While there has yet to be found a method for actually removing stretch marks, there are some proven ways to lessen their severity. Thousands of women have had great luck using cocoa butter-based creams to both hydrate and re-elasticize their skin, and making the skin more elastic is the best way to lessen the appearance of existing stretch marks. Why?

Because stretch marks are a consequence of damage to the collagen and elastin fibers under the surface skin, and any product which can repair them will lessen the severity of the stretch marks which resulted when they were damaged.

There are other skin cream ingredients, in addition to cocoa butter, which may have a beneficial effect in the lessening of stretchy marks:

1. You may find Vitamin E, centella asiatica extract, and collagen-elastin hydrolysates in many of the creams being marketed as treatments for stretch marks. Those creams which have the collagen and elastin ingredients should be useful in helping repair the damaged skin fibers which lead to stretch marks.

2. Tretinoin may be able to shrink the size of stretch marks, although no one has claimed that creams containing tretinoin will actually remove them. But smaller stretch marks are nothing to sneer at!

3. Retinol and other Vitamin A compounds, as well as AHAs (alpha hydroxyl acids) are known to stimulate the growth of new skin cells which will produce healthier skin.

There are also stretch mark creams with lanolin and wheat germ oil, which might be better used to prevent stretch marks ( during a pregnancy, for example) than to reduce them after they have shown up.

Although there are more pricey creams being marketed with claims that they can actually make stretch marks vanish, there are mixed reviews son them from both those who claim miraculous results and those who claim they are worthless.

Your best bet in looking for a remedy for your stretch marks is to experiment with a number of different creams to see which a re most effective for you. Go through the list of the ingredients we’ve mentioned before you let yourself be hooked by the promises of a miracle stretch mark removal cream.

We’ve provided more tips on stretch mark removal in other articles.

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