Stretch Marks Before

Stretch marks are scars that are often found on sensitive areas of the body like breasts, thighs, abdomen and the buttocks. These marks which are called striae, mostly appear as a bright red, purple or pink mark on the body that often looks like a scratch of some kind. People try all kinds of treatments in order prevent stretch marks, reduce the appearance or even remove stretch marks from their body completely. Many people are under the belief that weight loss will cause the skin to reform and the scars to disappear along with the fat. Unfortunately, weight loss does not have this effect and not only will weight loss not rid your body of its stretch marks but rapid weight loss might actually cause new stretch marks to form on the body.

Stretch marks occur when the skin is stretched quickly such as in situations during pregnancy  or with sudden rapid weight gain. There are also medical conditions that may lead to the production of more stretch marks. These conditions include Cushing syndrome as well as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. There are also several medications that can cause stretch marks as one of their side effects. The best known of these medications are corticosteriods in the form of pills, creams or lotions.

Despite what we believe, weight loss may actually play a part in making stretch marks more visible or creating new stretch marks. This is especially true if the weight loss occurs very quickly. This is not because of the stretching of the skin but because when you loose weight quickly, your body processes may be interrupted. These body processes include the production of hormones like collagen which helps to keep you skin flexible and elastic. A lack of collagen can result in more stretch marks forming and also can contribute to making preexisting stretch marks even more visible. As your skin recovers from the weight loss, the stretch marks may even end up being closer together which can give you the appearance of having even more stretch marks than you do.

The best way to prevent stretch marks is to maintain a healthy weight and to avoid changing your body shape very suddenly if possible. Keeping both your body and you skin healthy can both limit how many stretch marks you gain as well make it easier to treat stretch marks.

There are many different treatments for stretch marks and they can vary from lotions from the pharmacy to surgical removal options. Many of these treatments may change the appearance and reduce the visibility of stretch marks but only slightly. These options can include creams and lotions as well as cosmetic options like make up or self tanning sprays.

There are few totally successful treatment options for stretch marks and even the two laser treatment options can not eliminate stretch marks from the body completely. It may take a long time, even years, for stretch marks to fade or change color so that they blend in more with your natural skin tone. Eventually, they turn silver or even a white color and some might actually disappear if they were not very deep you have healthy skin. Although weight loss may alter the appearance of stretch marks, this weight loss needs to be very slow and healthy so that it does not upset the natural balance and hormones in your skin.