How to get rid of stretch marks
Posted: January 11th, 2010 | Category: Health and Fitness
Striae (or stretch marks as they are more commonly known) develop when an individual’s skin is stretched suddenly : to be precise, the skin’s second layer is torn rather than stretched. Stretchmarks are most common around the stomach, breasts, thighs and hips. Adults, teenagers and children can suffer from striae (the technical term for stretch marks) and they affect most of teenagers and adults. Fortunately, stretch marks don’t affect our health and only affect us cosmetically. However, these concerns grow in the warmer seasons as the amount of our bodies we show, increases.
This stretching occurs when the body expands so quickly that the skin doesn’t stretch fast enough to keep up with it. Stretch marks are most frequently associated with pregnancy however, they also develop during puberty: Body building or quick weight gain can also result in stretch marks.
Although the skin is usually fairly elastic , when it is stretched, the normal production of collagen is disrupted. collagen to keep skin tight and supple. There are several external factors which affect the ability of the skin to produce and maintain collagen levels such as whether or not the person smokes and their diet These collagen levels affect the appearance of wrinkles and lines in the face. They also help determine how other blemishes, such as acne scars or even surgery scars, heal.
What do stretch marks look like?
When they first form, stretch marks can look red and/or purple and be very visible. They are indented and feel different to the surronding skin. as they get older, the deep colour fades, turning a silvery colour. The ability to heal however does vary considerably from individual to individual.
Remove stretchmarks
Treatment for stretch marks can be hard to find as not everything that claims to get rid of stretch marks, works. Stretch mark treatments vary dramatically in cost and effectiveness, treatments range from the application of cream to having laser treatments to try to remove them for most people, stretch marks are ugly and undesirable and can make people feel very self conscious, but this is overcome or eliminated by treatment to remove stretch marks.
cream is one method of treating stretch marks which is easy to obtain and easily used however, not all creams work therfore, creams are not really the best treatment for stretch marks. Using creams with techniques such as micro-dermabrasion, allows a much higher percentage of cream absorbed by the skin so this method is the most effective method for many individuals.