You know the thing that gets me about stretch marks is that the number one descriptor is
unsightly. How to get rid of unsightly stretch marks? Do you have unsightly stretch marks?
What to do about all those unsightly stretch marks? A more accurate descriptor would be
ordinary. Do you have ordinary stretch marks? Are you freaking out needlessly about your
ordinary stretch marks? Do you really want to try to get rid of ordinary stretch marks
because it costs a lot of money and uh, well, I mean they're kind of just ordinary soo...
Stretch mark question number one: Who gets them? Answer: A lot of us. Depending on the
age group and ethnicity you're looking at, anywhere from fifty to ninety percent of the
population has stretch marks. If you were to line everybody up in their swimsuits around
a pool, every other person if not more would probably have some degree of stretch mark.
Not just women, but also men and teenagers. Stretch mark question number two: Why do they
happen? Stretch marks occur has a combination of tissue stretching and hormonal changes.
We often hear that stretch marks are especially associated with things like puberty, pregnancy,
obesity and body-building. What do all those things have in common? Bodies changing sizes.
Sometimes when our bodies start growing rapidly the tissue beneath our skin start to stretch
and actually change structure because it can't produce two free proteins collagen and elastin
fast enough. Without that key protein combination that middle layer of skin the dermis will
sometimes break in places and those fibers might show through to the epidermis or our
visible layer of skin. Between those broken fibers, the blood vessels underneath might
also show through hence the red or purplish appearance of stretch marks. More recent research
has suggested that the hormonal changes associated with things like puberty, pregnancy and weight
gain contribute to that slowing down of collagen production which then contributes to stretch
mark development. Some studies have also identified genetic components that predispose some of
us to developing stretch marks whether you like it or not. Which brings me to stretch
mark question number three: How do we get rid of these unsightly oh wait no ordinary
stretch marks? The simple answer is you can't. Or at least not entirely. Particularly with
puberty and pregnancy related stretch marks, dermatologists usually reassure patients that
they will eventually go away on their own. Those blood vessels showing through to the
epidermis will actually constrict and the red and purplish coloring will fade with time.
If you're looking to go out and buy a miracle cure for stretch marks I have a little bad
news for you which is that scientific research has not found one. See also miracle cures
for cellulite. If you look at a number of products for treating stretch marks you'll
probably see a common list of ingredients: vitamin A, retinol, glycolic acid, vitamin
C, botanical oils and vitamin E all of which some studies suggest might help the dermis
repair it's collagen production. However as the Mayo Clinic explicitly states these products
as well as medical treatments cannot completely erase stretch marks. That said in the case
of pregnancy dermatologists would probably recommend that in case of pregnancy women
should moisturize their tummies to reduce the potential severity of stretch marks that
will develop in those three trimesters but when it comes to completely avoiding them
ain't gonna happen, even with microdermabrasion and laser treatments. At best you'll walk
away with slightly less visible stretch marks sure and also hundreds if not thousands of
dollars less to your name. Statistically speaking having stretch marks is far likelier than
being left handed and you know what? I'm left handed and I have stretch marks and I also
have cellulite. And I'm still here. Somehow. If we could just acknowledge that they're
ordinary and that they happen to us in all phases of life post-puberty than maybe we
wouldn't freak out about them so much, maybe we could love our bodies a little bit more
stretch marks and all.