This Genius Pool Float For Pregnant Women Lets You *Finally* Lie Face Down

Summer means popsicles and picnics, but for pregnant women in particular, it also means being constantly way too hot. There’s only so much time you can spend sticking your face in the freezer or shivering in an overly air-conditioned room (read: every office building) before you get the urge to go outside. Fortunately, Peanut Shop has just the thing you didn’t know you needed: a pool float for pregnant bellies. Now you too can get your float on with the rest of ‘em.

This belly-friendly pool float is brought to you by the creators of the motherhood app, Peanut. The app was created to bring “like-minded mamas” together IRL, kind of like Tinder but for moms, so I mean, not really like Tinder. The float comes with a bump-friendly hole in it to accommodate your expanding stomach. For $65 you can lay on your belly — a pregnancy-luxury in itself —while letting the water hold you up and make you feel weightless, or at least a bit lighter. I spoke to a new mom who said, “Summer is my favorite season. Unless I’m pregnant during it. Then it’s the absolute worst. Even in air conditioning I never felt cool, not to mention the bathing suits are a nightmare.” Others have echoed the idea that pregnancy in June through September just plain sucks, but keep in mind that these mamas did not have belly pool floats readily available.

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Sure, you could stick your growing stomach in the middle of an inner tube, but then what do you do with your legs and face? It’s all very complicated. Other floats may be super ‘grammable (fried chicken floats, flamingo floats, the options this year are truly abundant) but they are of little use to humans with baby bumps. Peanut Shop's pool float is chic, pink, and accommodates the height of most bodies which makes it easy for the rider to lay flat and requires zero effort to stay afloat. Plus it comes with a grooved surface to keep you stable. The side of the float even reads, “Put Your Feet Up Mama, We’ve Got You” and the heroines at Peanut do have us indeed.

Even if your belly hasn't popped quite yet, it's possible you're experiencing morning sickness, and there’s a good chance it’s not confined to just the morning. Mom junction claims that cool water may help relieve nausea, so a dip in the pool, provided your doctor gives you the okay, may be your saving grace. At the very least, it will certainly help relieve you of the unwavering heat and humidity that comes with the dog days of summer.

If you decide to ditch the float and fully submerge, it's not a bad idea. A 2010 study conducted by the National Institute of Public Health at the University of Southern Denmark found that there are no reproductive risks associated with swimming in chlorinated water; the same study actually showed that when compared with pregnant women who had not exercised during pregnancy, women who “swam in early/mid-pregnancy had a slightly reduced risk of giving birth preterm.” Floating or swimming can also help reduce swelling and fluid retention, according to Baby Centre, so sign me up.

A second study conducted the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Campinas in Brazil found that 65 percent of pregnant women participating in a surveyed water aerobics class thought that having taken the class "would make childbirth easier for them.” So if you get the urge to sign up, then feel free to kick those legs and do whatever it is you do during water aerobics. But also feel free to bask in the glory that is lying on your stomach on a really cute, belly-friendly float.

Studies cited:

Juhl, M. "Is Swimming During Pregnancy a Safe Exercise?" The Journal of Epidemiology, 2010 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20110815/

Vallim, A. "Water exercises and the quality of life during pregnancy" The Journal of Reproductive Health, 2011 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3113331/