Do Stretch Mark Creams Work?
May 5, 2008 by Teri Cosenzi
Filed under Shopping
My quick answer to this question would be no, not unless it is prescribed by a doctor. But, I have admittedly never tried to get rid of mine – I consider them my lines if love, as I got them while pregnant.
Anyway, TotalBeauty.com ran a test with some of the most popular stretch mark creams, hoping to answer that question: Do Stretch Mark Creams Work?
The easy answer is that they do not work in the way that you would think.
It takes commitment to apply stretch mark treatments two to three times daily over several months. So if they don’t work, wouldn’t you like to know before buying one? “Products containing ingredients like alpha hydroxy acids combined with retinol (or vitamin A), cayenne pepper, tiger’s herb, vitamin C — anything that encourages collagen or elastin (elastic tissue) production and circulation can help,” says dermatologist Dr. Murad.
With that in mind, our testers tried six popular treatments for eight weeks, none of which made stretch marks vanish (even StriVectin-SD’s package admits “no topical formulation can completely eliminate stretch marks”). Still, some products left testers oohing and aahing at their results.
Hop on over to TotalBeauty.com to see what products and ingredients worked and which ones did not.
image from totalbeauty.com
I was disappointed in their reports. Many were from women with fresh stretch marks. How can I know whether the product had any effect at all since stretch marks fade on their own over time. Also, there were no photographs to see a difference for myself. I have only the participants word for it. How do I know they aren’t just fooling themselves? Guess I’m just a stickler for actual evidence.
Amy – stretch marks fade? I don’t think mine have, unless I am just so used to looking at them and don’t notice.
I thought the reports were good and at least lead me in some sort of direction if I were looking for a cream to tackle mine.