Kim K & Chrissy Teigen Responded To Lots Of Backlash Over SKIMS' Maternity Shapewear

On Sunday, Sept. 12, Kim Kardashian announced via her personal Instagram and SKIMS Instagram that the brand would launch a line of maternity shapewear come Wednesday, Sept. 16. Swift backlash followed the news in the comments section of the initial Instagram post and on Twitter. "Why are we trying to slim down pregnancy bellies?" one Instagram user wrote. Kardashian responded to the maternity shapewear backlash and even reposted a video from Chrissy Teigen, who commented on the controversy as well.

"If you haven’t been pregnant before, you may not know the struggle of what it’s like carrying all of this weight the way I did along with millions of strong women. @skims maternity line is not to slim but to support," Kardashian wrote on her Instagram Story. "The belly part doesn’t slim your belly; it’s actually sheer and a thinner layered material compared to the rest of the garment. It provides support to help with the uncomfortable weight being carried in your stomach, which affects your lower back, and the compression on the leggings helps with pain relief caused by swelling."

She continued in her statement that the maternity shapewear is also meant to provide support to the body postpartum, particularly for those "recovering from a cesarean."

Teigen (proudly proclaiming herself an "actual pregnant person"), too, took to her Instagram Story in defense of Kardashian's shapewear, listing some of her reasons for loving and wearing pregnancy shapewear that have nothing to do with slimming the body down. "Basically, the reason I love pregnancy shapewear is because it stops all the folds of my vagina and stomach from eating any other type of underwear," she said in a mirror-selfie video. "We're not trying to do anything to trick you; we're pregnant. We would just like to feel good about ourselves in a time where, mentally, it can be really challenging."

Judging from the hundreds of positive comments on Instagram and Twitter filled with eager anticipation about the launch, I'd say there's more support over this line than not. If this is something you're in the market for, you can snag the SKIMS Maternity line in nine colors and in sizes XXS through 5X on the SKIMS website come Sept. 16 at 12 p.m. ET.