.
But again, most doctors are fine with using as like
acid which has an added benefit because if you have
breakouts and you tend to have more richly pigmented skin,
(09:04):
sometimes to breakouts may not fade, or sometimes to breakouts
themselves smooth out, but it leaves a dark stain on
your skin. So as like AVID has a natural brightening
and gentle exfoliation effects of helps to minimize us left
over lemishes and marks if you tend to have a
deeper skin test. Lots of moms want to know about
(09:41):
stretch marks. So first of all, why do stretch marks
affect some women more than others although most do get
some degree of stretch marks. Well, there are several different factors.
We think that one main factor contributing to your risk
of getting stretch marks is your genetics. So yeah, your mother,
(10:03):
your sister, other women in your family have stretch marks,
it seems to be that you would be at greater this.
And another factor is how quickly your belly grows. Because
if we do a skin biopsy to take a little
sample of the stretch mark and we look under the microscope,
you can actually see the little elastic band fibers that
(10:28):
are in your skin stretch. They stretch and then at
a certain point they break and price. You can see
like the ends of a rubber band. You pull, you pull,
you pull. At a certain point, it stretches and the
ends rip and snap. So that is what actually underlies
a stretch mark, which naturally brings me to my own
(10:48):
story of stretch mark. We are counting contractions during my
labor with Wyatt, and all of a sudden before our
very eyes appear across my belly, zig zagging across. It
was amazing to see. It was like my skin said,
I am stretched as far as I can stretch, and
(11:09):
I am not stretching. Well, I'm more centimeter. So are
there actually foods that can prevent stretch marks? We do
know that if your elastic tissue is weaker, than it's
going to stretch and snap more quickly. So my recommendation
is to choose foods that helped to strengthen the elastic
(11:33):
tissue in your skin and the collagen as well. So
the firm of your skin is, the more flexible, the
less likely it will be to snap and instead will
sounds that So, um, we know that elastic tissue is
made up of protein, and therefore it's really important to
have plenty of protein in your diet. If you are
(11:54):
not a big meat eater, make sure you're getting a
protein elsewhere through your legume your beans, because elastic vipers
are almost protein. So the better you are incorporating protein
in your diet, the stronger your skin will be. In general,
the other compound that's essential for making elastic and collagen
(12:18):
tissue in your skin is vitamin C, so make sure
you're getting plenty of VITAMINCY in your diet as well.
Of course citrus, but if you're not a big citrus
stand um. Other common foods so presently high in vitamncy
are strawberry, red peppers, key we They can find vitamincy
in a wide variety of food, so every meal should
(12:40):
have some food with vitamincy and some food with protein
because you can't store the vitamin. See, your body can't
store it, so it needs to daily supply. Yeah, you
pee it out, and pregnant women pea lots, so we
know that's going to happen. There's so many creams on
the market specifically geared to preventing stretch marks. What is
a point of view on that? What about the shave
(13:01):
butter and the cocoa butter and all that Scientists actually
have done studies on large numbers of women looking at
whether a specific oil and butter cream can can prevent
or reduce stretch marks, and there hasn't been any benefit
to cocoa, butter, olive oil, or vitamin ei. Those have
(13:22):
been studied the most, but some studies have shown that
daily massage with almond oil can help prevent and reduce
stretch marks. But we're not sure whether it's something in
the almond oil, or whether it's the daily massage that
helps to strengthen the elastic band or elastic tissue, or
(13:44):
whether it's it's some ingredients or some compoundness in the
almond oil. Other ingredients that have been shown in studies
to help prevent or reduce stretch marks are hyaluronic acid
and an ingredient called Sentella Santella asiatic. As a plant,
we think it's safe to use during pregnancy. It has
(14:05):
been used for years as a moisturizing ingredients um comes
from the go to cola plants in Asia, but recent
studies have shown that it may also help to prevent
and and reduced stretch marks, so look for stantella. Speaking
of bellies, the itching is real, so many women complain
(14:28):
about itchy bellies. Why does this happen? Is it just
the skin stretching and the dryness that results from that
all of the above. When you look at your skin,
you think about what happens when your belly expands the
surface area of the skin and larges, and you only
have a fixed number of oil glands producing skin oils,
(14:50):
and all of a sudden, your belly is two or
three or five times its normal flies. So there's not
enough oil to go around, and that's why your skin
lose this moisture what quickly in this condition called acetatosis,
which means that your skin doesn't have enough of its
natural oils. So the yes, dryness is a big part
(15:10):
of it, and especially in drier climates. So that's where
body oiled, body bombs, body butters come in. The Other
thing that happens is that as the belly skin stretches,
you can imagine the little nerve endings in the skin
are being irritated. They're saying, oh, wait a minute, wait
a minute. We're used to being in this division. All
of a sudden we're being stretched. And so as the
(15:33):
nerve endings get pulled and pushed into their new position.
The nerve endings get pickled and stimulated and that can
cause pitching as well. And then the last thing is
that either if you already have a history of zema
or not, you can have zema flare ups during pregnancy
that can happen on your belly and also sensitivities to
(15:53):
products that you were never sensitive to in the past. Yes, definitely,
a fairly common skin can do it, and that many
women have heard about pop It sounds so cute, I know, right,
what and how does it present? So a pub is
an acronym. Basically, it's an itchy, bumpy skin rash that
(16:15):
happens during pregnancy, often later in pregnancy, and most commonly
in first time moms. Word appears on the belly, often
right in those stretch marks, so it looks like little
hives and it can be very itchy and it can
sometimes spread elsewhere as well. The good news is that
it's nothing dangerous, but it can be very uncomfortable and
(16:39):
unsightly as well. On those with fair skin, it can
look pink, or if you have a deeper skin tone,
it can it can be skin colored or even look darker,
and regardless of where they are. I find that cold
helped to fight itch. It's almost like applying cold compresses
(16:59):
or cold temperature to the skin tricks your skin into
feeling the cold rather than the itch. So it's like
it's distracts the skins on the itch. What works better
and is less messy than a thick wash cloth is
take an old thin T shirt or a thin dish cloth,
wring it out in a bucket of ice water, and
(17:20):
put that on your skin. Leave it for a few minutes,
and change it a few times. Do not use ice, though,
because every year I have a couple of people who
come to see me with frost fights because they use
ice on their skin for various reasons. So do not
put ice directly on your skin. Cold is good, ice
(17:42):
not so good. What other kinds of rashes and skin
sensitivities are common during pregnancy, so heat rash is more
common heat rashes um. One condition that instant and moms
can get is miliaria. Miliaria is the medical term for
prickly heat. It can look like tiny little pimples that
(18:05):
can happen on areas that tend to sweat a lot
of chest and back stomach um. It can look like acne.
And if you have these rashes, don't just think, oh,
it's just pregnancy athne. If it's spreading, getting worse or
making you so uncomfortable, is keeping you up at night
and preventing you from going about your your daily activities,
(18:29):
call you doctor because sometimes people can get staff infections,
People can get fungus infections that can look like acne.
It can look like heat rash but just doesn't go away.
And you're more susceptible to infections when you're pregnant anyway,
So always check with your doctor, and check with your
doctor if you have any kind of unexplained rash because
(18:52):
it could be signed of a pregnancy complication. Now, the
forecast for pregnancy is patchy blotches, right, especially after spending
time in the sun. So let's talk about molasma, which
affects What do you say about fifty of pregnant women.
What is molasma and why is this so much more
(19:14):
common during pregnancy They have some studies say seventy of
pregnant women have discoloration. Molasma is a condition that produces dark,
discolored patches of skin, most commonly on your forehead, your cheeks,
your nose, and above your upper lips. Some people call
(19:36):
it the mask of pregnancy because it affects an area
that it kind of looks like a mask. Oh, so
you wouldn't see it right now during the pandemic and
wearing a mask I think is helping to present some
cases of malasma because there are different components. There seems
to be a genetic component, so oftentimes women the same
family all have molasma, all in the same pattern. The
(19:58):
reason that it's much more common pregnancy is that hormones
play a big role. It turns out that there are
receptors in your skin, specifically in the patches of melasma
that respond to estrogen, and the estrogen tells those skin
cells to pump out more pigment. As the estrogen level rises,
(20:21):
the the molasmas patches tend to get darker throughout the
course of your pregnancy. And those are factors that we
can't control. We can't control our genetics, we can't control
our hormones. I mean, the estrogen is doing a lot
of good things, so we don't want to affect that.
But two things actually that we can control that because
that can help to minimize the melasma are e v raised.
(20:43):
So really important to wear sunscreen, especially if you live
in a part of this country that has sun year round,
even in the winter. And then the second thing is
that heat can also aggravate molasma. So so I often
tell my patients don't just on sunscreen, but also try
to avoid heat. Meaning if you are going to go
(21:05):
for a walk outside and it's warm, carryous ray bottle.
Or if you're going to exercise indoors and you know
that you're someone that keeps up, use a cold wash
cloth or splashing face with cold water. So you're getting
hyper pigmentation and other parts of your body to the
standard the dark wine that that appears from your navel
(21:27):
down and it gets darker as your pregnancy progresses and
eventually phades. Although some of this hyper pigmentation it's a keeper.
You will have the slightly darker areal is and the
slightly darker labia because that's just part of pregnancy changes.
Can you explain that too, Is that the estrogen talking. Yes,
(21:51):
we we think that it's due to those tissues having
estrogen receptors as well. In fact, not only does abundance
of estrogen stimulate the skin pigment cell to produce more pigments.
But when you lose estrogen, or in women who have
had their ovaries removed and have no estrogen, the skin
(22:12):
tissues thin out. So we know that those areas are
particularly sensitive to estrogen. So there's a lot of estrogen
during your pregnancy, produces a lot of pigment. Estrogen levels
fall shortly after you deliver, and then the pigment fades.
But as you said, many times, your skin has memory,
(22:33):
and the thing goes for melasthma. Sometimes patients tell me,
why delivered six months ago? Why do I still have
these patches? They faded, but why are they still there?
Do your skin has memories. Just like your skin has
memory of lots of summers at the beach of the
pool coming out as freckles and sun damage on your face,
your skin also has memory of the estrogen it was
(22:55):
exposed to. It's nothing bad, nothing to be alarmed by,
and they are safe ways to try to brighten up
the pigmentation, whether it's on your body or whether it's
on your face. I'm a big fan of topical vitamin
C as a in brightening. I feel that that's safe.
Um nice cinemide also is another good ingredient. That I
(23:17):
like for it's antiflammatory and gets lightening is best. Okay.
(23:38):
So one of the most commonly asked questions in pregnancy,
no matter what the topic, skin products, is it safe?
So let's do an ingredient lightning route. I'm going to
give a common skincare ingredient and you say yea or
nay and explain why. Okay. Anti aging creams and retinoids.
(24:01):
Definitely nay on the retinoids, including over the counter retinal
retinal palmitates, over the counter different and prescription retinee pazarrack
tread to know and these are no no. During vitnacy
and breast feeding um there is centraal risk, force, systemic absorption,
and risk of books effects, so definitely stay away from them.
(24:24):
That's a vitamin A. They are all vitamin A derivatives. Yes,
But a lot of my patients asked me, okay, well
I stopped all of my anti aging creams. What can
I use? And I go back to vitamin C. Because
not only is vitamin C and natural skin brightener, but
we talked about how vitamin C is essential for building
strong collagen. So vitamin C applied on your skin topically
(24:48):
helped to strengthen your skin's collagen um. The other ingredients
that I like for anti aging, especially if your skin
starts to look a dull or you have those discolored
molasma patches for dass, fruit acid, lactic acid, glacolic acid.
Your skin is more sensitive, so don't go overboard, but
using those a few times a week would be safe.
(25:10):
Essential oils and aromatherapy, so for instance, rose oil, yea
and nay because uh, you you make more sensitive to
odors and scents during pregnancy, so it's best to go
easy if you are going to use an essential oil.
You mentioned rose oil. There are some essential oils that
(25:34):
have been shown to be safe um during pregnancy, and
those are considered safe are rose oil, lavender, and lemon oil.
But if you are going to use them, try to
dilute them and maybe use them in a diffuser rather
than putting them directly on your skin. That way you
get the aromatherapy benefits without absorbing into your skin and
(25:56):
without making you nauseous from the scent alay. And that's
the estrogen talking to, by the way, the sensitivity to
smells that those pregnancy hormones. Speaking of estrogen, hormones um.
There are a couple of oils that I would recommend
staying away from, and those the basil and fennel seed oil,
(26:17):
because those have some evidence suggesting that they could be
endocrine disruptors to baby. But it's fine to eat basil
as an herb or fennel seed as an herb. The
concentrated oils are no not How about peppermint oil. A
lot of women suffer from flaky scalps during pregnancy, and
(26:38):
that's something that people say to try. What are your
thoughts on that. Peppermint oil is generally considered safe, so
that's a ya. And are there other things you can
use for flaky scalp? You can use a topical zinc shampoo.
Zinc is a natural anti inflammatory um, and I think
it's important to ask a doctor whether it's dryness or
(27:00):
whether it's itching and flaking, because you can have dry
scalp which will respond to a serum or maybe a
scalped scrub or or a scalped oil. But if there's
itching or red patches, then that could signify and overgrow
the yeast, which could be made worse by oil, and
(27:23):
that usually is treated with anti yeast Okay, what about
treatments in a dermatologist's office once we're able to visit
the dermatologists on a regular basis. Microdermabration, facials, derma planing
where they scrape your skin. What say you if you're pregnant,
as long as these trainers don't make you feel faint.
(27:45):
So microdermabration typically involved using the crystals to buff the
dead skin off of your face, so that would be safe.
Derma planing, which it's almost like getting a straight raised
or shape basy use this scalpel to remove dead skin
and also peached butts off of your face. That doesn't
(28:06):
involve anything entering your your bloodstream, so that would be
safe as long as you go to an experienced estheticition
doing that. UM and there are other in office treatments
that would be safe to do as well, such as
a gentle lactic acid peel, a gentle blood colleagu gap
of peel, because these are left on your skin for
(28:26):
just minutes at a time and then live stuff and
and of course extractions are safe. Extractions helped to unclog
your pores manually, and it's safer to let the professional
do it. There's a caveat on when you're having a procedure,
whether it's a facial or something else where you're could
be lying on your back for an extended period of time.
(28:47):
You should avoid that after the fourth month, so make
sure you're semi sitting at least and if you do,
go in to see your esthetition or your dermatologists once
it's safe to do so. Just make sure you tell
everyone that you're expecting. What about fillers, So pregnancy, I
would say makes your face plentiful, But say the pandemic
(29:09):
goes over, you're able to make an appointment for fillers
or for botox YEA or nay on those when you're
pregnant or breastfeeding. NAY. I always advise my patients to
postpone any elective procedures, especially anything involving products being injected
into your skin until after pregnancy and after breastfeeding. UM.
(29:30):
Not so much that we're worried about filler getting into
the blood stream, because it won't. But number one, a
lot of fillers contain why decaine an esthetic, so spending
on how much you're getting, we don't want that spilling
into the bloodstream and affecting baby. And secondly, women tend
to be more sensitive during pregnancy, and we don't want
anyone painting or dropping the blood pressure. That makes sense.
(29:53):
What about deodorant, so you do sweat less under your
armpits when you're pregnant, But do you recomm and the
patients switched to an aluminium free or natural deodorant, Well,
many of my patients are looking for products that are
more natural or organic and aluminum free. Um. I think
that's a personal decision. Medically, most of us, the dermatologists
(30:18):
do not believe that aluminium is dangerous for mom or baby. Uh,
And certainly aluminium is more effective than the natural deodorants.
There's a difference between antiperspirit and deodorant. Aluminium is used
for moisture control. And if you find that you're not
sweating as much and the moisture problem is less, but
(30:40):
you still have odor, then I think that would be
a great opportunity to look for a natural deodorant. So,
just in general about natural and organic products, they get
so much buzz, but are they worth it? Are they
quote unquote naturally better for pregnancy? In general, I tell
my patients that because the product is natural doesn't mean
(31:03):
that it's harmless. And likewise, because of products contains preservative
or a pharmaceutical doesn't mean it's toxic and dangerous. I
think it's important to address the concern. If you have
a severe rash and it's keeping up at night and
you can't work, you can't take care of your other
(31:24):
little ones, are miserable, then maybe it's time for something
prescriptions during for a short period of time. But if
it's something that can be addressed naturally, and you choose
to and you can afford that, it's in your budgets,
and by all means great. So I want to end
on a high note. Let's hear it for the goods
that pregnancy hormones do, and that would be to your
(31:47):
hair and to your nails. Yes, so your body is
in addition to growing into the human inside you. It's
metabolism is red Depp. So often hair gets thick, nails
can grow faster, and only that you mentioned that your
face can get fuller, and so people often will look
(32:08):
younger and more glowy. There's that increased circulation to the
skin because the blood flow increases. Of all of these
things give you the glow of pregnancy. And I think
it's it's the time to embrace these changes. Um. We
we spent a lot of today talking about unwanted things
that happened. But yeah, there's so much good. There's so
(32:30):
much to celebrate, and those those pregnancy hormones do a
lot of good. Well, thank you so much for joining
us today and answering all our questions. I'm glad we
finally found that glow. Yeah, it was there all the time.
Think a lot. You're welcome, baby, my baby belowse I
(32:56):
need you, Oh how I need you. Thanks for listening. Remember,
I'm always here for you. What to Expect is always
here for you. We're all in this together. For more
on what you heard on today's episodes, visit what to
Expect dot com slash podcast. You can also check out
What to Expect when You're Expecting, What to Expect the
(33:19):
first Year, and the What to Expect app And we
want to hear from you. Connect with us on our
community message board or on our social media. You can
find me at Heidi Murkoff and Emma at Emma Being
w t E and of course at What to Expect.
Baby Love is performed by Riley Bider. What to Expect
(33:42):
is a production of I Heart Radio From more shows
from I heart Radio, check out the I heart Radio app,
Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
In My Arms, What Don't Just Stay Lija, ne Joe,
Baby Love, Baby, Loom
Who baby A baby? I need you, Oh Hell, I
need you. What to Expect is a production of I
Heart Radio. I'm your host Heidi Murkop and I'm a
mom on a mission, a mission to help you know
(00:21):
what to expect every step of the way. You've probably
heard about the pregnancy glow, but maybe your skin hasn't
gotten a message. Whether it's pregnancy pimples, full on acne
or magne rashes, sensitivity, an itchy belly or blotchy face,
or the stretch marks you're finding a stretch to embrace.
(00:44):
Most moms can expect their skin to change when they're expecting,
and often not for the better. We're here to help
you and your pregnant skin out. Joining me today to
break down the most common pregnancy skin problems, why they
have been and how to treat them safely so you
can love the pregnancy skin you're in, or at least
(01:05):
like it a little more. Is dermatologist, author of Feed
Your Face, and a friend of the What to Expect community,
Dr Jessica Wou. Thanks so much for being here. We
have so many moms with so many questions. First of all,
let's face facts. Many moms find that they're more pimple
(01:27):
than an eighth grader when they're pregnant. And just like
back in middle school, I think we can blame the hormones, right,
that's right. Anytime your hormones start to slare up, whether
it's puberty or pregnancy, skin shows the effects. And what's
a moment to do? I mean, how do you treat
pregnancy acne? Well, I think, as as in other times
(01:51):
of your life, the number one thing to do to
help get clear skin is to start by taking good
care of your skin. And the biggest myth of out
pregnancy acne that I hear from my patients is that
you get acting because your skin is not clean, and
that leads to scrubbing and over scrubbing and irritation, which
then makes you break out more. And in fact, your
(02:13):
skin is more sensitive during pregnancy. So I would say
number one is to be gentle on your skin and
use a gentle cleanser rather than trying to scrub your skin.
And it's the best to skip the athne washes that
you've been find over the counter, because many of those
are geared towards oily teenage acne skin, and some of
them contain ingredients that should be avoided during pregnancy. Yeah,
(02:36):
that's true. And and even if you're feeling super oily,
it's still not going to help, and it's probably gonna
over strip your skin. That's right. And some oil is
good for you, helps to keep your skin and plump
and moist and useful. I like the way that sounds.
So you talk a lot in Feed your Face about
well feeding your pregnant face and what can you do
(02:59):
just it wise to help clear up your skin. I mean,
I think we all heard, you know, growing up, the
things like pizza and French fries actually caused agne, And
then there was the change of position and and dermatologists
were saying, no, foods don't cause agne. And now we're
sort of back at the place where what you eat
(03:20):
can affect what your skin looks like. So you want
to tell us a little bit about that, yes, yes,
And and the reason for the pendulum swings is that
years ago it was a very simplistic understanding of how
the skin works. We thought, well, if we ate oily food,
then it would show up as oil and clogging on
our skin. And now we realize that, yes, and facts
(03:44):
some of those quote unquote a bad yet delicious foods
can be harmful for your skin, but not in the
way that we originally thought. It's not like you eat
pizza and the oil goes directly to your face. But
it turns out that pizza contains ingredients that can cause
(04:04):
inflammation and can increase oil production in your skin. For example,
pizza dough tends to be white flour, or even if
you get whole wheat, it's still a starch that gets
broken down into sugar that increases levels of infulin and
infulin like hormone in your skin, which we know stimulate
(04:24):
your skin to pump out more oil. Those you are
going to have pizza, I recommend uh choosing whole wheat
or whole brain varieties of dough, So go ahead and
have that pizza if you're having a craving while peppers, yes, yes,
red pepper. Foods that are high and zinc are also
(04:46):
good for athne because zinc is a natural anti inflammatory,
so add some protein onto your pizza. Some chicken um also,
different types of leu are good for acne as well
because they they're high in zinc, So have a salad
with some galbonzo beans or lentils on the side if
(05:07):
you're gonna have pizza. And then for those of you
who like anchovies on their pizza, antovies are wonderful for
acne because there are several studies showing that certain oily
fish that are high in Omega three, fatty acids can
help to calm the inflammation of acne. But of course,
(05:28):
make sure you choose your fish carefully because you you
want to avoid mercury. Yeah, and small fish like antovies
are a good bad salmon as well, but I don't
know that many people put salmon on their pizza. Moderate
their French fries. Moderate the French fries because French fries
are starchy and starches break down into sugar that can
(05:49):
aggregate your skin. And also unless you're making them yourself
and your air fire, which would be the best thing. Um,
you're not quite sure what they're coating the French rise
with and frying the fries in. It could be high
and saturated fat, which is nothing for your heart held
or your skin. Help, let's bake or air fries some
delicious sweet potato fries, because those we know are good
(06:12):
for you and good for baby. So what about backne
and test acne? That's a tough one because the skin
is thicker on your chests in your back, and so
the oil glands and the pores tend to get more
clothed on your chests in your back. So you can
actually go ahead and scrub your chest and back, but
(06:32):
I would look for physical scrubs like your sugar scrub
for example, or a wash cloth, which would be too
harsh on your face. One of my favorite ways to
explowlyate for facial acne is a muslin cloth, or you
can use a burp cloth, the baby burp cloth. Oh,
because you're buying your head anyway, exactly because they're made
(06:54):
from muslin and it's very, very fine, and yet they
give you a little bit of a scrubby test. Good
for baby, good for you, that's right. What about topicals
those zips zappers like benzel peroxide, you know, clerosol or
salacilic acid, Are those safe for pregnancy? Definitely stay away
(07:15):
from south folic acids during pregnancy. That's that's a definite
no no. And also stay away from retinoids. So retinoids
include of the counter of retinal if your doctor has
prescribed prescription retin a or try to know in or
different or tasack, you should stay away from those during
(07:36):
pregnancy as well as after you finish breast feeding. There's
some difference of opinion among dermatologists and OBEs as to
whether topical antibiotics and topical benzel peroxide are safe. Many
doctors feel that both of them are in limited quantities
and limited areas if you're using them just a spot treat,
(07:57):
for example, if you do choose the spental peroxide, stick
to less than two point five percent. Now, in terms
of ingredients that I like for acne and the big
span of as a like acid, as like acid is
a type of an ingredients that's naturally found in wheat,
so wheats and barley and rye, and our skin produces
(08:22):
it naturally. We all have yeast living on our skin,
and our skin yeast organisms naturally produced as leg apid.
So so most germs and OBEs are okay with as
le acid either prescription strength which is prescribed by your
doctors or now more recently, there are over the counter
(08:43):
versions of tempercent as like acid um in a variety
of different formulas, so as always check with your doctor first.
But again, most doctors are fine with using as like
acid which has an added benefit because if you have
breakouts and you tend to have more richly pigmented skin,
(09:04):
sometimes to breakouts may not fade, or sometimes to breakouts
themselves smooth out, but it leaves a dark stain on
your skin. So as like AVID has a natural brightening
and gentle exfoliation effects of helps to minimize us left
over lemishes and marks if you tend to have a
deeper skin test. Lots of moms want to know about
(09:41):
stretch marks. So first of all, why do stretch marks
affect some women more than others although most do get
some degree of stretch marks. Well, there are several different factors.
We think that one main factor contributing to your risk
of getting stretch marks is your genetics. So yeah, your mother,
(10:03):
your sister, other women in your family have stretch marks,
it seems to be that you would be at greater this.
And another factor is how quickly your belly grows. Because
if we do a skin biopsy to take a little
sample of the stretch mark and we look under the microscope,
you can actually see the little elastic band fibers that
(10:28):
are in your skin stretch. They stretch and then at
a certain point they break and price. You can see
like the ends of a rubber band. You pull, you pull,
you pull. At a certain point, it stretches and the
ends rip and snap. So that is what actually underlies
a stretch mark, which naturally brings me to my own
(10:48):
story of stretch mark. We are counting contractions during my
labor with Wyatt, and all of a sudden before our
very eyes appear across my belly, zig zagging across. It
was amazing to see. It was like my skin said,
I am stretched as far as I can stretch, and
(11:09):
I am not stretching. Well, I'm more centimeter. So are
there actually foods that can prevent stretch marks? We do
know that if your elastic tissue is weaker, than it's
going to stretch and snap more quickly. So my recommendation
is to choose foods that helped to strengthen the elastic
(11:33):
tissue in your skin and the collagen as well. So
the firm of your skin is, the more flexible, the
less likely it will be to snap and instead will
sounds that So, um, we know that elastic tissue is
made up of protein, and therefore it's really important to
have plenty of protein in your diet. If you are
(11:54):
not a big meat eater, make sure you're getting a
protein elsewhere through your legume your beans, because elastic vipers
are almost protein. So the better you are incorporating protein
in your diet, the stronger your skin will be. In general,
the other compound that's essential for making elastic and collagen
(12:18):
tissue in your skin is vitamin C, so make sure
you're getting plenty of VITAMINCY in your diet as well.
Of course citrus, but if you're not a big citrus
stand um. Other common foods so presently high in vitamncy
are strawberry, red peppers, key we They can find vitamincy
in a wide variety of food, so every meal should
(12:40):
have some food with vitamincy and some food with protein
because you can't store the vitamin. See, your body can't
store it, so it needs to daily supply. Yeah, you
pee it out, and pregnant women pea lots, so we
know that's going to happen. There's so many creams on
the market specifically geared to preventing stretch marks. What is
a point of view on that? What about the shave
(13:01):
butter and the cocoa butter and all that Scientists actually
have done studies on large numbers of women looking at
whether a specific oil and butter cream can can prevent
or reduce stretch marks, and there hasn't been any benefit
to cocoa, butter, olive oil, or vitamin ei. Those have
(13:22):
been studied the most, but some studies have shown that
daily massage with almond oil can help prevent and reduce
stretch marks. But we're not sure whether it's something in
the almond oil, or whether it's the daily massage that
helps to strengthen the elastic band or elastic tissue, or
(13:44):
whether it's it's some ingredients or some compoundness in the
almond oil. Other ingredients that have been shown in studies
to help prevent or reduce stretch marks are hyaluronic acid
and an ingredient called Sentella Santella asiatic. As a plant,
we think it's safe to use during pregnancy. It has
(14:05):
been used for years as a moisturizing ingredients um comes
from the go to cola plants in Asia, but recent
studies have shown that it may also help to prevent
and and reduced stretch marks, so look for stantella. Speaking
of bellies, the itching is real, so many women complain
(14:28):
about itchy bellies. Why does this happen? Is it just
the skin stretching and the dryness that results from that
all of the above. When you look at your skin,
you think about what happens when your belly expands the
surface area of the skin and larges, and you only
have a fixed number of oil glands producing skin oils,
(14:50):
and all of a sudden, your belly is two or
three or five times its normal flies. So there's not
enough oil to go around, and that's why your skin
lose this moisture what quickly in this condition called acetatosis,
which means that your skin doesn't have enough of its
natural oils. So the yes, dryness is a big part
(15:10):
of it, and especially in drier climates. So that's where
body oiled, body bombs, body butters come in. The Other
thing that happens is that as the belly skin stretches,
you can imagine the little nerve endings in the skin
are being irritated. They're saying, oh, wait a minute, wait
a minute. We're used to being in this division. All
of a sudden we're being stretched. And so as the
(15:33):
nerve endings get pulled and pushed into their new position.
The nerve endings get pickled and stimulated and that can
cause pitching as well. And then the last thing is
that either if you already have a history of zema
or not, you can have zema flare ups during pregnancy
that can happen on your belly and also sensitivities to
(15:53):
products that you were never sensitive to in the past. Yes, definitely,
a fairly common skin can do it, and that many
women have heard about pop It sounds so cute, I know, right,
what and how does it present? So a pub is
an acronym. Basically, it's an itchy, bumpy skin rash that
(16:15):
happens during pregnancy, often later in pregnancy, and most commonly
in first time moms. Word appears on the belly, often
right in those stretch marks, so it looks like little
hives and it can be very itchy and it can
sometimes spread elsewhere as well. The good news is that
it's nothing dangerous, but it can be very uncomfortable and
(16:39):
unsightly as well. On those with fair skin, it can
look pink, or if you have a deeper skin tone,
it can it can be skin colored or even look darker,
and regardless of where they are. I find that cold
helped to fight itch. It's almost like applying cold compresses
(16:59):
or cold temperature to the skin tricks your skin into
feeling the cold rather than the itch. So it's like
it's distracts the skins on the itch. What works better
and is less messy than a thick wash cloth is
take an old thin T shirt or a thin dish cloth,
wring it out in a bucket of ice water, and
(17:20):
put that on your skin. Leave it for a few minutes,
and change it a few times. Do not use ice, though,
because every year I have a couple of people who
come to see me with frost fights because they use
ice on their skin for various reasons. So do not
put ice directly on your skin. Cold is good, ice
(17:42):
not so good. What other kinds of rashes and skin
sensitivities are common during pregnancy, so heat rash is more
common heat rashes um. One condition that instant and moms
can get is miliaria. Miliaria is the medical term for
prickly heat. It can look like tiny little pimples that
(18:05):
can happen on areas that tend to sweat a lot
of chest and back stomach um. It can look like acne.
And if you have these rashes, don't just think, oh,
it's just pregnancy athne. If it's spreading, getting worse or
making you so uncomfortable, is keeping you up at night
and preventing you from going about your your daily activities,
(18:29):
call you doctor because sometimes people can get staff infections,
People can get fungus infections that can look like acne.
It can look like heat rash but just doesn't go away.
And you're more susceptible to infections when you're pregnant anyway,
So always check with your doctor, and check with your
doctor if you have any kind of unexplained rash because
(18:52):
it could be signed of a pregnancy complication. Now, the
forecast for pregnancy is patchy blotches, right, especially after spending
time in the sun. So let's talk about molasma, which
affects What do you say about fifty of pregnant women.
What is molasma and why is this so much more
(19:14):
common during pregnancy They have some studies say seventy of
pregnant women have discoloration. Molasma is a condition that produces dark,
discolored patches of skin, most commonly on your forehead, your cheeks,
your nose, and above your upper lips. Some people call
(19:36):
it the mask of pregnancy because it affects an area
that it kind of looks like a mask. Oh, so
you wouldn't see it right now during the pandemic and
wearing a mask I think is helping to present some
cases of malasma because there are different components. There seems
to be a genetic component, so oftentimes women the same
family all have molasma, all in the same pattern. The
(19:58):
reason that it's much more common pregnancy is that hormones
play a big role. It turns out that there are
receptors in your skin, specifically in the patches of melasma
that respond to estrogen, and the estrogen tells those skin
cells to pump out more pigment. As the estrogen level rises,
(20:21):
the the molasmas patches tend to get darker throughout the
course of your pregnancy. And those are factors that we
can't control. We can't control our genetics, we can't control
our hormones. I mean, the estrogen is doing a lot
of good things, so we don't want to affect that.
But two things actually that we can control that because
that can help to minimize the melasma are e v raised.
(20:43):
So really important to wear sunscreen, especially if you live
in a part of this country that has sun year round,
even in the winter. And then the second thing is
that heat can also aggravate molasma. So so I often
tell my patients don't just on sunscreen, but also try
to avoid heat. Meaning if you are going to go
(21:05):
for a walk outside and it's warm, carryous ray bottle.
Or if you're going to exercise indoors and you know
that you're someone that keeps up, use a cold wash
cloth or splashing face with cold water. So you're getting
hyper pigmentation and other parts of your body to the
standard the dark wine that that appears from your navel
(21:27):
down and it gets darker as your pregnancy progresses and
eventually phades. Although some of this hyper pigmentation it's a keeper.
You will have the slightly darker areal is and the
slightly darker labia because that's just part of pregnancy changes.
Can you explain that too, Is that the estrogen talking. Yes,
(21:51):
we we think that it's due to those tissues having
estrogen receptors as well. In fact, not only does abundance
of estrogen stimulate the skin pigment cell to produce more pigments.
But when you lose estrogen, or in women who have
had their ovaries removed and have no estrogen, the skin
(22:12):
tissues thin out. So we know that those areas are
particularly sensitive to estrogen. So there's a lot of estrogen
during your pregnancy, produces a lot of pigment. Estrogen levels
fall shortly after you deliver, and then the pigment fades.
But as you said, many times, your skin has memory,
(22:33):
and the thing goes for melasthma. Sometimes patients tell me,
why delivered six months ago? Why do I still have
these patches? They faded, but why are they still there?
Do your skin has memories. Just like your skin has
memory of lots of summers at the beach of the
pool coming out as freckles and sun damage on your face,
your skin also has memory of the estrogen it was
(22:55):
exposed to. It's nothing bad, nothing to be alarmed by,
and they are safe ways to try to brighten up
the pigmentation, whether it's on your body or whether it's
on your face. I'm a big fan of topical vitamin
C as a in brightening. I feel that that's safe.
Um nice cinemide also is another good ingredient. That I
(23:17):
like for it's antiflammatory and gets lightening is best. Okay.
(23:38):
So one of the most commonly asked questions in pregnancy,
no matter what the topic, skin products, is it safe?
So let's do an ingredient lightning route. I'm going to
give a common skincare ingredient and you say yea or
nay and explain why. Okay. Anti aging creams and retinoids.
(24:01):
Definitely nay on the retinoids, including over the counter retinal
retinal palmitates, over the counter different and prescription retinee pazarrack
tread to know and these are no no. During vitnacy
and breast feeding um there is centraal risk, force, systemic absorption,
and risk of books effects, so definitely stay away from them.
(24:24):
That's a vitamin A. They are all vitamin A derivatives. Yes,
But a lot of my patients asked me, okay, well
I stopped all of my anti aging creams. What can
I use? And I go back to vitamin C. Because
not only is vitamin C and natural skin brightener, but
we talked about how vitamin C is essential for building
strong collagen. So vitamin C applied on your skin topically
(24:48):
helped to strengthen your skin's collagen um. The other ingredients
that I like for anti aging, especially if your skin
starts to look a dull or you have those discolored
molasma patches for dass, fruit acid, lactic acid, glacolic acid.
Your skin is more sensitive, so don't go overboard, but
using those a few times a week would be safe.
(25:10):
Essential oils and aromatherapy, so for instance, rose oil, yea
and nay because uh, you you make more sensitive to
odors and scents during pregnancy, so it's best to go
easy if you are going to use an essential oil.
You mentioned rose oil. There are some essential oils that
(25:34):
have been shown to be safe um during pregnancy, and
those are considered safe are rose oil, lavender, and lemon oil.
But if you are going to use them, try to
dilute them and maybe use them in a diffuser rather
than putting them directly on your skin. That way you
get the aromatherapy benefits without absorbing into your skin and
(25:56):
without making you nauseous from the scent alay. And that's
the estrogen talking to, by the way, the sensitivity to
smells that those pregnancy hormones. Speaking of estrogen, hormones um.
There are a couple of oils that I would recommend
staying away from, and those the basil and fennel seed oil,
(26:17):
because those have some evidence suggesting that they could be
endocrine disruptors to baby. But it's fine to eat basil
as an herb or fennel seed as an herb. The
concentrated oils are no not How about peppermint oil. A
lot of women suffer from flaky scalps during pregnancy, and
(26:38):
that's something that people say to try. What are your
thoughts on that. Peppermint oil is generally considered safe, so
that's a ya. And are there other things you can
use for flaky scalp? You can use a topical zinc shampoo.
Zinc is a natural anti inflammatory um, and I think
it's important to ask a doctor whether it's dryness or
(27:00):
whether it's itching and flaking, because you can have dry
scalp which will respond to a serum or maybe a
scalped scrub or or a scalped oil. But if there's
itching or red patches, then that could signify and overgrow
the yeast, which could be made worse by oil, and
(27:23):
that usually is treated with anti yeast Okay, what about
treatments in a dermatologist's office once we're able to visit
the dermatologists on a regular basis. Microdermabration, facials, derma planing
where they scrape your skin. What say you if you're pregnant,
as long as these trainers don't make you feel faint.
(27:45):
So microdermabration typically involved using the crystals to buff the
dead skin off of your face, so that would be safe.
Derma planing, which it's almost like getting a straight raised
or shape basy use this scalpel to remove dead skin
and also peached butts off of your face. That doesn't
(28:06):
involve anything entering your your bloodstream, so that would be
safe as long as you go to an experienced estheticition
doing that. UM and there are other in office treatments
that would be safe to do as well, such as
a gentle lactic acid peel, a gentle blood colleagu gap
of peel, because these are left on your skin for
(28:26):
just minutes at a time and then live stuff and
and of course extractions are safe. Extractions helped to unclog
your pores manually, and it's safer to let the professional
do it. There's a caveat on when you're having a procedure,
whether it's a facial or something else where you're could
be lying on your back for an extended period of time.
(28:47):
You should avoid that after the fourth month, so make
sure you're semi sitting at least and if you do,
go in to see your esthetition or your dermatologists once
it's safe to do so. Just make sure you tell
everyone that you're expecting. What about fillers, So pregnancy, I
would say makes your face plentiful, But say the pandemic
(29:09):
goes over, you're able to make an appointment for fillers
or for botox YEA or nay on those when you're
pregnant or breastfeeding. NAY. I always advise my patients to
postpone any elective procedures, especially anything involving products being injected
into your skin until after pregnancy and after breastfeeding. UM.
(29:30):
Not so much that we're worried about filler getting into
the blood stream, because it won't. But number one, a
lot of fillers contain why decaine an esthetic, so spending
on how much you're getting, we don't want that spilling
into the bloodstream and affecting baby. And secondly, women tend
to be more sensitive during pregnancy, and we don't want
anyone painting or dropping the blood pressure. That makes sense.
(29:53):
What about deodorant, so you do sweat less under your
armpits when you're pregnant, But do you recomm and the
patients switched to an aluminium free or natural deodorant, Well,
many of my patients are looking for products that are
more natural or organic and aluminum free. Um. I think
that's a personal decision. Medically, most of us, the dermatologists
(30:18):
do not believe that aluminium is dangerous for mom or baby. Uh,
And certainly aluminium is more effective than the natural deodorants.
There's a difference between antiperspirit and deodorant. Aluminium is used
for moisture control. And if you find that you're not
sweating as much and the moisture problem is less, but
(30:40):
you still have odor, then I think that would be
a great opportunity to look for a natural deodorant. So,
just in general about natural and organic products, they get
so much buzz, but are they worth it? Are they
quote unquote naturally better for pregnancy? In general, I tell
my patients that because the product is natural doesn't mean
(31:03):
that it's harmless. And likewise, because of products contains preservative
or a pharmaceutical doesn't mean it's toxic and dangerous. I
think it's important to address the concern. If you have
a severe rash and it's keeping up at night and
you can't work, you can't take care of your other
(31:24):
little ones, are miserable, then maybe it's time for something
prescriptions during for a short period of time. But if
it's something that can be addressed naturally, and you choose
to and you can afford that, it's in your budgets,
and by all means great. So I want to end
on a high note. Let's hear it for the goods
that pregnancy hormones do, and that would be to your
(31:47):
hair and to your nails. Yes, so your body is
in addition to growing into the human inside you. It's
metabolism is red Depp. So often hair gets thick, nails
can grow faster, and only that you mentioned that your
face can get fuller, and so people often will look
(32:08):
younger and more glowy. There's that increased circulation to the
skin because the blood flow increases. Of all of these
things give you the glow of pregnancy. And I think
it's it's the time to embrace these changes. Um. We
we spent a lot of today talking about unwanted things
that happened. But yeah, there's so much good. There's so
(32:30):
much to celebrate, and those those pregnancy hormones do a
lot of good. Well, thank you so much for joining
us today and answering all our questions. I'm glad we
finally found that glow. Yeah, it was there all the time.
Think a lot. You're welcome, baby, my baby belowse I
(32:56):
need you, Oh how I need you. Thanks for listening. Remember,
I'm always here for you. What to Expect is always
here for you. We're all in this together. For more
on what you heard on today's episodes, visit what to
Expect dot com slash podcast. You can also check out
What to Expect when You're Expecting, What to Expect the
(33:19):
first Year, and the What to Expect app And we
want to hear from you. Connect with us on our
community message board or on our social media. You can
find me at Heidi Murkoff and Emma at Emma Being
w t E and of course at What to Expect.
Baby Love is performed by Riley Bider. What to Expect
(33:42):
is a production of I Heart Radio From more shows
from I heart Radio, check out the I heart Radio app,
Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
In My Arms, What Don't Just Stay Lija, ne Joe,
Baby Love, Baby, Loom
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Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
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The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.