What Causes Stretch Marks?

What are Stretch Marks? Why do you get them? How can you get rid of them?
You don’t have to be a woman who has just had a baby to get stretch marks! They are quite common in growing teens, in people who have lost a lot of weight and both men and women get them!!!

So what are stretch marks?
Stretch marks are long, narrow streaks, stripes or lines that develop on the skin and differ in color from the surrounding skin. They are the result of sudden stretching of the skin and are extremely common. Stretch marks are usually a slightly red or purple shade to begin with, fading with time to silvery white lines. Most common areas to get stretch marks include, tummy, thighs, hips, breasts, upper arms, and lower back.

Why do you get them?
Stretch marks are a type of scar tissue that develops when the skin cannot bounce back after a period of intense growth or stretching that could happen due to pregnancy, weight gain, growth spurts during puberty or extreme weight loss.

Now let’s answer the million-dollar question. How can you get rid of stretch marks?
Often stretch marks will start to fade over time but they will rarely disappear naturally.
Here are a few things that will help to fade your stretch marks or make them less visible.

1. Developing Abdominal Muscle:
If you tone up your abdominal muscles they will fill up the loss skin developed due to fat loss or pregnancy and this will make the stretch marks look a lot less prominent.

2. Vitamin E:
Vitamin E is an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant that helps the body deal with scar tissue. Using creams with Vitamin E will help to fade stretch marks over time.

3. Microdermabrasion:
Microdermabrasion is used to lightly remove the top layer of your skin and is useful for reducing the appearance of older stretch marks.

4. Steady Weight Loss:
If you are more than 50 pounds overweight it will help to lose weight at a steady pace of 2-4 pounds/week to avoid stretch marks.

5. Laser:
Lasers work to stimulate melanin in order to blend the marks in with the surrounding skin color and this help to reduce the contrast between the stretch marks and your skin tone.

Of course people claim that egg whites, lemon juice or even potato juice help, however there is no evidence to support these claims.

Here’s my take on stretch marks, unless they are really bothering you, don’t worry about them! A lot of people have them including me! I have a few stretch marks here and there and I am ok with that. For me it’s a reminder that my body has been through this journey of having babies, losing excess fat and gaining lean muscle mass!

If you found this information helpful, please share it with your family and friends.

Much Love, Uma