# Do pregnant women have sensitive skin on the belly when it starts to streach? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 15, 2011, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024 "2011-11-15T17:51:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![janeslogin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@janeslogin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janeslogin)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2011, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024/1 "2011-11-15T17:51:21Z")
An old man of my acquaintance has been diagnosed with enlarged fatty liver and he said the first symptom was sensitive skin on his belly. We wondered if pregnant women experience that too or did his fatty liver cause the sensitivity? ---
**Author:** ![Vihaga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Vihaga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vihaga)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2011, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024/2 "2011-11-15T17:53:23Z")
I’m pregnant, and my belly is definitely more sensitive. I started wearing maternity pants relatively early in the going, not because I was too big for normal pants yet but because I couldn’t stand the fabric rubbing my belly. That’s just me, though. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2011, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024/3 "2011-11-15T17:56:55Z")
My belly was tender, but that was the insides. I don’t think the skin itself was ever sensitive or itchy or anything lie that. I didn’t get stretch _marks_ until 38 weeks, when I was already the size of a zeppelin. Still didn’t bother me then. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2011, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024/4 "2011-11-15T18:04:35Z")
My belly was super itchy from about 30 weeks on, even though I didn’t get any stretch marks until about week 38. ---
**Author:** ![PandaBear77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@PandaBear77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PandaBear77)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2011, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024/5 "2011-11-15T20:55:37Z")
> [@janeslogin](#): > > An old man of my acquaintance has been diagnosed with enlarged fatty liver and he said the first symptom was sensitive skin on his belly. We wondered if pregnant women experience that too or did his fatty liver cause the sensitivity? If his fatty liver has progressed into cirrhosis it’s possible that’s what’s causing his skin sensitivity. Itching in particular is often one of the first signs of cirrhosis. (IANAD.) I didn’t have sensitive skin anywhere when I was pregnant, FWIW. ---
**Author:** ![llcoolbj77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/eb9ed0/32.png) [@llcoolbj77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/llcoolbj77)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2011, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024/6 "2011-11-15T21:15:00Z")
No sensitive skin here. But I am only 28 weeks. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2011, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-pregnant-women-have-sensitive-skin-on-the-belly-when-it-starts-to-streach/603024/7 "2011-11-15T21:41:02Z")
The actual stretch marks can be itchy and sensitive, but unbelievably, the actual skin doesn’t hurt when you’re ballooned out into next week.