Stretch Marks

There very rarely is a person around who doesn't have at least one stretch mark on their body.  They are a normal part of puberty for most guys and girls.  Stretch marks happen when a person grows or gains weight quickly.  When this happens, they may get fine lines on their body, these are stretch marks.  They occur when your tissue under the skin is pulled by quick growth or stretching.   Skin is typically very elastic; however when it is overstretched, the normal production of collagen, which is the protein that makes up connective tissues in a person's skin, is disrupted.  Scar like stretch marks are formed as a result.

If you are a teenager and you are noticing stretch marks on your body, then you are not alone.  Most women and girls get stretch marks.  They usually show up on the thighs, hip, butt and breasts.  A lot of the time, women get them during pregnancy, when their belly grows to accommodate the growing baby.  Stretch marks are more common in girls, but boys can get them as well.

People who are overweight usually have stretch marks.  People who are bodybuilders are very prone to developing stretch marks because of the rapid changes that their body goes through.  Stretch marks have also been known to occur if a person is using a steroid-containing cream or ointments, like hydrocortisone, for about a month or more.  And if they take high doses of oral corticosteroids for months or longer they may be prone to stretch marks.

When you first get stretch marks, they may show up as purplish or reddish lines.  They may appear indented and have a different texture from the surrounding skin.  Most of the time the stretch marks often turn lighter and sometimes disappear over a period of time.  Sometimes this isn't very comforting if you are planning to spend some time in a bathing suit in the summertime.

There are some things that people do to make stretch marks less noticeable, like using sunless tanning treatments, either over-the-counter lotions and sprays or in-salon types of treatments.  These can help cover the stretch marks.  This does not work for regular tanning beds, because stretch marks do not tan very well.  Most people know that tanning beds are more likely to do more harm than good when it comes to the health of your skin.  There are some people who actually use make up; they buy body makeup that matches the tone of their skin, and this can make the stretch marks close to invisible.  However this may not be the best solution if you are going to spend some time in the water.

There is some good news about bathing suits and stretch marks.  Currently the fashion does favor lots of styles of bathing suits that just happen to cover stretch mark prone areas.  There are the "boy" style shorts suits; they work great because they hide the stretch marks on the hips, butt and upper thighs.  There are some girls who prefer the high neck bathing suits that do well to cover the stretch marks on the chest and breast area.  There are usually a lot of styles to pick and choose from.