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    Stretch Marks or Striae

    Written by Skin Renewal Medical Advisory Board
    Stretch marks are a form of scarring on the skin with a silvery-white hue (when they are new they can appear pink, red or a purple colour). They are caused by tearing of the dermis and over time can diminish, but generally do not disappear completely.
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    Stretch marks are the result of the rapid stretching of the skin associated with rapid growth (common in puberty) or weight gain (e.g. pregnancy) that overcomes the dermis' elasticity. Although stretch marks are generally associated with pregnancy and obesity, they can also develop during rapid muscle growth. They first appear as reddish or purple lines, but tend to gradually fade to a lighter colour. The affected areas appear empty and soft to the touch.

    Stretch marks occur in the dermis, the resilient middle layer that helps the skin retain its shape. No stretch marks will form as long as there is strong support within the dermis. Stretch marks can appear anywhere on the body, but are most likely to appear in places where larger amounts of fat are stored. Most common places are the abdomen (especially near the belly-button), breasts, upper arms, underarms, thighs (both inner and outer), hips, and buttocks. They pose no health risk in and of themselves, and do not compromise the body's ability to function normally and repair itself.

    Stretch marks located in the most inconvenient locations can ruin your best efforts at looking good. They can dramatically affect how you feel about yourself and your appearance; especially at summertime when you head for the beach.

    How to treat Stretch Marks

    Stretch marks have always been a problem to treat as no single treatment modality has seemed to be a success. At Skin & Body Renewal we firmly believe in using combination therapies in order to target the problem form multiple angles and to ensure that our patient can see the best results.

    Each patient will received a tailored treatment solution which combines two or more of the following treatment modalities:

    frequently asked
    questions

    How to get rid of purple like pregnancy stretchmarks?

    Stretchmarks post pregnancy is very common and something we see often at our clinics. We have several treatments available to reduce these stretchmarks. The newer they are, the better. So purple ones should be fairly easy to treat. It is when they go white or silvery that it gets more challenging. Treatment would include Carboxytherapy, Laser Genesis and Skin Needling , all focused on stimulating new collagen in the area. A course of treatments, between 6-8, are needed to achieve the desired results, and can be done twice a month. I would recommend a consultation with one of our Skin Renewal Doctors, so that they can analyse the area and make their recommendations.

    I have a 14 year old daughter and she has really bad stretch marks on her arms, legs and shoulders, I have been using hydro oil, what can you recommend? Also she has bad acne on her face and it is leaving ugly marks.

    The best treatment for stretchmarks are combination therapy that stimulates the collagen in that area. Results are achieved when stretchmarks are still new and a pink/purple colour. Once they have turned white we can improve them but might never be able to remove them completely. A combination of laser treatments with skin needling will be the best option. With regards to the acne it is important to put her on a skin care range for acne and a zinc supplement for healing as well as a supplement that will reduce internal inflammation. It is important for her to not ‘pick’ at her skin. A diet where she cuts out inflammatory foods such as gluten, dairy and sugar will also assist in preventing acne.

    I'm 35 years old, Black African by decent, fairly physically active, no chronic diseases diagnosed yet, on a fairly high protein & healthy fat with a minimum of healthy carbs and I take alcohol on a social bases. I suffer from stretch marks generally all over my body and mainly on breasts, underarms, waistline, inside thighs and behind knees-some due to cheap hydroquinone infused lightening creams and some due to rapid weight gain/loss, ALL for the past whole decade and this have robbed me of my confidence. I have tried organic oils like coconut & olive oil and to no avail. I have just embarked on the IV virals for gluthathione and Vitamins and also have had a single PRP & micro needling session, with the hope of having more of these sessions as we go. Could I be expecting too much as I don't see any changes as yet, kindly advise on the best way to tackle this predicament. 2. My knuckles have also gone darker due to the hydroquinone bleaching creams and so as my whole body which is not even in it's complexion, I am also struggling to clear dark marks from childhood fouls that resulted from incidences like scratches and falling on rocks and all. 3. Every little pimple leaves some semi permanent dark marks and my cheek bones have turned darker/burnt too. 4. If you could also prescribe for me the best sunscreen on the market. 5. And most importantly, I want to safely lighten my whole body through the safest means available on the market.

    Lets start with the stretch marks. Unfortunately this is something many of our patients struggle with. Stretch marks essentially are tars in the dermis, the deeper layer of the skin. So nothing that you apply topically will make a difference. Using something like olive oils etc, will help prevent more from forming, but the damage in the deeper layers have been done. The PRP and micro needling treatments are definitely a very good treatment option, BUT you have to remember that collagen (the protein that now needs to fix the problem) take 3 to 6 months to be produced, also 1 session will hardly be enough to produce sufficient amounts of collagen. So, my advice would be to continue with treatments (minimum of 4-6 treatments) and wait at least 3-6 months to see results. Due to your dark skin type, beautiful as it is, is does produce lots of melanin (pigment), so every little trauma , be that a breakout, scrape of scab, your body will try and repair itself and the best way it knows how is to produce more melanin. Unfortunately nothing will make you body stop producing melanin, BUT we can put you on pigment inhibiting ingredients to reduce the speed and quality being produced. Skin block is of cause the nr 1 treatment for dark patches and pigmentation as the skin get traumatised by unprotected sun exposure (this in turn creating more melanin). I would recommend Heliocare 360 range. This sunblock does not only protect you from UVA and UVB but also visible light and infra-red light. this can be used daily and is available at all Skin Renewal branches as well as the Skin Renewal online skin shop. When is comes to lightening of the entire body... there is now real way this can be done. The colour of our skin is our genetics and we cannot change that. We can however do Vit C and Glutathoin Iv's to brighten the complexion and give you a lighten/softened skin tone. 

    Im suffering from stretch marks on upper thigh, i have tried bio-oil and it doesnt seem to help. I don't have kids so I'm not sure what the cause of it is. Could you recommend something to help.

    Stretch marks are a form of scarring on the skin with a silvery-white hue. They are caused by tearing of the dermis and over time can diminish but not disappear completely. Stretch marks are the result of the rapid stretching of the skin associated with rapid growth (common in puberty) or weight gain (e.g. pregnancy) that overcomes the dermis’ elasticity. Although stretch marks are generally associated with pregnancy and obesity, they can also develop during rapid muscle growth. They first appear as reddish or purple lines, but tend to gradually fade to a lighter colour. The affected areas appear empty and soft to the touch.

    Carboxytherapy, is a novel way of treating stretch marks. Heated medical Carbon Dioxide is introduced into the dermis via a small needle. The body interprets this as an oxygen deficit and responds by increasing blood flow to the area. An increase in certain growth factors encourages production of new blood vessels which provides a surge of oxygen and nutrients to the treated area and improves circulation with increased oxygen concentration and long term collagen stimulation leading to a strengthened dermis, a very necessary component of healthy, stretch-mark-resistant skin. After 4 to 6 treatments, the appearance of stretch marks is markedly improved. Carboxytherapy is more effective on newer stretch marks which are still red. These are treated once a week for two to four weeks. Older stretch marks need six to eight treatments at 3 to 4 weekly intervals. Carboxytherapy is an excellent treatment for stretchmarks post pregnancy as there are no side effects and the patient can continue breast feeding safely.

    Frequently asked questions

    How to get rid of purple like pregnancy stretchmarks?

    Stretchmarks post pregnancy is very common and something we see often at our clinics. We have several treatments available to reduce these stretchmarks. The newer they are, the better. So purple ones should be fairly easy to treat. It is when they go white or silvery that it gets more challenging. Treatment would include Carboxytherapy, Laser Genesis and Skin Needling , all focused on stimulating new collagen in the area. A course of treatments, between 6-8, are needed to achieve the desired results, and can be done twice a month. I would recommend a consultation with one of our Skin Renewal Doctors, so that they can analyse the area and make their recommendations.

    I have a 14 year old daughter and she has really bad stretch marks on her arms, legs and shoulders, I have been using hydro oil, what can you recommend? Also she has bad acne on her face and it is leaving ugly marks.

    The best treatment for stretchmarks are combination therapy that stimulates the collagen in that area. Results are achieved when stretchmarks are still new and a pink/purple colour. Once they have turned white we can improve them but might never be able to remove them completely. A combination of laser treatments with skin needling will be the best option. With regards to the acne it is important to put her on a skin care range for acne and a zinc supplement for healing as well as a supplement that will reduce internal inflammation. It is important for her to not ‘pick’ at her skin. A diet where she cuts out inflammatory foods such as gluten, dairy and sugar will also assist in preventing acne.

    I'm 35 years old, Black African by decent, fairly physically active, no chronic diseases diagnosed yet, on a fairly high protein & healthy fat with a minimum of healthy carbs and I take alcohol on a social bases. I suffer from stretch marks generally all over my body and mainly on breasts, underarms, waistline, inside thighs and behind knees-some due to cheap hydroquinone infused lightening creams and some due to rapid weight gain/loss, ALL for the past whole decade and this have robbed me of my confidence. I have tried organic oils like coconut & olive oil and to no avail. I have just embarked on the IV virals for gluthathione and Vitamins and also have had a single PRP & micro needling session, with the hope of having more of these sessions as we go. Could I be expecting too much as I don't see any changes as yet, kindly advise on the best way to tackle this predicament. 2. My knuckles have also gone darker due to the hydroquinone bleaching creams and so as my whole body which is not even in it's complexion, I am also struggling to clear dark marks from childhood fouls that resulted from incidences like scratches and falling on rocks and all. 3. Every little pimple leaves some semi permanent dark marks and my cheek bones have turned darker/burnt too. 4. If you could also prescribe for me the best sunscreen on the market. 5. And most importantly, I want to safely lighten my whole body through the safest means available on the market.

    Lets start with the stretch marks. Unfortunately this is something many of our patients struggle with. Stretch marks essentially are tars in the dermis, the deeper layer of the skin. So nothing that you apply topically will make a difference. Using something like olive oils etc, will help prevent more from forming, but the damage in the deeper layers have been done. The PRP and micro needling treatments are definitely a very good treatment option, BUT you have to remember that collagen (the protein that now needs to fix the problem) take 3 to 6 months to be produced, also 1 session will hardly be enough to produce sufficient amounts of collagen. So, my advice would be to continue with treatments (minimum of 4-6 treatments) and wait at least 3-6 months to see results. Due to your dark skin type, beautiful as it is, is does produce lots of melanin (pigment), so every little trauma , be that a breakout, scrape of scab, your body will try and repair itself and the best way it knows how is to produce more melanin. Unfortunately nothing will make you body stop producing melanin, BUT we can put you on pigment inhibiting ingredients to reduce the speed and quality being produced. Skin block is of cause the nr 1 treatment for dark patches and pigmentation as the skin get traumatised by unprotected sun exposure (this in turn creating more melanin). I would recommend Heliocare 360 range. This sunblock does not only protect you from UVA and UVB but also visible light and infra-red light. this can be used daily and is available at all Skin Renewal branches as well as the Skin Renewal online skin shop. When is comes to lightening of the entire body... there is now real way this can be done. The colour of our skin is our genetics and we cannot change that. We can however do Vit C and Glutathoin Iv's to brighten the complexion and give you a lighten/softened skin tone. 

    Im suffering from stretch marks on upper thigh, i have tried bio-oil and it doesnt seem to help. I don't have kids so I'm not sure what the cause of it is. Could you recommend something to help.

    Stretch marks are a form of scarring on the skin with a silvery-white hue. They are caused by tearing of the dermis and over time can diminish but not disappear completely. Stretch marks are the result of the rapid stretching of the skin associated with rapid growth (common in puberty) or weight gain (e.g. pregnancy) that overcomes the dermis’ elasticity. Although stretch marks are generally associated with pregnancy and obesity, they can also develop during rapid muscle growth. They first appear as reddish or purple lines, but tend to gradually fade to a lighter colour. The affected areas appear empty and soft to the touch.

    Carboxytherapy, is a novel way of treating stretch marks. Heated medical Carbon Dioxide is introduced into the dermis via a small needle. The body interprets this as an oxygen deficit and responds by increasing blood flow to the area. An increase in certain growth factors encourages production of new blood vessels which provides a surge of oxygen and nutrients to the treated area and improves circulation with increased oxygen concentration and long term collagen stimulation leading to a strengthened dermis, a very necessary component of healthy, stretch-mark-resistant skin. After 4 to 6 treatments, the appearance of stretch marks is markedly improved. Carboxytherapy is more effective on newer stretch marks which are still red. These are treated once a week for two to four weeks. Older stretch marks need six to eight treatments at 3 to 4 weekly intervals. Carboxytherapy is an excellent treatment for stretchmarks post pregnancy as there are no side effects and the patient can continue breast feeding safely.

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