When you are pregnant, are you feeling gorgeous and sexy? I’m sure more than half of you are rolling your eyes and thinking, yeah right, I’m not feeling sexy at all! Because pregnancy is such a vulnerable time (weight gain, cellulite, puffiness, and feeling fat), I’m a big advocate of spoiling yourself or better yet, taking very good care of yourself for the full nine months of pregnancy.

The only problem is that when it comes to beauty and pregnancy, things can get a little tricky. A prime example being one of the most asked beauty questions that I’ve received to date:

Can I color my hair?

Although pregnancy does wonders for a head of hair, there’s still the issue of color. To date, there is no conclusive scientific research to prove whether hair dye is harmful or not. However, there is definitely a consensus among the experts that if you are going to color your hair, it’s best to wait until after your first trimester. And you should also make sure that you’re in a well-ventilated area when you’re having it done.

As with all gray areas of pregnancy and safety—the decision is yours. More often than not, I find that highlighting is recommended over hair dye because the chemical is not in direct contact with your scalp. And remember, pregnancy is only forty weeks, so if you can put something questionable off until after, do it (you’ll feel better too).

If you do decide to hold off, but you still feel like you need a good color boost, there are always the natural alternatives. As with most things in life, you can go the conventional route or you can go au natural!

There’s natural skin care, hair dye (yes, that’s right, my kit has a great recipe), and shampoo. I opted for natural whenever I had the option. To give you an example of how easy it is, here are some great natural hair and skin solutions:

• Use an “at-home” herbal rinse to add color,
• Use oats as a gentle skin cleanser (it’s great for removing dead skin cells),
• And try banana as a moisturizer (apparently it works wonders for dry skin).

Remember, you don’t have to wait until after delivery to look and feel great, there are lots of safe things you can do now, you just need to be creative!

For more information visit Pregnancy Without Pounds