Linea Negra, the Dark Line of Pregnancy

When a woman is pregnant, there are many changes that take place in her body. One of which is a pale line that runs from her belly button to her pelvis region. This line is known as a linea negra. There is a pale line that runs from the belly button to the top of the pubic region when a woman is not pregnant. However, the pregnancy causes this line to darken. This darkened line is less than a half-inch wide, and varies in length as it runs vertically down the abdomen.

Although all women do not experience this line darkening, many do and this line can vary in darkness and how noticeable it is. Some linea negra lines are light and pink while others are brown to dark brown. Women with dark complexions generally have darker linea negra. Hormone levels are greatly increased during a pregnancy. This causes a woman to experience linea negra. The hormones that are responsible for this darkening are estrogen and progesterone. Increased melanin in the skin is a result of the increase of hormones in the pregnant woman as well. As a result, many times other areas of the skin can become dark also.

Linea negra generally appears in the second trimester of a pregnancy. Most linea negra gradually disappears a few months after birth; however, some women have lines, which never fade away. There is a belief that woman that are deficient in folic acid are more susceptible to linea negra. Some studies also link linea negra with insulin levels. Linea negra is a normal part of pregnancy and one should not worry that it will harm the baby.

There are ole wives tales associated with linea negra as the prediction of the sex of the unborn child has always been a mystery. It was believed that a woman had linea negra that stopped at the belly button; she was having a female baby. If the linea negra ran full length she would have a male.