Finding out you’re pregnant might be one of the most joyous things in this world. But like every other thing, this also comes with a tradeoff. While your body is busy making a beautiful baby, it also makes several changes to itself, and those changes are not always pleasant – One of them being “Stretch Marks”…
Some people are lucky and never get permanent postpartum marks, but let’s face it – most of us aren’t Gigi Hadid. While we may not be able to avoid stretch marks completely, we still might have a chance to reduce them. Here are some tips and tricks:
Healthy Diet
This one is a no-brainer, it’s an obvious fact that a healthy diet leads to a healthier looking skin. The key takeaway here is that stretch marks may occur simply because you were missing certain essential nutrients. So make sure you have a balanced diet with foods including vitamin C, E, D and zinc. Fruits and vegetables are rich in these and other vitamins and minerals. Alongside that, keeping your hydration level on the upper side is also crucial as water helps carry nutrients to you and your growing fetus. Also, if you are well hydrated, that means your skin is well hydrated and even softer as well. Simply put, softer skin is less likely to develop stretch marks than dry, rough skin.
Gaining Recommended Weight
This particular point is very very important. I’m saying this because I learned the hard way and developed stretch marks on thighs, belly and other parts during my first pregnancy; as I gained weight rapidly and much more than recommended; and stretch marks occur when the skin is pulled apart quickly. So gaining a healthy amount of pregnancy weight (25 to 35 pounds for normal-weight women) may help keep stretch marks to a minimum, since this prevents your skin from overstretching.
Moisturizing Your Skin
The truth is, there is no well known product that reduces stretch marks when applied. But moisturizing your skin, especially your belly, prevents you from itching that stretched area and thus preventing the unnecessary worsening of marks that are already bound to appear. You should select a moisturizer with key ingredients ranging from vitamin E to hyaluronic acid as well as shea butter and cocoa butter.
Some of us are lucky when it comes to pregnancy skin, but most of us are not and are bound to get those zebra like patterns. But no matter what, we should make sure we are following a healthy guideline to pregnancy and helping our body do it’s best.
Last but not least – don’t fret over how your skin looks, as taking additional stress may make things worse. The stretch marks disappear or lighten over time in most cases. It may take some time, but who cares… Do whatever you can in your capacity and enjoy the miracle that’s happening within your body.