You’ve been pregnant for a while now, and finally, your baby bump has begun to emerge! For many pregnant women, a little something extra will appear on their belly: a dark line stretching from your pubic bone to your navel. This telltale sign of pregnancy is called linea nigra.
Linea nigra, Latin for “black line,” is a dark brown or light black vertical line that often appears on the lower abdomen during pregnancy. While it may seem like your pregnancy line appeared out of nowhere, it has actually been low-key present on your abdomen at all times. Before pregnancy, the line is called linea alba, and it’s nearly invisible.
During pregnancy, however, a combo platter of elevated estrogen, progesterone, and melanocyte-stimulating hormones cause melanin-a natural substance that gives your skin and hair color-to rise. That uptick in melanin can result in melasma (dark spots on skin also known as the “mask of pregnancy”), darkened areolas and nipples…and linea nigra.
Prevalence and Appearance
Research shows that up to 92% of moms-to-be get pregnancy-associated linea nigra, which clearly means that most expecting parents are susceptible. Fun fact: Linea nigra doesn’t just show up on parents-to-be! Experts note that it’s fairly common in newborns, too, especially little ones with more pigmented skin.
This pregnancy line typically runs from the pubic bone to the belly button but has been known to climb all the way to the chest. Linea nigra usually debuts in the second trimester, around 20 weeks of pregnancy. As your pregnancy progresses, linea nigra may appear darker.
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Hormonal Influence
During pregnancy, estrogen and melanocyte-stimulating hormones kick into high gear, telling your skin's pigment-producing cells (called melanocytes) to make more melanin. That's the stuff that gives your skin its color. Why do some areas darken more than others? Honestly, experts still aren't totally sure. It's one of the many fun mysteries of pregnancy.
Other Skin Changes During Pregnancy
The linea nigra is just one of the ways that your skin can change during pregnancy. You may develop darker patches on your face called melasma (aka the "mask of pregnancy"). Often, other pigmented areas of skin get darker. You may notice this on your areolas (the area around the nipples); your labia majora (the folds of skin around the vagina); and where your skin creases, such as by your armpits and where your legs meet your torso.
Linea Nigra and Old Wives' Tales
There are a handful of random quirks that people swear can determine the sex of a pregnant person's baby. Legend has it if the linea nigra runs below your belly button, you're having a girl, and if it stops above your belly button, it's a boy. But unfortunately, "[the linea nigra] has nothing to do with fetal sex or delivery process," Dr. Roshan says.
It’s thought that if your pregnancy line runs from your belly button downward, you’re having a girl…but if it stretches from your pelvis up to your ribcage, it’s a boy. But at the end of the day, unless you have sonographic vision, you can't tell anything about a baby's sex just by looking at the pregnant person's stomach.
Here are some other tales about pregnancy that have been proven false:
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- If the fetal heart rate is under 140 beats per minute (BPM), it's a boy.
- Extra weight out front means a girl; weight around the hips and bottom indicates a boy.
- If a woman's carrying low, it's a boy; if she's carrying high, it's a girl.
- Dark nipples indicate a boy.
Postpartum and Prevention
Linea nigra doesn’t magically disappear once a baby arrives. Instead, the line will gradually fade as hormone levels return to their pre-pregnancy state-a process that can take several weeks to months. And that’s a good thing! That said, for some, linea nigra lightens but never fully fades, instead leaving a faint but permanent reminder of pregnancy on your abdomen.
While there are no iron-clad strategies to prevent linea nigra, it is possible that consuming ample folic acid and folate may reduce the chance of developing the pregnancy line. Living that sun’s-out-bump’s-out life? Make sure you thoroughly slather your belly in sunscreen that’s free of the ingredient oxybenzone.
And don’t use any medications or bleaching agents to try and fade your pregnancy line. Many over the counter and prescription skincare products are unsafe for pregnancy.
Experts note that once you get linea nigra in pregnancy, you are more likely to get it with each additional pregnancy. Nevertheless, your pregnancy line may look darker or lighter-or appear earlier or later-than prior pregnancies.
When to Seek Medical Advice
Good news! Linea nigra during pregnancy is perfectly normal and not associated with any medical conditions. However, if you notice any other dark areas of skin on your abdomen, flag them on your next prenatal visit.
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You can't prevent linea nigra, but daily sunscreen, gentle skincare, and avoiding waxing may help minimize pigment changes.
Key Takeaways:
- The linea nigra is a dark line that can show up on your belly during pregnancy - it's super common and totally normal.
- It's caused by pregnancy hormones triggering more melanin production in your skin, but why it shows up where it does is still a bit of a mystery.
- It usually appears by mid-pregnancy and fades on its own after birth - no treatment needed.
Most likely, the linea nigra will disappear after birth without you having to do anything, or even think about it. If you had a linea nigra in your first pregnancy, you'll likely have it again in later pregnancies - but not always. It can appear sooner or later, look fainter or darker, or not appear at all.
Stephanie Malak follows “Linea Nigra: An Essay on Pregnancy and Earthquakes” by Jazmina Barrera. In her new book, Linea Nigra: An Essay on Pregnancy and Earthquakes, Jazmina Barrera offers a beautiful homage to the bodies of mothers and the corporeal conversations that have been carried on for millennia.
Barrera's essay offers a similar exploration of the body, in all its ambulation, but delivered in a gentler package, one with less autotheory and more auto-connection. It’s an orphic connection with the body and a lineage of feminist artists, among them Barrera’s own mother.
In Linea Nigra, Barrera squares off with death, maybe for the first time, maybe for the rest of her life. This art of childbearing and childrearing aligns the mother-child chronology in a cosmos of bodies that never stop meeting one another.
The strength of Barrera’s approach is in her conception of motherhood as practice, never as achievement. It’s instantaneous in its onset and abiding in its duration.