Now that bikini season is in full swing, it’s easy to feel self-conscious about an all-too common area of concern: stretch marks. It’s a popular myth that only pregnant women get them, but in truth, an estimated 80 percent of Americans have stretch marks including myself and even supermodel Chrissy Teigen!
Women are often left with fine lines on their body—aka stretch marks, when they grow during puberty or experience sudden weight gain or loss. Family history of stretch marks is also a factor. When the skin is pulled by rapid growth and stretching, this interrupts the production of collagen—the major protein that forms the connective tissue in skin’s dermis and causes the elastin in the skin to overstretch and break down. The marks are like an internal scar that develop from the inside out as a result. Stretch marks are also unique to each person: some may look reddish or purple, while others may be indented. And, despite being a part of life, stretch marks tend to fade with time (can take years) to a white, silvery color. Common areas where stretch marks develop include the lower stomach (near your belly button), boobs, thighs, hips, booty and back.
Source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/283651.php
I first developed extremely red stretch marks all along my inner thighs when I was 12 years old. At the time, I was competitively dancing and training after school about 8 hours a week. I tore my meniscus and had to have surgery, which kept me from being active and led to gaining weight over a period of a couple of months while I recovered. When my knee did recover and I got back into dance, the stretch marks developed as I lost the weight I had gained (coincidently, it was also during my pre-teen puberty years). Overtime, they faded from red to pink to white, but that’s not to say that I didn’t hate them, feel self-conscious about them or wished that they would go away. I didn’t like the way they looked and I felt I was too young to have them throughout my teenage years. After college, I finally learned to accept them as my “battle scars” from my knee surgery. And, it definitely helped knowing I wasn’t alone in the stretch mark department and that we’re all in it together as women.
So what about getting rid of stretch marks or improving their appearance?
Unfortunately, current research suggests there is weak, limited and scarce evidence that creams, lotions and potions marketed towards reducing stretch marks work, erase or prevent marks altogether. Tretinoin (the active ingredient in Retin-A) is the only ingredient that shows some type of promise when it comes to improving stretch marks early on when they have recently developed. However, pregnant women cannot use tretinoin during pregnancy, which is when about 90% of women develop stretch marks later into their pregnancy.
Of course, it doesn’t hurt to apply moisturizing lotions to your skin, but most claims that they help with marks isn’t backed by substantial research or evidence.
Laser treatments may be an option in reducing the appearance of scars. Pulse dye and fractional lasers have shown to be effective. I’d recommend you talk with a board certified dermatologist to determine if the treatment is right for you depending on what stage your stretch marks are in. From my experience, I did try a patch test about 5 years ago (my stretch marks were already white at the time) and did not see any improvement, so I didn’t go through with the full treatment. The downside of laser therapy is that you may have to go through multiple sessions and it can get quite costly.
If you don’t want to get zapped by a laser, maintaining a healthy Strong Girl lifestyle by eating nutritious foods, hydrating with water and regularly exercising will improve your confidence and keep you vibrant and glowing from within!
It may take time for you to accept your stretch marks or “imperfections”, like it did for me, but remember that nobody is perfect and that those marks don’t define you!
I’d love to hear your comments about your experience with stretch marks ! Please comment below! xo
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