A growing bump, puffy ankles and sore boobs are all physical changes you expect in pregnancy. But a “pregnancy nose”? Arguably Chrissy Teigen first put the condition on the map when she took to Twitter back in 2018, saying “damn my pregnancy nose is huge. my nose has its own bmi.”
Referring to an unexpected side effect of pregnancy hormones, the search term has now amassed over 27 million views on TikTok. New mums everywhere are currently going viral by sharing images of their noses before becoming pregnant and expressing shock at how swollen they look afterwards.
In a video that has amassed 2.7 million views to date, one user, @kellieamartinez shows an image of herself before getting pregnant, saying she “never had a big nose”. When showing her “after” photo, she asks, “Who is that?”, as the difference in the size of her nose has made her almost unrecognisable.
But does your nose really swell up in pregnancy? The short answer is ‘yes’, although the condition doesn’t affect everyone. Put simply, an increase of pregnancy hormones causes blood vessels to dilate.
Dr Ashfaq Khan, consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at Harley Street Gynaecology, explains that the swelling is due to “an increase in blood supply combined with lymphatic fluid during pregnancy.” This means that parts of the body that have a mucus membrane, like the nose, will experience this increase in blood flow, and sometimes congestion, more visibly.
Dr Khan also warns that while pregnancy nose is harmless, if you’re more than 20 weeks along and notice your face and legs are beginning to swell, in addition to symptoms like nose bleeds, headaches and blurred vision, then you should contact your GP immediately.
“All are signs of preeclampsia,” he says, a complication of pregnancy that causes high blood pressure.
And now to the burning question: will a pregnancy nose return to its normal shape and size after giving birth? “Yes, don’t worry, these physical changes are temporary,” says Dr Khan. “Your nose should go back to normal within a few days, although for some it can take up to six weeks after delivery.”
For more from Fiona Embleton, GLAMOUR’s Acting Associate Beauty Director, follow her on @fiembleton.