A majority of women will get stretch marks when they are pregnant. This is just one of the many physical changes that come with pregnancy for women.
While no treatment can guarantee that you will not develop stretch marks during pregnancy, there are stretchmark oils out there that can help with preventing them during pregnancy and also getting rid of the stretch marks after birth. The question is, are these oils safe during pregnancy?
While physical appearance matters to most women, even when pregnant, the primary concern during this time is safety for both the mother and the child. When shopping for cosmetic products like stretch mark oil, one needs to know whether it is safe during this time.
Before we look at whether stretchmark oil is safe for pregnant women, let’s talk about why pregnant women get stretch marks and when to expect their appearance.
Why pregnant women get stretch marks
Genetics
Your genes play a role to some extent when it comes to pregnancy stretch marks. If the women in your family who have had kids before you got them, most probably you will end up getting them too.
Hormones
When you are pregnant, you need higher levels of collagen and elastin to take care of your skin when it’s going through major changes. However, the abundance of pregnancy hormones in your body like cortisol and estrogen interferes with the normal performance of the fibroblasts. These are the cells in your body that are responsible for the production of collagen and elastin. This leaves your skin vulnerable to stretch marks.
Weight gain
During pregnancy, women gain a lot of weight. Rapid weight gain is one of the major causes of stretch marks. An average woman of normal healthy weight will gain between 25 to 35 pounds. That is a lot of weight over a short period and your skin, which already has low levels of collagen, is not equipped to handle the change.
When do stretch marks appear during pregnancy?
In most cases stretch marks start appearing in the second trimester of pregnancy. That’s from the 13th week of pregnancy to the 21st week. If you want to lessen your chances of getting them, you need to act before then.
Now that we have looked at why and when stretch marks appear during pregnancy, let’s look at whether stretch mark oils are safe during pregnancy.
Is stretch mark oil safe during pregnancy?
Well, there are a lot of stretchmark products in the market currently. Some of them are safe to use during pregnancy while others are not.
Before you go shopping for pregnancy stretch mark oil, you need to know which ones are safe for you and which ones are not. To be on the safe side, you might want to stick to organic essential oils that have been proven to work in place of chemical creams.
Bitter almond oil, for instance, has been proven to work on pregnancy stretch marks. Massaging ii into the skin before the stretch marks start appearing may prevent getting them.
Other than bitter almond oil, other natural oils are safe for pregnant women too like coconut oil, olive oil, and rose lip oil, among others.
If you want to use a compound product for maximum effectiveness, you need to ensure that you get one with these essential oils as ingredients. Also, remember to check that the rest of the ingredients are safe to use during pregnancy. There are compound products tailored for pregnancy stretch marks and those are safe to use.
How to prevent stretch marks during pregnancy
In addition to using stretch mark oil during pregnancy, there are other things you can do to prevent stretch marks. Here are a few.
Eat a healthy diet
Your diet during pregnancy is vital not only for your skin but also for your general health and the health of your baby. To keep your skin healthy you need to eat lots of leafy vegetables and fruit rich in vitamins necessary for healthy skin.
Watch your weight
Gaining weight during pregnancy is inevitable. However, you should avoid spurt weight gains. Steady and gradual weight gain would lessen your chances of getting stretch marks.
Keep your skin hydrated
Moisturizing your skin is one other thing you should take seriously during pregnancy. Moisturized skin is more elastic and accommodating than dry skin. Keeping your skin moisturized may help prevent stretch marks plus it’s generally healthy to have moisturized skin.
In conclusion,
9 in 10 women will have stretch marks during pregnancy. It is a normal part of the process. You don’t need to freak out about it. Using stretch mark remedies, however, effectively reduces their appearance or severity. Whereas some compound stretchmark oils are not safe for pregnant women, there are a lot of safe stretch mark products out there for use during pregnancy.
