Stretch Marks- The Two Kinds and Effective Ways to Improve Them

Stretch marks are unsightly lines on the skin which appear due to excessive stretching of the skin, causing one of the dermal layers to tear off and form these lines. The primary causes of stretch marks are weight gain or loss, hormonal changes and pregnancy.

Stretch marks can either be red, bordering on purple or whitish/silvery in color.

These are almost of the same kind but the primary difference lies in their age which causes a difference in their color.

Red and White Stretch Marks

Newer marks tend to be reddish purple in color and are medically termed as Striae rubra. During the onset of these marks, the skin fibers break, causing tiny tears which expose the underlying blood vessels.

When the blood vessels have become constricted and recede, the fat tissues below become visible which give the lighter stretch marks their characteristic silver color. The whitish stretch marks are known as Striae alba.

The Cure for Stretch Marks

Red or white stretch marks cannot be completely eliminated, but their appearance can be improved over time.

Here, we have listed the most effective ways to improve stretch marks of the two kinds:

For Striae rubra- pulse-dye laser treatments and retinoids are quite popular. Pulse-dye lasers deliver light into target areas and cause the vessels to shrink, thus eliminating the discoloration. It is quite safe, with minor swelling and bruising for a couple of days which can be controlled with an ice pack.

Vitamin A derivatives like Tretinoin can help with improving reddish purple stretch marks by retaining the skin’s elasticity.

For Striae alba-Fractional Non Ablative Laser and surgery are two effective ways to lighten the more difficult type of stretch marks.

In the former, the laser triggers a wound healing response by creating micro-wounds which are healed by this response along with the tissues around it. Introducing micro-wounds to heal the scars left by excessive stretching of skin has yielded good results to improve older stretch marks.

The second alternative, surgery, also known as abdominoplasty or tummy tuck removes additional fatty tissue from the abdominal area along with the portion of skin with the stretch marks.