There is a whole lot of growing going on in pregnancy. Most growth is done by the little baby inside, but some of the growth is passed on to Mom. The belly and the boobs are the most obvious, but the extra weight caused in pregnancy also increased pressure on a pregnant woman’s feet.
Hormonal changes are also occurring that relax the ligaments in the body to prepare for delivery. The specifics of these hormonal changes are not fully understood, but one hormone, relaxin, is thought to contribute to the loosening of ligaments in the pelvis and elsewhere.
The work of gravity and relaxin cause the arch of the foot to lose its strength and the tissue on the bottom of the foot, the plantar fascia, to stretch. All of this makes the foot grow wider and flatter during pregnancy. The feet can even grow by more than one shoe size.
After delivery, the body begins to return to normal and many of these changes reverse themselves. If the changes were extreme during pregnancy and the ligaments were significantly stretched, the increased shoe size could be permanent.
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"Do your feet really grow when you are pregnant?" was posted on Saturday, October 6th, 2007 at 4:11 am.
Is that true?
Do your feet grow after pregnancy?