Stretch marks photo by Fabian Montaño

Truly, there is a beauty and essence in being a woman.  We all come across different stages in our lives from the moment we entered puberty and got the first menstruation, became weight conscious, hormonal imbalances, and the most beautiful thing, giving life to someone in this world. These stages entail a lot of changes in our human body and the most common thing that we can’t just leave unnoticed is stretch marks.

Stretch marks are the scars that happen when your skin rapidly stretches or shrinks. In fact, this is a very common skin condition for many that accounts for almost 90 percent.

You’ll notice that these marks are visible in the body parts such as the stomach, breasts, upper arms, thighs, and buttocks. While this skin condition is considered to be pretty much normal, we bet a lot of you would pretty much agree that it has its way of making us so conscious and insecure about it. We’ve heard your concerns and we’ve all been there, as you get ready for summer, flaunt that skin without having to worry about the sight of your stretch marks. We are laying down fun facts and practices that you might want to incorporate to finally bid goodbye to your unwanted marks.

Over the counter creams and lotions

If you’ll go along the search for remedies for this concern chances are, you’ll be bombarded with plenty of options already.

The key is to have you all equipped with the ingredients to look out for. Research suggests that vitamin E and Collagen work well in reducing the appearance of stretch marks. Anything that’ll keep your skin moisturized is good for you and will prevent stretch marks from developing. On the other note, look for hyaluronic acid as well in your creams as it is generally considered to be safe for use by all people. This one is generally prescribed as if applied in the early stage of stretch marks, this aids in making it less noticeable.
Learn more about Hyaluronic acid 

The use of prescription creams

In addressing this concern, the advice of a professional would be of very much help. A dermatologist can recommend tretinoin cream or also known as Retin-A and Renova, it primarily works by restoring the skin’s collagen – which gives off skin elasticity. However, tretinoin may not be prescribed to a pregnant woman as this ingredient may cause skin irritation.

Self-tanning lotions

Another thing for you to do is to invest in some good sunless tanning products. If you are dealing with stretch marks that have been there for a couple of years then, the self-tanning lotion would make a good option. According to the experts, applying self-tanning lotions to your pre-existing stretch marks offer a temporary way to minimize the difference in color between your skin tone and marks. However, kindly note that sunless tanning lotion does not pretty much offer Sun Protection Factor (SPF) so be sure to slaughter some SPF30 before going outdoors.

Healthy diet and exercise

You can never go wrong with living your life in the healthiest way possible. Keeping yourself hydrated reduces the risk of developing stretch marks as it aids in increasing the skin’s elasticity.

Eating food rich in vitamins A and C such as carrots, spinach, and fresh fruits is also of big help. Include foods high in Zinc and Protein as well such as meat, poultry, and eggs.

Dermatology Treatments

The last resort after having all the topical applications done and a healthy lifestyle incorporated is to seek the help of a professional. The closest procedure that your trusted dermatologist would recommend is the micro-dermabrasion. This includes the process of polishing the skin with tiny crystals to reveal new skin under more elastic stretch marks.

Research has shown that this procedure is effective for minimizing stretch marks and other scar tissue on the body. However, note that you may have to undergo several procedures before having to reap off its benefits.

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