While stretch marks are nothing to be ashamed of, they are a fact of life. Whether it’s due to pregnancy, weight loss/gain or just general growth, stretch marks can appear even in the most unexpected of places. But what can we do to battle them – or stop them in their tracks before they even appear? There are a number of products that can help…
1. Sisleÿa L'Integral Anti-Age Concentrated Firming Body Cream
This powerful concoction of firming, hydrating, and smoothing ingredients address all the major concerns when it comes to stretch marks. The cream has all the benefits of firming care while improving skin elasticity. The bonus is the anti-aging benefits that it offers. It feels luxuriously creamy and the smell of it is another level. This is the perfect choice for indulging care for the body while loading up on essential nourishment on the skin, hence resulting in preventing new stretch marks from forming while working on existing ones if any.
2. Clarins Body Partner Stretch Mark Expert
Packed with banana extract and Centella Asiatica, this clever concoction helps to reduce the appearance of stretch marks. It works by improving the skin’s elasticity, and by doing so, will help to prevent further stretch marks from appearing. The hazelnut oil ingredient will also deeply nourish the skin, to leave it feeling soft and supple. This product feels luxurious and more like a serum than a targeted moisturizer. It’s best applied to hips, stomach, thighs or breasts and should be applied using a massaging circular motion.
3. Mama Mio Mama Marks Cream
This product is powered by peptides, which all help tone down stretch marks in colour and improve texture and appearance. It also contains algae extract, a great ingredient for repairing skin. This cream is also safe to use during pregnancy, so is a great option for moms-to-be.
4. Mutha Body Butter
This heavy-duty cream can be packed onto any unwanted stretch marks. It has a buttery texture (as it contains shea, cocoa and mango butter), and leaves skin feeling so much softer and looking better in tone. I use this on the areas where my stretch marks are at their worst. This formula is so rich, that it can be effective on old marks, too.
5. ESPA Smoother & Firm Body Butter
Probably the most luxurious body butter of the batch, this product works on smoothing out stretch marks. It contains argan oil and vitamin E, both famous ingredients for softening skin. Just like every other product from this brand, this cream creates a spa-like experience at home.
6. Indie Lee Whipped Body Butter
This air-whipped formula is so lightweight on the skin. Because it is such a fine texture, it absorbs into the skin so easily, and also contains marula oil which helps to increase elasticity. If your skin is newly stretched (for example, post-pregnancy), the bergamot and mandarin oil ingredients work great as instant soothers.
7. Kiehls Creme de Corps
Powered with Cocoa Butter, Beta-Carotene and Squalane, this body lotion is the perfect answer to the itchiness and irritation that dry skin causes. This rich and creamy formula moisturizes the skin without feeling greasy or heavy. The result is soft, smooth, and perfectly moisturized skin.
8. Bonus: Elemis Body Detox Skin Brush
Body brushing is a cheap and effective method of combatting stretch marks. If used religiously, a body brush can help the skin increase collagen production, which helps fade existing stretch marks. The brush should be moved in a circular, clockwise motion – and the pressure of the motion should vary between body parts. Where skin is thinner, apply less pressure, and vice versa in regions where the skin is more resilient. The brushing motion breaks up fat deposits under the skin, which will also reduce the appearance of cellulite.
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