Stretch Mark Treatment Options

As the skin expands rapidly and hormones change, the underlying elastin and collagen breaks down. The tissue fibers rupture and scars form on the dermis (the middle layer of skin), which then shows through the thinner epidermis (top layer). Stretch mark treatment is difficult, as you can imagine, because it’s an attempt to cure a permanent scar. For most people, it’s not necessary to pay a small fortune to try to get rid of stretch marks when there are natural and less expensive ways to do it.

As you may have heard, stretch mark creams are a popular form of treatment. You may be surprised, though, when you look through the store and see the wide range of prices, fluctuating from $5 to $100. Tretinoin cream (Retin-A, Renova) is a popular cream used to reduce the appearance of new stretch marks, although it cannot be used during pregnancy and does not work on older stretchmarks. StriVectin has also been noted to reduce stretch marks, while also combating wrinkles and other signs of aging. Cocoa butter, vitamin A, vitamin C and glycolic acid are all common ingredients that promise to “restore the skin’s elasticity” and help “promote collagen production.” Patience will be needed with this method as will diligent applications twice a day for a long period of time.

There are many different active ingredients in stretch mark treatment creams, which may have you reeling. Wheat germ oil has not been scientifically proven, although one study found it helped stretch marks in their early phase. Relastin, an eye and face cream product containing peptides, is a waste of time and money, many professionals believe, as there is no convincing data to prove its efficacy. Vitamin-A retinoids are fairly effective at boosting collagen and elastin production, although they cannot be used if you are pregnant or nursing. Glycolic acid, administered by a dermatologist for around $100/treatment, has been widely touted to help increase collagen production and rejuvenate your looks over four or five sessions. Vitamin C is popular in over-the-counter brands for early stage stretch marks, which can see added success if combined with glycolic acid. While it hasn’t been fully studied, it is believed that glycolic acid and retinoids used together may be extremely effective in skin care stretch mark treatments, after just 12 weeks.

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Lastly, laser treatments are a popular stretch mark treatment, for old and new marks. Linda K. Franks, MD, director of Gramercy Park Dermatology Associates, highly recommends laser treatments. “Lasers promote synthesis of healthy, new collagen, which has been damaged when stretch marks appear,” she explains. For newer red-purple marks, she uses a vascular (V-Beam) laser to target inflamed blood vessels and take away the redness. For older stretch marks, she uses the fractionated laser that hits fractions of the skin in a grid-like pattern, which smudges the lines and makes the patterns less distinctive. An average laser treatment costs $450 per session and usually requires three to six sessions.

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