It turns out, they come in all different shapes and sizes. Here, everything you need to know about your nipples. Gain weight or get pregnant, and they can balloon even bigger, she says. Just as nipple size changes when you have a baby, so does nipple color, and that shift in shade is often permanent. They're Capable of Mucho Pleasure Nipples are an erogenous zone for many women, and a study from the Journal of Sexual Medicine backs this up. Researchers using MRI imaging found that when nipples are stimulated, a pleasure center inside the brain lights up the same way it lights up after stimulation of the clitoris and vagina.

Dark areolas during pregnancy are most likely caused by your rising levels of hormones—namely, estrogen and progesterone. Some women may also notice bumps resembling goose-bumps pop up on the perimeter of their areolas. These are called Montgomery tubercles, sometimes also called Morgagni tubercles, and they become more visible during pregnancy and breastfeeding because your breasts get larger, Twogood says. Those Montgomery tubercles are your friends! They help lubricate your nipples, which will be welcome when baby latches on to nurse. Because dark areolas play a role in nursing, these changes often remain after giving birth, especially for women who choose to breastfeed.

Some of the most common physical changes and not just darkened areolas or dark nipples, but often darker areolas can be the most visible to occur during pregnancy are seen in the breasts. Soon after conception expectant mothers begin to notice breast tenderness, swelling of the breasts, stretch marks, and darkened areolas the skin around the nipples or dark nipples. Because of the increase in hormones during pregnancy , many women see their areolas darken or nipples darken, and continue to darken as their pregnancies progress.

A: Pregnancy hormones do some wild -- and unexpected -- things to your body, including causing your skin cells to produce more pigment. That explains why your areolas the skin around your nipples have suddenly become darker and grown larger. You may also notice that this area looks bumpier than usual. That's because of the growth of small glands called Montgomery's tubercles that will eventually secrete an oily substance to protect your nipples from becoming dry and cracked during breastfeeding. Though they can seem odd at first, all these breast changes are completely normal and just a sign that your body is preparing to nurse your baby.