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Not because I’m pregnant! I’M NOT. But because people DM me about skincare products and pregnancy all the time. This is for you guys.
Never Answering Questions about Skincare Products and Pregnancy
Every content creator has questions they hate to get. My biggest ones are questions about pregnancy safe skincare products.
“What skincare can I use if I’m pregnant?” “What skincare should I avoid if I’m pregnant?” “Can I use the product you’re talking about while pregnant?” You know the drill.
I live and breathe skincare. I’ve been writing and talking about skincare for over 10 years. I’ve literally written a book about skincare. I’ve also been pregnant and had a baby. So I understand why people might think to ask if I have specific tips about skincare products and pregnancy.
They’d be wrong to think so, though. I wasn’t actually into skincare when I was pregnant 16 years ago, and I only had the one, now very large and less demanding, baby. I’m also not a doctor. And even if I did have my own thoughts on what is and isn’t safe skincare to use while pregnant, I still wouldn’t have answered with anything except a brief list of the skincare ingredients we’re explicitly told to avoid. Beyond that, simply having had a baby doesn’t make a person qualified to dispense what amounts to medical advice on pregnancy.
You know who is qualified? A doctor!
Even better than a doctor, how about a doctor, a dermatologist actually, who is also a mom?
How about a dermatologist with an interest in cosmetic skincare, who doesn’t dismiss all skincare that’s not Cetaphil and CeraVe out of hand? (You know the kind I’m talking about.)
How about a dermatologist who is also a mom, with an interest in cosmetic skincare, and who is also my friend and someone whom I refer these kinds of questions to because I have absolute respect for her knowledge and credibility? When people ask me for pregnancy skincare advice, my first recommendation is always to ask their doctor, but my second recommendation (because I know many doctors have no interest in cosmetic skincare and may not be able to answer knowledgeably), is to ask Dr. Aegean.
Dr. Aegean is the real deal. She’s not a clickbaity dermfluencer peddling fads for views. She’s a board certified, practicing dermatologist who takes her work seriously. She’s also a mom who takes her role as a mom seriously. That’s why she’s the ideal person to formulate a line of skincare for moms. (And to answer your questions about skincare products and pregnancy the way she does in the More Than Nine pregnancy skincare FAQ here.)
Skincare for moms is exactly what More Than Nine is. This is my recommendation for the best skincare while pregnant!
(And while breastfeeding and, if you are being intentional about it, while trying to conceive too.)
Your Pregnancy Skincare Routine, Dermatologist-Developed
As I said in the beginning and feel like I need to reiterate now, I’m not pregnant. But Dr. Aegean describes her vision for More Than Nine as skincare for moms at all stages, so being a mom of a teenager still counts.
I’m glad she sent me the line despite my advanced material status. That lets me verify that even though I don’t need pregnancy safe skincare products, I still love them. They hold their own against the many products I’ve loved over the years but wasn’t comfortable recommending to pregnant or breastfeeding women.
In fact, I use everything except the all-purpose lanolin balm in my active rotation right now. Let’s look!
More Than Nine Take a Sec Cleanser
I have been ride or die for the classic double cleanse routine since 2014.
A low pH cleanser with mild surfactants is best for preserving skin barrier health, and skin barrier health is one of the most important goals if you want overall clearer, healthier, more radiant, and more resilient skin.
Unfortunately, low pH cleansers with mild surfactants generally aren’t strong enough to fully remove sunscreen and makeup. That’s especially true these days. Japanese sunscreen formulas have advanced to the point where even the ultra lightweight feeling, “everyday use” sunscreens have some level of water- and sweat-resistance. The strong film formers that make them water-resistant also make them resistant to washing off. Add makeup on top and you’ve got a challenge.
Historically I’ve always used an oil-based, emulsifying cleansing oil or balm before my cleanser at night. The oil-based first step cleanser breaks down and lifts off the sunscreen and makeup without disrupting the skin barrier. The water-based, low pH second cleanser with the mild surfactants removes any lingering residue and cleans the actual skin down to the pores.
Double cleansing works great for me, and I rarely find it too onerous to do at the end of the day. I shower at night, so I do my first cleanse before I get in, then emulsify and rinse off and use my second cleanser after that.
There are some times when I would like a single step cleanser that can do all that, though. Unfortunately, the conventional foaming cleansers strong enough to remove makeup on their own also tend to be incredibly harsh on the barrier. I’m not wrecking my barrier just to save a few minutes.
There are also oil to foam cleansers that can remove makeup and clean skin in one step, but the ones I’ve tried have been even harsher than a standard alkaline foam cleanser. My face still has nightmares about the Tosowoong version. I used that maybe twice ten or so years ago.
And then there’s More Than Nine’s Take a Sec Cleanser.
I had my doubts that it could really remove makeup and clean skin in one step while being gentle and barrier-friendly. Then I tested it out on my hand a few times with heavy sunscreen and makeup swatches. Then on my face with my normal sunscreen and makeup. OMG it really does do that.
It also does it while being delightful to use. Take a Sec is a velvety liquid that you can use without lathering, like a milk cleanser, but that can also be worked into a soft creamy foam and used like a regular foaming cleanser. It’s low pH, it does the job, and it also smells heavenly. Dr. Aegean worked with perfumer Azzi Glasser to create a skin-friendly, beautiful signature scent for the line. It’s a clean, bright green scent that’s subtle and refreshing.
The single step cleansing is great for everyone, but extra important in a pregnancy skincare routine (and during the exhausting postpartum months too). Who doesn’t want to save a step when your energy is already drained to almost zero? So Take a Sec is an instant winner for me.
More Than Nine Look Alive Exfoliator
For the last couple of years, I’ve been adjusting my approach to exfoliation. As we get older, our skin cell turnover rate slows. I can’t exfoliate the way I used to or else I won’t have any skin left. No more AHA 3-4 nights a week plus a physical scrub when the mood strikes.
I do microexfoliation now: Super gentle, minimal exfoliation folded into an existing step of my skincare routine. Think cleansers with exfoliating enzymes in them, and/or very very fine, soft exfoliating particles. The roughest I ever go anymore is a light pass over my face with a wet washcloth and a thick layer of gel cleanser.
The nice thing about microexfoliation, which I believe I may have coined myself and am sure I have never heard anywhere else, is that it’s almost impossible to go overboard. Enzyme exfoliating agents only break down the dead skin cells that are ready to go. You can’t go too deep or take off too much with lipase and protease.
More Than Nine’s Look Alive Exfoliator is an absolutely fabulous microexfoliator. It contains the exfoliating enzymes lipase and protease, along with the PHA gluconolactone (think an AHA but with larger molecules and much milder, more superficial exfoliating effects), in oil-absorbing rice starch and soothing colloidal oatmeal flour, with an ultra-fine volcanic mineral to add a touch of manual exfoliation.
It comes out in a puff of soft fine white powder. You can either mix it with water in your hand, which turns it into an exfoliating paste, or mix it into a pump of cleanser to add exfoliation without an extra step. I’ve been using mine most days of the week. It’s a quick and easy way to brighten up my skin tone and refine my skin texture. It also never leaves my face feeling raw or thinned out even with frequent use.
The convenience and gentleness aren’t even what make Look Alive such a great addition to a pregnancy or postpartum skin routine. One of the most common pieces of advice given about skincare products and pregnancy is to avoid using salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is an oil-soluble BHA that a lot of us find effective for keeping our pores clear.
Look Alive’s rice starch and exfoliating properties make it a great substitution when you have to put down the Stridex pads. And of course it doesn’t contain anything else that would make it inappropriate for pregnancy.
More Than Nine Go-To Moisturizer
The final piece of the More Than Nine pregnancy safe skincare routine is the Go-To Moisturizer. I’ve already used up one bottle of and am halfway through my second. Again, this is despite not being pregnant and therefore not limited to only pregnancy safe moisturizer options. Like the rest of the products in the More Than Nine line, the Go-To Moisturizer stands on its own no matter what your reproductive status is.
My skincare friends and I live in a bubble, and our bubble is crammed to the brim with entire rosters of moisturizers for every conceivable mood our skin could be in. Outside of our bubble, most normal people make do with one, sometimes two moisturizers. Day cream, night cream.
Luckily for normal people, Dr. Aegean’s effort to streamline and simplify skincare for moms led her to develop the Go-To Moisturizer, which on my normal(ish) skin is an outstanding balance. It sinks in and sets well, with no heavy film or greasy residue, making it light enough to use during the day under moisturizer and under makeup if you use it.
I love makeup, so I care very much about how well or poorly a moisturizer sits under makeup. Some moisturizers are PM only for me because they don’t fully dry down, causing sunscreen and makeup to slide around on top. Or they’re too rich, and the oil in them breaks through my makeup at some point around midday. Or they pill up under makeup and ruin a look. The Go-To Moisturizer does none of that and sets to a smooth, supple canvas for whatever I feel like painting on top.
Although it’s light enough for day, the Go-To Moisturizer is also nourishing enough for a deep moisture infusion at night. It contains an optimal ratio of ceramides, cholesterol, and fatty acids to penetrate and repair a damaged skin barrier. It’s also an efficient multitasker with 2% kakadu plum extract and 4% niacinamide for all-around tone brightening, texture improving, and antioxidant cell protection. That kakadu plum extract and niacinamide are extra important if you’re like me and prone to hyperpigmentation and melasma during pregnancy.
Like the Take a Sec Cleanser, the Go-To Moisturizer also contains More Than Nine’s signature beachy green scent. Putting it on feels like a luxury.
Your Pregnancy Safe Skincare Routine
It’s been a long time (16 years!!) since I was pregnant, but I remember how overwhelming it was. And I wasn’t even a Skincare Person back then, due to both lack of knowledge and lack of budget.
If I had been, I can’t imagine how confusing and anxiety-inducing I would have found all the information out there now about skincare products and pregnancy or about postpartum skin changes. Not all of the information is credible. Much of it is crafted to scare you into not using something and into buying and using something else.
I have never been interested in diving into anything relating to skincare for moms because of that. Too much risk of being wrong. Way too much at stake. So if my opinion means anything to you, please understand how significant it is that I’m standing behind Dr. Aegean’s line. She cut through all of the confusion and all of the fearmongering to create this nearly complete and super well rounded line.
All you need besides the More Than Nine pregnancy skincare routine is sunscreen and you’ll be all set with the best skincare products for pregnancy that I’ve seen. And since they’re so good on their own merits, you’ll also be all set for your postpartum skin afterwards. I mean…I’m 16 years postpartum and I love them now. Maybe you will too!
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