Stretch marks and striae – prevention and control with the help of cosmetics

Reddish, purple, and then white stripes on the skin are striae or stretch marks. First of all, we would like to remind you that it is up to you to decide whether to fight them or accept yourself with stretch marks.

If rosacea, for example, can indicate problems with blood vessels in general, then stretch marks are exclusively a cosmetic defect and do not cause any harm or painful sensations. And speculation on this topic is mainly associated with the desire of cosmetic manufacturers to sell creams for stretch marks. By the way, we will reveal a secret to you, most often in the mass market such creams are simply moisturizing and are unlikely to have even a minimal effect on your stretch marks.

Stretch marks appear in 70-90% of people, and if cellulite is an exclusively female problem, then stretch marks are equally common in both women and men. Most often, striae appear on the stomach, thighs, buttocks and chest. Only very fresh and small stretch marks can be completely removed, but old ones cannot be removed, but they can only be made less noticeable.

What causes stretch marks on the skin

The skin consists of three layers - the epidermis, dermis and subcutaneous fat. Stretch marks are formed in the dermis. It is this layer that contains elastin and collagen fibers. In fact, a stretch mark is scar tissue, it occurs when the skin is suddenly stretched, at which time the collagen and elastin fibers in the dermis are torn. Then these places heal and a stretch scar is formed. The tissue that forms in the stretch mark, like any tissue on the scar, is connective. It does not have blood vessels, sweat glands and hair follicles, there is no melatonin pigment, which is why stretch marks do not tan in the summer.

There are several stages of stretch marks, which differ in color and age:

• Red - they still have blood vessels, these are fresh scars. Fresh stretch marks respond best to any cosmetic intervention, they can even be completely eliminated or made almost invisible
• Purple - middle stage, the vessels are already dying, such stretch marks can only be reduced
• White - old stretch marks, in these places there are no longer any blood vessels, it is impossible to get rid of them, such stretch marks can be made a little less noticeable.

Most often, stretch marks are formed with a sharp change in weight. Usually this is adolescence, when the body grows faster than the skin can adapt. And also a sharp change in weight at any age, especially during pregnancy.

All three situations can be accompanied by hormonal imbalance. If estrogen and cortisol decrease in the body (this also happens during pregnancy), then the synthesis of proteins is disrupted, which include collagen and elastin. These proteins help the skin maintain elasticity, stretch without damage and return to its original shape without changes.

How to help skin prevent stretch marks

If you know the periods when stretch marks can form - rapid growth in adolescence, pregnancy or sudden weight change, then you can try to prevent the formation of striae. As we already know, stretch marks form on dehydrated skin, with impaired blood circulation, which has lost elasticity and firmness. This means that the skin needs to be moisturized, elastic and firm.

In this case, a whole range of procedures will help:

massages and self-massages, any kind: pinching, dry brushing, manual, hardware. The point of massage is to train the skin, improve blood circulation, and therefore skin nutrition. It is ideal to do a massage with oils that promote the production of collagen and elastin and moisturize the skin. The same oils can be used for existing stretch marks: almond, wheat germ, jojoba, peach, avocado, argan, grape seed, pomegranate and rosehip oils. Add rosewood essential oil to the mixture and get a delicate aroma and an additional component for preventing stretch marks.

• Wraps and scrubs - saturate the skin with essential substances, improve blood circulation, moisturize it, remove dead particles, allowing active substances to penetrate deeper.
• Sports, nutrition, drinking regime - this is not the topic of our article, but these are also very important points in the comprehensive work on skin elasticity.
• Creams and serums aimed at moisturizing, improving blood circulation and the production of collagen and elastin.

How to reduce existing stretch marks with cosmetics

Stretch marks should be removed immediately after they appear, only in this case the effect will be maximum. You can and should work with old white stretch marks, too, but you will have to put in more effort and the result will only be a slight visual reduction in the problem. You understand that it is extremely difficult to get rid of scars.

Care for areas with stretch marks should include exfoliation, moisturizing and saturation with active ingredients for the production of collagen and elastin. It is imperative to add healing (regenerating) active ingredients to anti-stretch mark cosmetics, especially if the stretch marks are fresh.

The range of moisturizing actives that can be added to your stretch mark cream recipe is very large. In the Beurre store, you can buy a number of effective moisturizing components:

• Natural moisturizing factor NUF (Prodew 600)
• Hyaluronic acid
• Betaine
• Aqua shuttle
• Aquaxyl
• Fuсogel and others.

Among the actives that help restore blood circulation, we can highlight:

• caffeine
• rutin
• complex of plant extracts to enhance microcirculation Cosme-Phytamis
• extract of Centella Asiatica
• CO2 pomegranate, arnica and rose hips.

Among the healing actives, snail extract will be a good help for skin with stretch marks. Moreover, in addition to the healing effect, snail mucin has the ability to stimulate the activity of fibroblasts (cells responsible for the formation of the cellular matrix, collagen and elastin). Phytosterols also have a good effect on skin with stretch marks, they will help to reduce existing striae. Everything we have listed above are auxiliary actives that are recommended to be included in the recipe for cosmetics against stretch marks.

The main components should be those that promote the production of collagen and elastin - these are primarily a number of peptides. That is, you do not need to buy a cream with collagen, it will not help you in any way, because collagen itself is a large molecule that has only an external moisturizing effect. It is important for you to include in the composition those components that will force your skin to independently produce collagen and elastin, then you will be able to see the result.

Effective ingredients for cosmetics against stretch marks

According to the Beurre store, the most effective components for combating stretch marks are peptides. What are peptides and why are they so effective, read the article “Peptides in cosmetics: properties and application”. But we would like to draw your attention to the following ingredients:

• Rigin - is able to stimulate the synthesis of collagen I and hyaluronic acid by skin fibroblasts, and also increases the elasticity of the dermis.
• Syn-coll – belongs to the group of matrix peptides, promotes the production of the skin’s own collagen, the TGF-beta factor. Syn-coll is able to penetrate into the deep layers of the dermis, which is important in the fight against stretch marks. But another positive factor of Syn-coll is its function to protect collagen from destruction by suppressing matrix metalloproteinases and cytokines, which are the main causes of collagen destruction.
• Matrixyl Synthe is a peptide that stimulates the production of collagen I, IV, III and hyaluronic acid. By the way, it is the third type of collagen that includes reticular fibers and is the main component of the extracellular matrix. As a rule, it is found in combination with the first type of collagen and is important for the elasticity and firmness of the skin.
• Sepilift DPHP is another interesting component, but which differs from the above products in its strengthening effect on the skin. In addition to the accelerated production of collagen in the body, the component protects elastin fibers from various damages. And an additional effect of introducing Sepilift into cosmetics is long-term hydration of the dermis. This component can be a great helper in an anti-stretch mark cream to prevent their appearance during pregnancy or sudden weight change.
• Syn-hycan is a powerful signaling tripeptide stimulator that triggers the skin to produce its own hyaluronic acid and promotes proper collagen synthesis, resulting in a strong moisturizing effect on the skin, preventing stretch marks and improving the appearance of existing stretch marks. The mechanism of action of Syn-Hycan is as follows: the peptide increases the expression of decorin and lumican - substances responsible for the synthesis of correct collagen fibers. Decorins control the error-free assembly of collagen fibers from protofibrils. And lumican is needed for the synthesis of collagen and proper fibrillogenesis (the formation of collagen fibers by assembling thinner protein fibers into spirals). Thus, tripetide Syn-hycan directly affects collagen synthesis, which is very important for maintaining healthy, elastic and moisturized skin.
• Regestril is a component from a French company that is aimed exclusively at working with stretch marks. It contains a complex of matrix peptides that stimulate collagen production and restore damaged extracellular matrix. Peptides are supplemented with moon bean extract and rutin to reduce inflammatory reactions of the skin.

To choose and buy ingredients that are suitable against stretch marks, you need to find the following words in their description: collagen and elastin production, improved blood flow, healing and moisturizing. That is, it is important to select a complex of components in the recipe that will perform all these tasks. After all, one universal asset does not exist.

And remember, stretch marks do not affect your beauty in any way and you can not fight them, but if you really want, we have given you the necessary "instructions". A large number of recipes on how to prepare handmade cosmetics at home can be found on our youtube channel Cosmetic Kitchen Beurre.

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