Most people, especially women, develop stretch marks sooner or later. My first experience of stretch marks was after I had my eldest child and I was horrified to see that my nice flat smooth tummy was no more and was now lined, ‘lumpy’ and ugly and did nothing to ease the post natal depression from which I was suffering.
I had two more children in fairly quick succession and although I returned to my previous weight and had relatively the same shape, the stretch marks were there in all their glory and had also appeared on my inner thighs.
I decided that there wasn’t much I could do about it and then discovered there were plenty of things I could try. Having three small children and a home to run meant there was very little time to spend on myself and even less money.
Exercise is important (and I got plenty of that) and a healthy diet is too, as it promotes healthy skin, and it doesn’t have to be expensive. I discovered that foods rich in zinc, such as fish; high protein foods, such as eggs; and foods rich in vitamins A and C such as carrots, citrus fruits and milk were very beneficial. I tried to cut down on my intake of caffeine, drank plenty of water – more water than coffee – and I can’t tell you how much better I felt in myself after a relatively short time.
There are also lots of creams on the market, which help diminish the appearance of stretch marks and some of these are very effective.
In severe cases, surgery may be recommended, but this, of course, would have to be arranged and carried out by a surgeon.
Stretch marks do not only appear during and after pregnancy and are not confined to women. They can be found on the upper arms, hips and lower back. They also appear in people who are overweight, have lost weight, or in very muscular people whose skin is stretched.
We have three layers of skin and stretch marks occur in the middle layer, which, when stretched, loses its elasticity and breaks down, leaving stretch marks.
Basically anything which causes stress in the body, or changes shape, can result in stretch marks which start off being a purple/pinkish or colour and then, in time, change to white/silver.
However, with a bit of t l c and a healthy diet, they will disappear and we won’t have to worry about the colour!
