Stretch marks or striae distensae, and striae gravidarum are all the same streaks that might appear on your skin. There are many treatments available for dealing with stretch marks.
Stretch marks look like indented streaks on your skin. These might appear in red, purple, or silver. Often they are seen in places like the stomach, chest, hips, bottom and thighs.
These marks are most commonly seen during pregnancy, but pregnancy is not the only cause. Some people are more susceptible to stretch marks, especially if your family or blood relatives have stretch marks, the chances of you developing them is much higher.
Despite the fact that you might be more prone to develop stretch marks there are things you can do to prevent them from appearing. Even if they do appear, there are treatments available to help you.
Tips to Reduce the Risk of Developing Stretch Marks
There are several things you can do to reduce the probability of developing stretch marks.
One of the crucial steps you can take towards preventing stretch marks, despite you being pregnant or otherwise, is to strive to keep your body in shape. Stretch marks often appear when your skin pulls apart fast often due to rapid weight gain. These stretch marks might also appear when you are losing weight rapidly as well. Some individuals develop stretch marks during growth spurts, especially when they might be going through puberty. Bodybuilders might notice stretch marks appearing after big gains from working out or due to using steroids.
Taking steps towards keeping your body weight changes under control might be helpful in lowering the probability of developing stretch marks. Eat a healthy diet to help have more control of your weight. If you notice that you are gaining weight or losing weight rapidly, you might want to consider consulting a doctor to find out why you might be in that condition.
Drinking plenty of water will help keep your skin hydrated and soft. Soft skin doesn’t usually develop stretch marks as much as dry skin.
Consuming too much caffeinated beverages such as coffee might actually increase the probability of you developing stretch marks. If you drink lots of coffee keep in mind to balance out your fluid intake with lots of water, herbal tea or natural fruit juice.
Treatments for Stretch Marks
Applying topical retinoids can help enhance skin texture and elasticity, which has the potential to reduce the appearance of early stretch marks when applied regularly.
Radio frequency treatments use heat energy to stimulate the production of collagen in deeper skin layers which can alleviate the change in appearance of your skin due to stretch marks.
There is laser therapy too, which uses concentrated beams of light to stimulate the production of collagen in the skin, which helps reduce the potency of stretch marks.
Chemical peels can also be used to exfoliate the top layer of the skin using chemical solutions, which promotes cell turnover and reduces the visibility of stretch marks.
