The ultimate trademark of pregnancy - as many as 75% of expecting mothers have this. The linea nigra is a dark line that develops vertically along your abdomen.

Unfortunately, once you have this, you can’t just make it disappear overnight, but it does go away a few weeks after delivery.

Blame it on the hormones
As always, pregnancy hormones are responsible for the linea nigra, along with your darkening areolas and the so-called “mask of pregnancy”, wherein parts of your face have darkened areas, too.

Eat right
Research points that there is a relation between skin hyperpigmentation and a deficiency in folic acid. True enough, you need enough folate from natural sources like dark, green leafy vegetables before pregnancy and during breastfeeding.

Conceal or flaunt?
Shortly after giving birth, you may still notice the dark line, but you can easily conceal it if you’re planning to expose a little skin. You can use concealer to lighten the linea nigra, or simply apply sunblock as exposure to UV rays can make the pigmentation worse.

Some mothers, though, embrace the linea nigra like a winning trophy. If you can’t hide it, why not flaunt it? After all, bearing a child for nine months is no easy task.