The main elements responsible for the support and firmness of human skin are elastin and collagen fibers. When there is an excessive stretching of the skin, that is, when the skin is stretched too much for some reason, these fibers break and form scars popularly known as stretch marks.

Normally, when there is this stretching of the skin, inflammation is triggered in the skin that gives rise to red/pink stretch marks. After this inflammatory process, scars will appear, which are usually lighter than the skin tone. This process can happen both in young skin and in more mature skin, given that even young skin may not be able to keep up with the excessive stretching of the skin, leading to the appearance of stretch marks.

The most common causes of stretch marks are sudden increase in weight or muscle mass, pregnancy, lack of hydration in the skin, genetic predisposition and prolonged use of corticosteroids.

Stretch marks can appear in various areas of the body, but they mostly appear:

Stretch marks on the chest
Stretch marks on the abdomen
Stretch marks on the buttocks
Stretch marks on the flanks
Stretch marks on the legs

How to treat stretch marks?

As soon as the first signs of stretch marks appear, the indication is to start some treatment immediately since, at this stage, the regeneration capacity of the cells is much greater, and very satisfactory results can be achieved.

In the case of stretch marks in an advanced stage, there are very effective treatments to reduce their appearance and make them almost imperceptible. However, there is no treatment that eliminates stretch marks completely. However, some plastic surgeries, such as a tummy tuck, are able to eliminate stretch marks by removing damaged skin.

Find out which treatments and surgeries are most suitable for stretch marks: