During your pregnancy, stretch marks are inevitable. Pregnancy brings about a lot of changes in a woman’s body. Your skin will stretch as you put in a lot of weight and accommodate a baby in your womb. Fortunately there are ways to avoid permanent stretch marks, even after pregnancy.
Skin is very elastic but if it’s subjected to rapid stretching, stretch marks will appear. Your rapid weight gain to support the growth of your child during pregnancy causes stretch marks. Stretch marks develop during pregnancy in the areas that will get larger due to weight gain. Apart from your abdomen they can also appear on your arms, breasts, buttocks and thighs. But their prevalence will also depend on your generic history and your weight gain. If your mother had stretch marks in her pregnancy it is most likely that you will have them. There are many products out there that claim to reduce stretch marks in pregnancy but none of them are scientifically proven to be effective. Many companies insist that their creams and oils may work wonders but there is no guarantee. Since there is no sure way of getting rid of them prevention is the most that you can do.
• Eat a balanced diet. The recommended weight gain in pregnancy is 25 to 30 pounds. Keeping your skin healthy and strong will prepare it for your weight gain. Most importantly, a steady weight gain will help your skin stretch and adjust at a steady rate.
• Massage the areas with stretch marks with a washcloth or body brush. You can also do this in areas where you want to prevent stretch marks. This will promote circulation that will be helpful even after pregnancy when stretch marks can also appear due to rapid weight loss.
• Drink lots of water and take vitamins. This will ensure a healthy baby and pregnancy.
• Keep your skin moisturized through your pregnancy. This is the time when you can use creams and oils made to prevent stretch marks that will serve as food for your skin. These products have formulas that will keep your skin elastic by enhancing the production of collagen. They also help your dermis to keep your skin intact even with all the stretching throughout your pregnancy.
These tips help reduce stretch marks during and after your pregnancy. There is no exact way of getting rid of stretch marks but your newborn will do plenty to make you forget that you have them in the first place.
