Health for Conception and During Pregnancy

What to Eat While Pregnant

Avoiding Miscarriage

Cord Blood Banking

Packing for the Delivery Room

Tips for the New Mom

Bringing Home Baby

Getting Baby to Sleep

Budgeting for Baby

Traveling with Baby

Dressing Your Newborn

Breastfeeding Myths

Finding a Safe Baby Crib

Soothing a Newborn

Losing Weight After Pregnancy

Stretch Marks and Skin Changes in Pregnancy

There are countless physical changes to your skin, both pleasurable and painful, attributed to your pregnancy. The common skin change that most pregnant woman experience is stretch marks. Stretch marks are separations of the outer layers of skin caused by the overstretching of underlying layers.

The most commonly affected areas by stretch marks are hips, abdomen, breasts, thighs and buttocks. Stretch marks are itchy and reddish.

Beside pregnant women, stretch marks are found on children who are obese, adolescents who have a sudden growth spurt during puberty, and athletes and body builders who do constant exercises.

In pregnancy, heredity plays an important role in determining who will have and will not have stretch marks. If your mother has had them, chances are that you will get them too, unless you were born with stretchy skin. There is no sure remedy for stretch marks, but they mostly fade after delivery.

The only way to avoid stretch marks is to take steps to prevent them from forming. We recommend the following:

• Massage vitamin E or olive oil on the abdomen areas from the start of your pregnancy. Massage it liberally over the marks after a shower. In case you skip a shower, clean the area with a wet cloth and then apply the oil.
• More recipes for body rubs:
• To make stretch mark cream, mix 1/2 cup cocoa butter, 1 tsp wheat germ oil, 1 tsp apricot kernel oil, vitamin E oil and 2 tsp grated beeswax. Heat the mixture until cocoa butter and beeswax melt, stir well and store in air tight conditioner.
• One ounce of sweet almond or jojoba oil with 7-8 drops of lavender and chamomile oils is a good homemade recipe to apply to skin to decrease the chance of stretch marks.
• Cocoa butter alone also reduces stretch marks and helps to keep the skin supple.
• Daily massage with olive oil, flaxseed oil, cod liver oil or vitamin E oil after shower or before sleeping is an excellent home remedy for either preventing or treating stretch marks.
• Exercise regularly as this will help to tone your muscles and keep your skin firm.
• Maintain a healthy diet and drink plenty of water. Plenty of proteins and vitamin C & E foods should be included in your diet. Increase your intake of minerals such as zinc and silica to maintain healthy skin.
• Avoid excessive weight gain in a short time span.
• While massaging your body with body oil, add coconut and almond oil. One ounce of sweet almond or jojoba oil with 7-8 drops of lavender and chamomile oils is a good homemade recipe.
• To avoid stretch marks around breasts, wear a supportive maternity bra.