What is the diastasis after childbirth

Many women complain about staying after giving birth with a 'flab' gut. Some are passed in a few months, and they manage to recover their figure. But others, on the other hand, have more problems. Every time they eat something, they feel again how the gut swells up. Why does this happen? It is the s

Many women complain about staying after giving birth with a 'flab' gut. Some are passed in a few months, and they manage to recover their figure. But others, on the other hand, have more problems. Every time they eat something, they feel again how the gut swells up. Why does this happen? It is the so-called diastasis of rectums. We explain what it is and how to end the problem.

What is the diastasis of recti after childbirth

The diastasis of recti is the separation of the rectus abdominis muscles (the 'chocolatinas', to understand us better) as a consequence of a damage in the connective tissue (linea alba) that keeps them linked to each other, and to the midline of the body. Anyone is susceptible to suffer this functional and aesthetic problem regardless of age, sex, if you regularly do sports or you are a sedentary person.

However, pregnancy is an important risk factor for women, increasing the chances of having a diastasis, since the rectus separates to give space to the growing uterus and baby (multiple pregnancies are at higher risk); and hormones such as relaxin, collagen or estrogen that alter the composition of collagen, and cause muscles to weaken.

It is estimated that 66% of pregnant women have diastasis in the third trimester, and that 2 out of 3 women who have had two or more children continue with it after delivery.

How to know if I have right diastasis

Most often, the woman complains of having a gut as if she were still 5 months pregnant, despite diet and exercise.

In addition, this defect in the closure of the anterior part of the abdomen leads to functional problems such as heavy digestion, gas, constipation, back pain, and pelvic floor problems.

You can use several instruments to measure, from an ultrasound to a calipper, but the palpation is the easy and simple way to know if there is a diastasis problem:

- Lie face up, place your fingers on the midline of the body, you can try above the navel and below, then you raise your head like doing a classic abdominal, if you make a hole under your fingers that may or may not be pushed by the visceral content or directly notes a groove between the two muscle groups , then it is very likely that you have diastasis.

Treatment of diastasis after pregnancy

There are specific programs to treat diastasis, which are very effective as long as there is evidence from the woman.

The use of a specific strip is being extended to solve the problem of diastasis, in a generalized manner. However, it is essential to emphasize the importance of the individualization of diagnosis and the prescription of it. It is essential to evaluate each case, because each woman is unique, and try to adjust the treatment to each of them, with specific exercises.

The essential thing is a correct diagnosis by health professionals, and then go to programs to solve this problem, get a reduction of the contour of the abdomen and especially reduce the discomfort that accompanies it, such as back pain, pelvic floor problems ...