Stretch marks are certainly bad news, and in spite of all the promises that make the beauty rounds, there is no permanent cure for it…now, don’t lose hope, entirely! There are ways to reduce the ugliness to a large extent and to decrease its visibility considerably.

Where?

Stretch marks appear at the most inconvenient places; thighs, stomach, breasts, buttocks, hip and even chest in some cases. This is one bad news that is not restricted to the female gender. The females have their lion’s share but a fair share of the trouble does go to the males.

How?

The epidermis is the outermost layer of the skin and the visible part of it. The dermis comes just below, and contains lots of small blood vessels, nerves, connective tissue and collagen-producing cells. When the skin is stretched outside its limits, it causes stretch marks – it’s as simple as that.

The loss of elastin and collagen, two of the proteins in the skin, show up as tears through the top layer of skin. This can be due to loss or gain in weight, where the skin is forced to adjust to accommodate lesser or more muscle tissue. Other factors are:

Heredity: Some have it in their genes to mark themselves more as their sizes decrease or increase.

Skin Type: Your skin type also matters – like whether you are oily or dry skinned. Oily skin is more elastic and holds fort for more time against stretch marks.

Pregnancy: Pregnancy and its after effect is another reason.

Growth Stage: Growing children often show the tendency to have stretch marks in their rapid growth stages.

Hormonal Changes: There are also hormone changes that manifest in the form of stretch marks.

Weight Lifting: Weight lifters too show the tendency towards improper formation of elastin and collagen fibers.

Whichever one of the factors mentioned above is the cause, stretch marks resemble scars and have to be treated to lessen them. They don’t go away by themselves.

Remedy?

Once you are a member of the club, you can do all these things to reduce your stretch marks without bringing the doctor in:

• A mixture of Almond oil and Coconut oil, massaged daily into skin is said to reduce the possibility of stretch marks considerably. The areas generally possible need to be emphasized during the massage.
• Vitamin E is said to reduce stretch marks considerably. Vitamin E capsules can be taken internally, as per a doctor’s prescription, or added to the oil used to massage stretch marks.
• Stretch marks formed during pregnancy, and by putting on weight, can be prevented up to a limit by peeling regularly and scrubbing daily with a brush. This increases blood circulation and keeps the elastic quality of skin tissue.
• Cocoa Butter applied regularly on stretch marks will give relief up to a limit.

Specialists’ Help

If you feel the need of the healing touch and a specialist who knows his job, these possibilities are open:

Macrodermabrasion: Macrodermabrasion by a skin specialist or a plastic surgeon has minimal level of pain and makes use of sea salt and a compression device exerting pressure to bring fresh skin to the surface.

Tretinoin: Tretinoin cream used under medical supervision is an option that may help.