What Causes Stretch Marks: The Stretching Of Your Skin

The simple explanation for what causes stretch marks, is stretching. A woman’s skin can be quickly stretched for a few reasons, the most common being pregnancy, puberty, and weight gain.  The majority of women who have stretch marks on their bodies probably obtained them during pregnancy. In nine quick months a woman’s stomach will grow several inches, stretching out the skin on her tummy, faster than her body can produce the collagen it needs. As a result, stretch marks often form on the sides and lower portion of a woman’s stomach. These stretch marks often fade after the pregnancy, but because they never completely go away.

Many women that have never experienced pregnancy still find themselves facing stretch marks. The most common time for non-pregnancy stretch marks to appear on a women’s body is when she goes through puberty. Rapid spurts of growth, expanding hips and even budding breasts can all contribute to stretch marks. During puberty, like pregnancy, the skin can be stretched faster than it can repair and rebuild itself, leading to stretch marks.

Weight gain can also contribute to stretch marks, although the weight usually has to be put on in a relatively short time for stretch marks to appear. A slow weight gain over the period of a few years usually won’t produce stretch marks. People that yo-yo diet, losing and gaining the same weight over and over again, tend to experience stretch marks.

What Causes Stretch Marks: Genetics

When one seeks to learn what causes stretch marks one cannot ignore an obvious factor.  Genetics do play a large role in whether or not a person will suffer from stretch marks. Some people are more likely to develop stretch marks than other people. That is why two women can weigh exactly the same weight, get pregnant and maintain similar weights during their pregnancy and yet have completely different experiences when it comes to stretch marks.

What Causes Stretch Marks: The Scientific Studies

When the skin is rapidly stretched, whether it is from pregnancy, weight gain, or puberty, your body simply can’t produce repairing collagen fast enough to keep up with the demand. As a result, small scars or stretch marks are formed.  One way to prevent this from happening is to supplement your skin with moisturizing products that help or stimulate the production of collagen.

You see, stretch marks are tiny tears in the middle dermal layer of the skin and are caused when the skin stretches beyond its normal elastic bounds. The collagen in the skin breaks down and it is next to impossible to heal this particular area. Only with laser and surgical treatment for stretch marks do you have the possibility of totally eradicating these striated scars.

Laser and Surgical Treatment for Stretch Marks

As most stretch marks occur on the abdomen, a tummy tuck is a popular cosmetic surgical procedure that helps get rid of them. The affected area is cut away and then the remaining skin is stretched taut, creating a smoother skin appearance. A similar procedure can be done for other parts of the body as well.

Laser treatment for stretch marks has come a long way and many people have benefited from this option. Lasers essentially excise away the affected tissue and the energy from the laser stimulates new collagen, a major building block of the skin. The collagen helps rebuild the fibers in the skin tissue to help fill in the affected areas. As a treatment for stretch marks, laser therapy is not as expensive as cosmetic surgery but it can be cost prohibitive for some. In addition, insurance does not cover cosmetic or laser procedures as a treatment for stretch marks.

Natural, Organic Treatment for Stretch Marks

There are creams, lotions and oils that can also be rubbed in the affected areas that are supposed to greatly diminish the appearance of stretch marks. Because each person is different with unique body chemistry and genetic history, one treatment for stretch marks may work for some while it may not work for others. Some experimentation may be needed for those lotions and other natural options of treatment for stretch marks.

Shea butter or cocoa butter feel heavenly and can soften stretch marks as they disappear or fade. Prescribed creams like Retin-A are rather effect options of treatment for stretch marks because they help fade the ugly red color of fresh, new marks. Evening primrose oil, flaxseed oil and even grape seed oil are other natural, popular ways to treat the affected areas.

Unless you have the expendable cash for surgical or laser treatment for stretch marks, the topical lotions and creams are your best option. Be prepared to experiment a bit until you find a remedy that works great for you.

Individuals of both genders can experience stretch marks due to pregnancy, obesity, sudden weight gain and bulk building or muscle building. There are many supposed preventions or treatments of stretch marks but none are really that effective in getting rid of them. Most of these treatments only help to lessen the appearance of the marks or improve the skin tome to make the marks lesser.

Minimizing the Appearance of  Stretch Marks

Stretch marks can not be avoided especially during pregnancy where most women gain weight rapidly due to hormonal changes and the burgeoning of their stomachs. The areas where stretch marks commonly appear are the stomach, the buttocks, the thighs, the upper arms and breasts. In body builders, the more common parts where stretch marks appear are the upper arms and thighs.

The only surefire way of minimizing the appearance of stretch marks on your body is to gain weight slowly and give your skin the opportunity to get used to the expansion. This may be a bit difficult to do especially for pregnant women who usually experience rapid weight gain. It may be best to follow your doctor’s orders regarding the allowable weight gain for each month.

One other recommended way of minimizing stretch marks is to moisturize your skin, especially those areas prone to stretching like the stomach, breast, thighs and buttocks. Most people recommend using cocoa butter, jojoba oil, emu oil and other more intensive moisturizers to help your skin keep moisture and remain supple and elastic. Constant application is recommended to lessen the appearance of the offending marks.

Another way of minimizing the appearance of stretch marks is to wait them out. These pinkish marks eventually turn a few shades lighter than your skin tone which makes them less noticeable compared to when they were pinkish. Some other dermatological procedures may improve the appearance of stretch marks if you have the means to pay for them. These procedures may be a bit expensive and may not be covered by your insurance since they are for aesthetic purposes only.

On the other hand, through the years, there have been many speculations and theories as to why we have stretch marks that even no matter how much we take care of our skin, it seems like they are bound to happen and are unavoidable.  Here are the known theories as to why they think we are being affected by stretch marks.

Possible Or Known Causes

The only theory that somehow was said to be logical especially when it comes to explaining the formation of stretch marks in our bodies is that when we get our skin stretched up to the point where the cells are already breaking down, they develop due to the dramatic increase in the size of the tissue.  The real stretch marks develop in the middle layer of our skin, or which is known to be the elastic layer, that is called the dermis.

It was said that the dermis is made up of fibers that is commonly known as the collagen that allow your skin to stretch and then shrink back into shape and if this layer of skin continues to stretch over a long time, elasticity breaks down and the skin tries to remedy the problem by increasing the amount of collagen in the over stretched area.  This would then create the scars that we see on different parts of our bodies especially on the abdominal area, hips, underarms, and others because they are shown through the surface of the skin which is called the epidermis.

There were also some circumstances that lead our parts of our bodies to stretch and have these so-called scars to appear on the surface of the skin.  One of which is pregnancy, which we all know enables us to have a large abdomen when we are carrying the baby but dramatically decrease its size after we deliver.

Another circumstance wherein we also could have stretch marks is right after we lost some unwanted pounds especially those that were really dramatic.  That is why it is always best to not just go on a diet when you are trying to lose some weight, but also hit the gym to tone your body and create muscles.  This would somehow prevent you from having stretch marks.

Although there is no absolutely surefire way to prevent stretch marks from occurring, there are different stretch mark treatment options that are available for you to use, a few in particular which are especially worthwhile.

Cocoa Butter

One of the most well recognized stretch mark treatment options today is cocoa butter. It works incredibly well on most women, and not only helps to get rid of existing stretch marks, but can also actually prevent them from appearing in the future.

Cocoa butter is actually the natural fat extracted from the cocoa bean, and the most desirable quality of cocoa butter is its stability as a fat containing natural antioxidants that also preserve it as well. This is also what makes it useful in the treatment of stretch marks, and helping make the skin more moisturized and elastic overall.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is another incredibly effective stretch mark treatment option that is available, and it is a fat-soluble vitamin that actually exists in eight different forms. As a highly effective antioxidant, vitamin E is a major nutrient in preventing stretch marks, especially during pregnancy, and this makes it possible for women to be able to retain smooth, beautiful skin, even after pregnancy.

A woman is able to help her body effectively repair and recondition the skin and erase stretch marks by using vitamin E, and it works because it is able to prevent rapid oxidation in the body that eventually leads to aging and marks on the skin. It also helps to make the skin more elastic and firm in general, and this is important because the more elastic the skin is, the less likely stretch marks are to appear.

Diet and Exercise

One stretch mark treatment that most women actually do not consider involves proper diet and exercise. Sure there are tons of different creams and topical treatments that you can use for your stretch marks, but one of the most important aspects of all is keeping yourself healthy, because this is going to have a significant affect on your skin in general.
By eating a healthy, well-balanced diet, drinking plenty of water and getting lots of regular exercise, you will be generally healthy, your skin will be more moisturized, and you will be a lot less likely to suffer from stretch marks.

Several Stretch Mark Solutions

There are many proposed solutions to the problem of getting grid of stretch marks. A certain stretch mark solution mentions mixing ground coffee with a lotion or cream and rubbing the mixture in the offending area. This is followed by a warm towel wipe off that should be done after a couple of minutes’ rubbing of the coffee mixture. It is amazing how many women are so willing to try a stretch mark solution no matter how strange it may seem.

Another proposed stretch mark solution is to undergo Endermologie or microdermabrasion. Both these procedures can cost you a lot of money and they do not even guarantee a complete loss of stretch marks only an overall improvement in the appearance of your skin. This means, they can not get rid of the stretch marks, they can only make it blend well enough with your skin for the stretch marks to be less noticeable. Cosmetic surgery is also an option for the buttocks and stomach area that has stretch marks.

A stretch mark solution that starts way before the mother gets stretch marks is to regularly moisturize the skins areas that are prone to stretch marks. The creams that need to be used for this stretch mark solution are usually cocoa butter, Shea butter, jojoba oil, vitamin E enriched oils or creams and many others. These are supposed to nourish the pregnant lady’s skin and make it more elastic and supple in order to accommodate the stretch that a pregnancy may need.

The other stretch mark solution that is sure to catch your attention because of its possible effectiveness is to keep your weight gain to a healthy minimum. This is a doable stretch mark solution since you are the one who controls your weight gain. This works well for those women who are already small and have no problem maintaining their weight even before they got pregnant. This stretch mark solution is plausible enough that it may even work to keep stretch marks to a minimum.

Stretch Mark Repair Possibilities

There are actually many options that you can choose from for stretch mark repair. One of these stretch mark repair options is to have a microdermabrasion procedure done to the areas which need stretch mark repair. Microdermabrasion is a procedure that necessitates the sanding or polishing of your skin to eliminate the scarred or damaged epidermal tissues. This procedure costs quite a lot of money and there may be a little discomfort when the procedure is undergoing.

Laser skin remodeling is another procedure where stretch mark repair is a possibility. It entails the removal or lessening of scars, stretch marks and lesions from the skin. Skin remodeling is a prime stretch mark repair solution because collagen is used to reform the scars and accelerate its remodeling. In children, skin heals at a faster rate compared to adults because their bodies are abundant with collagen. Adults, especially women, have lesser collagen as they grow older hence the wrinkles and more pronounced scars.

Another stretch mark repair method could be the application of creams and ointments that trigger the production of collagen and retain much of the moisture in the skin. Collagen and elastin are elements that are need for stretch mark repair and other skin repairs. These two substances can actually accelerate the production of more collagen and elastin thus making the appearance of the stretch marks better and les noticeable.

A tummy tuck is also another stretch mark repair solution. Actually it is more like a stretch mark disappearance than repair because a tummy tuck gets rid of the skin just below the belly button. The skin here is the one most likely fraught with stretch marks. The procedure takes out the excess skin, including the stretch marks that go with the skin. This is probably the only way to really get rid of stretch marks that really works. The downside is that it only works for the stretch marks in the tummy and nowhere else.

Stretch mark repair can e considerably expensive especially with the procedures described above. Take note that none of the procedures above has claimed to get rid of stretch marks but only improve the skin’s appearance and make them less noticeable.

Stretch mark removal used to be limited to creams and oils which are rubbed or applied on the skin surface to aid in stretch mark removal. The only problem with this stretch mark removal method is that it does not do anything for the stretch mark. Time just make sit less obvious compared to its initial appearance but the closer one looks, one can see the fine lines of the stretch marks.

Laser Stretch Mark Removal

In the recent years, many advances in laser technology especially pertaining to dermatology have been made. Laser stretch mark removal has developed into a better stretch mark removal method and can have the desired effects that many women want. Laser stretch mark removal is a fairly recent development which is sure to please many people who wish to have their stretch marks removed.

Laser stretch mark removal is a procedure where the laser spans the area with stretch marks to remove thin layers of skin around the marks. The same laser used for LASIK is sued for this procedure. Instead of burning the tissue most affected by stretch marks, the Excimer laser disrupts the molecular bonds, causing the tissue to disintegrate. This process is called ablation.

When the process of laser stretch mark removal is finished, you can expect the area to heal quickly and to find that your stretch marks are gone. The skin that has been subjected to laser stretch mark removal will be understandably red and tender directly after the process. Some blistering or burn injury might be present but this is just temporary. The skin will be full healed in a matter of weeks, depending on the extent of the treatment.

Laser stretch mark removal can be risky if performed by an inexperienced person. The laser can cause some tissue damage if mishandled and can make the condition of your stretch marks worse than it already is. Make sure that the dermatologist you have consulted is licensed to perform the procedure.

Use Of Creams And Lotions May Help

It is however possible that stretch mark prevention may be made possible by using creams and also some lotions, and the market too has many formulations that supposedly will help in stretch mark prevention. Many of these formulations work by keeping the skin moisturized and also ease the itching, and even though such means can help in lessening the occurrence of stretch marks, there is as yet no scientific evidence to support such claims.

Another possible method that can easily is used for stretch mark prevention is cocoa butter or any other such formulations that will prove effective and the very least it will achieve by simply rubbing the cream into the belly is that it will keep the yet to be born baby comfortable and also gives the mother comfort in knowing that all that needed to be done for stretch mark prevention has been done.

The simplest and yet most effective method you can choose for stretch mark prevention other than using creams and moisturizers is to put on enough weight whilst pregnant and according to doctor’s recommendations, this should fall in the range of from twenty-five to thirty-four pounds and not more which otherwise would only contribute to the development of stretch marks rather than prevent them.

Whatever means you use for stretch mark prevention, there is no certainty that the treatment method employed will be guaranteed to succeed, for there are other factors that influence the end results including hereditary factors and also type of skin which may render the preventive measures employed quite ineffective. What is sure is that these methods will certainly help in reducing the severity of stretch marks.

Regardless of whether you are male or female, you must ensure that for stretch mark prevention you have taken all necessary steps to keep the skin in good health and ensure that it is flexible, and the best way to achieve that is to drink plenty of water to ensure adequately hydrated skin which will ensure that the skin does not dry and thus form stretch marks. Next, you should maintain proper diet that is well balanced and is full of vitamins as well as includes plenty of fruits and vegetables. Such diets will provide the right amount of nutrients to your skin to keep it healthy as well as elastic.

Finally, exercising can also be used for stretch mark prevention and though these measures may not work for all, they are a step in the right direction.

It is the breakdown of collagen, the skin’s major building block that causes stretch marks and people turn to all sorts of “cures” like stretch mark lotion to treat them. There is no one true way to prevent these unattractive sub-dermal skin scars although preventative maintenance seems to help keep them from becoming too unsightly. This preventative maintenance typically comes in the form of some type of stretch mark lotion.

Stretch Mark Lotion Options on the Market

The list is basically endless when it comes to the availability of stretch mark lotion on the open market. Everyone will likely have their own favorite versions of stretch mark lotion that they claim totally prevented the marks. In actuality, the lotions can help treat forming stretch marks but each body is different so genetics are as much to blame as anything else.

Palmer’s Cocoa Butter stretch mark lotion is probably the most known and most popular of treatments on the market. It contains cocoa butter, elastin, collagen and healing Vitamin E. This stretch mark lotion helps lubricate the skin to keep moisture and elasticity intact.

Retin-A stretch mark lotion is typically obtained through a prescription from a doctor under the pharmaceutical name Tretinoin. The Retin-A substance works best at reducing the reddish purple color of rather new stretch marks. If your stretch mark lotion included alpha-hydroxyacid as well, then your marks will not only show a huge reduction in color discoloration but also help reverse the signs of aging too.

Homegrown Stretch Mark Lotion Options

While not exactly a stretch mark lotion, Vitamin E capsules have long been used to treat stretch marks. The simplest approach is to break open the capsule to release the thick formula of Vitamin E so that you can directly apply it to the stretch marks. You will want to cover the areas with gauze or wear clothing that you do not mind getting messed up. It can take weeks of daily Vitamin E treatment to show any signs of fading.

Other stretch mark lotion options include more organic, herbal methods such as the application of flaxseed oil or hempseed oil. Both of these natural remedies have special healing properties and have been also used in the treatment of scars and blemishes.

The fact of the matter is that there are a bunch of hits and misses when it comes to stretch mark lotion. It is all a matter of perspective as well as genetics and body chemistry as to whether or not one stretch mark lotion over another will work effectively.