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How to Get Rid of Stretch Marks
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1. What are Stretch Marks?
Stretch marks are scars left behind when skin is overstretched, and fibers in the middle layer (dermis) have broken. They most often occur during pregnancy, bodybuilding, extreme weight gain, occasionally puberty and are usually found on the abdomen, breasts, buttocks, legs, and upper arms. Fresh stretch marks appear initially as red lines and then slowly fade to a pale white color over the course of several months. While it is possible to reduce and even eliminate the appearance of stretch marks, it is much easier to prevent them.
2. How to Prevent Stretch Marks
Since stretch marks occur when skin is stretched to the limit of its elasticity – it follows that the best prevention is either to reduce the cause of stretching or to increase elasticity (or both).
Increase your Skin’s Elasticity
- Skin Creams and Lotions – Lotions containing cocoa butter are rumored to not only help reduce stretch marks, but to help prevent them entirely. Any cream or oil that is made specifically for the prevention or treatment of stretch marks will help keep your skin healthy and elastic. If you are pregnant or breast feeding consult your doctor first as lotions can contain ingredients that may be passed to your unborn baby or into breast milk.
- Vitamin A, E & C – Supplementing these vitamins may help increase the strength and elasticity of the collagen within your skin and reducing your chance of forming stretch marks.
- Stay hydrated. Every try to squeeze a dry sponge?
3. Stretch Mark Removal
If you’re more concerned with getting rid of stretch marks than preventing them, read on. There are many methods to choose from, ranging from home remedies for stretch marks, to medical and cosmetic procedures. You will notice that every single one of these remedies also helps promote the overall health of your skin – the healthier your skin is, the better it can heal itself. Always consult your doctor before undergoing any treatment, especially if you are pregnant or nursing.
Home Remedies to Remove Stretch Marks
- Time – Stretch marks, like all types of scarring fade over time.
- Retin-A (Tretinoin) – 0.1% Tretinoin creams have been shown to significantly reduce the appearance of stretch marks in a study published in the May 1996 Archives of Dermatology. See your doctor for a prescription. These creams work best when used on fresh stretch marks. WARNING: Do not use tretinoin treatments if you are pregnant of breast feeding as the active ingredient may be passed to the unborn child or the breast milk.
- Exfoliate daily – use a loofah or scrunchy to remove daily.
- Vic’s Vapor Rub – Many people have reported success using Vic’s Vapor rub by applying it to a washcloth or paper towel and rubbing it forcefully into the scarred skin on a nightly basis for a few weeks.
- Increase Circulation – by taking hot baths and massaging the areas regularly.
- Tanning – Go sunbathing! Tanning can diminish and even eliminate minor stretch marks. Be sure to use sun screen.
- Vitamin E Gel – Break open vitamin E capsules and rub the oil into the skin over the stretch marks daily for 2 weeks.
- Unstretch the skin – After the skin returns to its normal, unstretched size, stretch marks often become nearly invisible.
- Stretch Mark Creams and Lotions – Using stretch mark creams and stretch mark lotions that heal and beautify your skin can reduce the appearance of stretch marks. The following ingredients are widely accepted as beneficial for this purpose:
- Cocoa butter
- Rose hip oil
- Emu oil
- Jojoba oil
- Castor oil
- Shea butter
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin E
- Vitamin C
Medical Procedures for Stretch Marks
- Microdermabrasion – Microdermabrasion is a cosmetic procedure popular in spas and salons where the top-most layer of skin is removed by chemical or mechanical means.
- Endermologie – Endermologie machines massage and work the skin in order to increase circulation and expel toxins.
- Laser Therapy – There are several different types of stretch mark laser treatments available that can help reduce the appearance of stretch marks and heal you skin. See your dermatologist for the latest information on these methods.
- Cosmetic Surgery – Stretch marks typically appear below the belly button and the only way to remove abdominal stretch marks is with a tummy tuck. During a tummy tuck some of the skin below the belly button is removed. For stretch marks that appear on other areas of the body cosmetic plastic surgery can help depending on the areas affected.
Stretch marks naturally happen when any weight is gained or lost.
If you want to loose weights, gain weight or get in shape I’ve been told to slap on the creams, take fish oil and drink plenty of water.
Unfortunately there’s no magic cream or oil that can diminish old stretch marks, but it may be able to improve the appearance of newer marks.
I’m only 19 and I’ve had marks on my stomach since I was around 12 due to weight gain because of thyroid problems. I now have them on near my arm pits, lower abdominals, sides of my stomach and behind my knees,
I know what it does to your self esteem but the truth is, mature men really don’t care because every woman gets stretch marks and especially if they’ve had children.
My dermatologist once told me he’d be a millionaire if he had prescription and creams for stretch marks.
The sad truth is there’s nothing you can really do about already formed marks but if you drink plenty of water and keep your skin moisturize, it can improve your chances of getting new marks.
Use Bio-oil you can find it at walgreens.
hellow, im 15 yrz old and i have strech marks on my legs and hips, they came out when i would scratch, how can i get rid of them??
ok im 17 years old i had my first born son at age 14 and i have really bad strech marks i have the back and sides of my legs from my back side to my belly and my breast these are not like normal ones thier really bad and so gross looking i cant stand for my husband to touch me let alone look at me naked i feel so akward at times to the point i want to take a shower in the dark to avoid looking at myself in the mirror im at an all time low and its stressing me and my husband out even if he doesnt care about them im still grossed out by them my question is how do i make myself fill better in my own skin without feeling sick to my stomach of my ugly strech marks
when i said no jk i didn’t mean i was kidding HELP!
I have stretch marks on my breasts, hips, and inside like higher up my legs. Omg I am like 130 lbs so that has to do with it. And I am 5′4. so ya. I wanna get rid of them. Before our end of the year beach party that involves a SWIMSUIT! no jk.
I am 20 years old and use to work out all the time. while I was working out i started getting bigger and gained stretch marks every where. for some reason I even got them on my belly and I even did crunches all the time. I dont know if this has ever happened to any body before but if somebody could tell me, I would like to know the easiest way to get rid of them, not prevent them.
I am 12 years old. and hit puberty at about age 10. I recently have noticed stretch marks on my chest, thighs and hips, Is there anyway i can get rid of these?
I am 17 with plenty of stretch marks. As soon as I hit puberty I gained a lot of weight. I’m 5’2 and about 135lbs I got all the way up to 155lbs. I have them all across my lower back from nasty love handles, outer thighs, inner thighs, on the back of my legs like right behind my knee. I can’t stand it I really need to get rid of them. I haven’t had ne kids nor been pregnant my skin is horrible I can’t have this kind of body when I’m only 17!!!!
im 18, and have been steadly gaining weight since i was 13, im now 99kg =[ im trying to loose weight, but in the meantime, which methods would help me best to get rid of the stretch marks on my hips and under my arms? does anyone know if the Vic’s Vapor Rub method really does work?
hey erina, yes, it does sound like you have stretch marks. no, you don’t get stretch marks from tight pants/shorts/ or jeans. it’s normal to have stretch marks during teenage years especially when you’re a girl and you start developing curves. unless your parents allow laser treatment, you can’t fully get rid of them. but you can use cocoa butter or a scar removal cream or oil to lessen their appearance.if you’re too embarrased, you can say it’s for your pregnant mom or something. quite alot of teenagers get them, especially girls. they’ll fade to white over time. you can use a selftanner to cover them. no one will notice.
I’ve always been thinner but as I got older and hit puberty. my butt, hips, and thighs got a little bigger (which I like) but along with that came stretch marks.
I use to tan a lot and I noticed that worked.
There’s also a coacoa butter with a pregnant lady on it and it helped a little bit.
im 12 years old. and i have strench marks on my sides. chest. and inside my thieghs. im not fat. i way 130. i guess thats kinda alot. but im 5.4 sooo yeah. i hate strench marks. cuz no one else has them i really want to get rid of them. ! !
and the girls at my school are super… “dirty” and they just like walk around naked.. and im emmbarresd by them :(, bein in a bathing suit is just super embarrising!
some body help me!
honestly im 13 and use to weigh about 220 at 5′5 i lost weight and im now 170….it took me about 6 months and im still trying to loose weight…my stretch marks are now silver but they still annoy me…they wont go away and im too embarrassed to buy the cream…so im still loosing wieght and hopping that they go away when i finally do loose all the wieght that i want and wear a bathingsuit
i just had my son about a month and a half ago. i have stretch marks on my stomach and on my sides. the ones on my sides wont seem to go away with n e thing afforadable. what should i do about this? i tried everything. do i just need to keep doing what im doing which is …. coca butter for a little longer or what?
hi i had two babies and now have stretch marks on my belly and hips how do i get rid of them within maybe three to five months? is their anyway HELP!!!
I am 22 years old. I have two beautiful children. But with those children came 100’s of ugly stretch marks. I don’t even let my boyfriend see me undressed anymore. I haven’t looked at myself in the mirror in over a year. I cried then. What can i do to not feel so ashamed and be proud to show off myself.
Has anyone tried the vics remedy?
Bio Oil is amazing. I have porcelin skin and within 2 weeks of using it, they faded a hell of alot.
I’m 14 and I began to notice my stretch marks just this March-May.
I didn’t gain weight, I just lose weight so some says that these stretch marks that I have are caused by tight pants. Is this true? Is it also true that if you wear jeans,shorts,stuff for the bottom that has garter it can cause stretch marks? Sometimes, if one knows I have stretch marks, they say that its not normal for me to have it because of my age.When I change, I can see red lines on my hips, its kinda have a texture and its like a scar that , is this the sign that it is going to be a sretch mark? Need help!