How Can You Remove Stretch Marks?

When your skin rapidly stretches or shrinks too quickly, this can lead to visible lines on the skin’s surface – these are stretch marks.

They form when the deeper layers of the skin cannot keep up with rapid stretching, which leads to tiny tears in collagen and elastin fibres.

These visible lines often start red, purple, or pink in colour. As the skin heals, stretch marks fade over time and become less visible.

However, more stubborn or older stretch marks tend to look white or silver (depending on your skin colour). This is when you might consider more targeted stretch mark treatment.

The most reasons we develop stretch marks include:

•       Rapid weight gain or weight loss
•       Skin stretches during pregnancy
•       Puberty growth spurts
•       Muscle gain
•       Hormonal changes
•       Genetics

Can you prevent stretch marks?

The truth is no matter how hard you try, you cannot always prevent stretch marks from appearing.

However, by supporting your skin health and skin elasticity, you may be able to reduce the risk of developing them.

You need to focus on doing helpful daily habits to keep your skin hydrated and flexible. These can include:

•       Maintaining a healthy weight through a balanced diet and regular exercise
•       Conditioning the skin and keeping it hydrated with moisturisers that contain hyaluronic acid, cocoa butter, or coconut oil.
•       Eating nutrient rich foods that include vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin E
•       Supporting natural collagen production by limiting sugar intake, drinking bone broth and eating well. You should also avoid too much sun exposure

These steps will help support healthy skin, but if stretch marks still appear, the best solution is looking at methods for treating stretch marks.

The good news is that there are several ways to get rid of stretch marks, or at least improve their appearance.

Reducing stretch marks or complete removal may use a mix of more natural remedies through to medical procedures.

Exercises and natural remedies that may improve noticeable stretch marks

It is true that exercise alone will not remove existing stretch marks. However, regular exercise can help improve skin tone, circulation and the appearance of loose skin.

You can also pair exercise with natural remedies applied to the skin’s surface to reduce stretch marks. These include:

•       Topical treatments with retinoids
•       Stretch mark creams or scar creams to help improve their appearance

With the natural approach to treating stretch marks, you need to go in with realistic expectations.

They may help to reduce new stretch marks, but the results are usually more subtle. They are unlikely to make a dent on older stretch marks.

Effective stretch mark treatments

For stubborn and old stretch marks, you will need to explore stretch mark treatment options that target the deeper layers of the skin and help stimulate collagen growth.

Stretch mark surgery – tummy tuck

If you are looking for more guaranteed stretch mark removal, tummy tuck surgery is the best option for removing any affected skin.

With a tummy tuck procedure, Mr Hyder Ridha can:

•       Remove stretch marks for excess skin on the lower abdomen
•       Tighten weak stomach muscles
•       Improve overall skin texture and body contour

This is an ideal option if your stretch marks sit below the belly button, as this surgery focusses on that area.

With a healthy lifestyle and balanced diet, the results of tummy tuck surgery can be long-lasting.

It is basically a dual surgery – removing stretch marks in the treated area and firming and contouring the stomach.

Mini tummy tuck for lower abdomen stretch marks

A mini tummy tuck is a much smaller procedure than a full tummy tuck. This is because it only targets the lower abdomen.

It is best for patients who:

•       Have stretch marks that are limited to the lower stomach (below the belly button)
•       Only have a small amount of loose skin
•       Do not need much muscle tightening

As the name suggests, it requires a smaller incision and a shorter recovery time than a standard tummy tuck.

Non-surgical stretch mark treatments

Non-surgical treatments are another option for helping to the appearance of stretch marks, specifically early stretch marks.

If you have more mature stretch marks, we can also combine non-surgical stretch mark removal with surgery. This will provide more compressive results.

Morpheus8

If you are looking for one of the most advanced non-surgical stretch mark treatments, Morpheus8 is it.

It uses fine needles (microneedling) to penetrate the skin and start the body’s natural healing process, which includes new collagen production.

The second part is that the needles also deliver radiofrequency energy to the deeper layers of the skin to further stimulate collagen production and elastin production.

The benefits of Morpheus8 include:

•       Helps to remodel the skin’s structure
•       Improves skin texture, skin tone, and skin firmness
•       Promotes healing of damaged skin
•       Offers precise treatment so it does not impact healthy surrounding skin

This combination treatment targets both the surface of the skin and deeper layers. This means you will see visible results after multiple sessions (3-4 sessions).

Laser treatments

Laser therapy is another great option for reducing the appearance of stretch marks.

It will not erase them completely, but it can improve skin tone, which makes them much less noticeable.

A course of laser treatment can:

•       Stimulate collagen and elastin production
•       Improve pigmentation in new stretch marks (redness or dark colour)
•       Refine and smooth the skin’s surface

There are different types of laser treatments available. If you are looking into this treatment option, you should focus on finding lasers to suit your skin type, skin colour, and types of stretch mark.

Whether you have new or old stretch marks, we understand how much they can impact the way you see yourself and your confidence.

Mr Hyder Ridha, a fully-trained plastic surgeon. He specialises in facial and body surgery, which includes a tummy tuck to help remove stretch marks on the abdomen.

He is also on the specialist register for plastic surgery, the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic surgeons (BAAPS). Mr Ridha is also a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons.

We provide every patient with a personalised consultation, so that Mr Ridha can get to know more about you, your skin concerns, and what your aesthetic goals are.

He will build a tailored stretch mark removal treatment plan to help you see the best results, and feel great in your skin again.

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