Stretch Mark Prevention

The saying goes, “If your mother got stretch marks, then you will too.” However, chalking the reddish-purple striation scars to bad genes is not a suitable answer for many expectant mothers. After wrangling around for the truth, many women find that there are ways to maintain optimal skin health during pregnancy, despite the hormonal changes, limited collagen production and inevitable skin stretching. Stretch mark prevention efforts can, at the very least, reduce stretch marks that could otherwise be hideous embarrassments.

One way to work at stretch mark prevention is to exercise! Walking and yoga are good low-impact exercises to keep the skin’s elasticity, not to mention make labor, easier. While you should never deprive your unborn baby of what it needs, be aware that the healthy weight gain limits are between 25 and 35 pounds, so you’ll want to stay there to minimize the amount of stretching. You’ll also want that weight gain to be gradual. Secondly, to prevent stretch marks, you’ll want to prevent scratching! Just as your mother told you to “never scratch your chicken pox,” you should also never scratch a stretch mark, no matter how itchy it feels. When your skin is stretched to maximum capacity, scratching pregnancy stretch marks is probably the worst thing you can do. Instead, massage in oils or creams, which will diminish itchiness, promote blood circulation and stimulate new skin cell growth.

Another thing you’ll hear a lot about, with regard to stretch mark treatments, is to keep your entire body moisturized! Beginning in the first trimester, apply a nourishing moisturizing cream, a stretch mark oil or cocoa butter in the morning and at night. Check for active ingredients like vitamin E, vitamin A, cocoa butter, emu oil, wheat germ oil and lanolin. These products will help maintain your skin’s elasticity, will feed your skin and will, most importantly, keep itchiness at a minimum. Additionally, the circular massage motion while applying the cream for stretchmarks will increase circulation and hopefully collagen production as well. On message boards, many mothers cite that the less expensive creams work just as well as the top-of-the-line stuff when trying to reduce stretch marks.

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Stretch mark prevention may seem futile to some, but regardless, the good news is that they will become less noticeable over time. Eventually that agitated red-purple will subside to a gray-white or a few shades lighter than your skin tone. Careful weight monitoring and speaking with your doctor can work wonders in managing stretch marks.

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