Aussie influencer praised for not editing pregnant bikini snap
She raised eyebrows over a picture of her tiny baby bump, but Australian influencer, Belle Lucia, has proved she won’t let a bit of hate get her down, as she’s just shared another candid pregnancy snap.
The 24-year-old model, who is one week away from her third trimester, uploaded a photo for her 1.3 million followers, showing her wearing a tiny black and white floral bikini.
The photo shows Belle, who lives in London, sporting a common side effect of pregnancy - visible veins on her chest.
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“I know I got a veiny chest. Happens because your blood volume increases by 50% when pregnant and they go away after pregnancy when your blood volume returns,” the stunner wrote in the caption.
Indeed, according to Healthline, the visible veins show that they’re transporting much-needed nutrients and blood to the developing fetus and they will lessen after the woman gives birth.
Belle’s fans have commended her for not editing out the veins in her snap, saying it shows how real she really is.
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“So inspirational, especially that you’re not photoshopping and putting makeup over your chest to hide veins or anything of the kind! Natural mom beauty is the best,” one person said.
“I love how you show and don’t edit your veins. You are flawless,” another person said.
Belle’s six-month baby bump confuses followers
The comments are a stark contrast to ones posted on Belle’s account three weeks ago, when she uploaded a bikini photo and was shamed for her tiny bump.
“This is my bump when not pregnant…” one of her fans commented after she shared a photo of herself holding her bump in a bikini.
Another wrote, “If I didn’t read the caption, I would’ve thought pregnant at all ! Wow”, and a third said, “I was like that at week 3... and you still have abs…”
Belle hit back at bump-shamers at the time, calling them out for their mean comments on her body.
“As you can see, women show very differently but are all carrying a little life,” she told her followers.
“Just because I'm not showing as much as you like doesn't mean my pregnancy is 'unhealthy' or that I'm promoting a 'skinny' pregnancy.
“It's just my body and I can't help it if it doesn't look the same as other women.”
Belle isn’t the first person to celebrate her body just the way it is.
Last year, shoppers praised online retailer Boohoo’s newfound acceptance of stretch marks.
A new mum also went viral after taking to the internet to share a candid picture of her post-baby body.
