Your skin and muscles are elastic and designed to stretch with movement and growth. Sometimes your growth or activity level outpaces your body's ability to stretch, leaving marks or lines on your skin. These stretch marks are not hazardous but they can occur unexpectedly, and some people consider them unsightly.
Formation
The Better Health Channel says stretch marks occur when tissue beneath the skin is stretched beyond its capacity and tears. Your body responds to this injury by creating scar tissue that fades over time and may be slightly indented.
Causes
The clinical name for stretch marks is "striae." They are caused by rapid stretching of the skin and tissue to accommodate muscle or fat growth, but can also be caused by diabetes, Cushing syndrome, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and prolonged use of skin creams containing cortisone. Pregnancy, quick weight gain or loss and fast muscle growth due to weightlifting, sports activity or puberty are usual causes of stretch marks.
Appearance
Muscle stretch marks have a colored appearance when they first occur, ranging from pink to purple or reddish-brown, depending on skin tone. Over time, stretch marks fade and some may become unnoticeable. Many will lighten to a silvery white, grey or pink that is smooth or shimmery. TeensHealth says stretch marks usually occur on the breasts or chest, thighs, stomach, hips, lower back and buttocks.
Prevention
Many circumstances do not allow people to prevent the development of stretch marks, as is the case with growth during puberty and stretch marks resulting from disease or pregnancy. But MayoClinic.com says you may be able to prevent muscle stretch marks by maintaining a healthy weight. You can also choose to make changes to your appearance in a controlled way. For example, people who lift weights can build muscles slowly to try to prevent stretch marks. Those who diet can adopt a measured approach to losing weight to lessen the impact of weight loss on the skin and muscles.
Treatment
MayoClinic.com says although no treatment can get rid of stretch marks, some can reduce their appearance. For new stretch marks, creams containing tretinoin can make the stretch mark appear like your normal skin by stimulating the development of collagen. Pulsed dye laser therapy and fractional photothermolysis stimulate both collagen and elastin growth in new stretch marks and some older stretch marks. Be aware that tretinoin irritates some people's skin and should never be used during pregnancy. Also, pulsed dye laser therapy might alter the tone of darker skin. For older stretch marks, microdermabrasion encourages new skin growth by gently removing the top layer of skin. An excimer laser stimulates the production of melanin, attempting to produce skin color within the stretch mark similar to that of the surrounding skin. In all cases, speak to your doctor before obtaining treatment for your stretch marks.
