Christian Little

Most women develop stretch marks during pregnancy and only 10-25% of women don’t avoid the problem completely. Stretch marks are most common late during the pragnancy and the 6-7 months are the most critical.

Although pregnancy is a very common reason behind stretch marks, they can appear in any situation where the skin is subjected to rapid stretching. Rapid growth during puberty or muscle growth due to excessive training can also cause stretch marks. Another cause of stretch marks is weight gain when the skin has to stretch to give space for the fat.

Stretch marks, also known as striae, are actually a form of scarring on the skin and even though they may diminish with time they do not disappear completely. Many different stretch mark cream variants are available on the market, but be careful because manufacturers have a tendency to promise more than what they can deliver. One way of getting more unbiased advice is to use stretch mark cream reviews from various independent sources. If you want to find the best stretch mark cream you should always consider what type of cream you want, to you want one to prevent stretch mark or to treat existing stretch marks.

In addition to creams, laser treatments, dermabrasion and retinoids are also used to make existing stretch marks diminish. Dermabrasion is a procedure where stretch marks are removed from the surface of your skin by sanding it away. In the past, dermabrasion was commonly accomplished using a small, sterilized electric sander on the stretch marks but today carbon dioxide or laser treatment is available as well. Compared to classical dermabrasion, the newer methods are easier to control and typically involves less bleeding.

Retinoids are chemically related to vitamin A and help regulate cell growth in humans. They affect cell proliferation and differentiation, immune function, and bone tissue growth, and play an important role in the activation of tumour suppressor genes. In addition to stretch mark treatment, retinoids (more specifically the 9-cis retinoic acid) is used to treat skin lesions caused by Kaposi’s sarcoma.

It is important to be careful when using retinoids used to treat stretch marks and other health problems because a prolonged high intake is dangerous and can cause hair loss, skin lesions, swellings on the long bones, loss of appetite, general malaise, and death.