Proven Ways to Get Rid of Stretch Marks and Scars

A few years ago, I set out to find a natural yet effective way to get rid of my stretch marks and old scars. After researching and trying all sorts of "natural" products, I was disappointed by how many there are on the market that are full of ingredients that have never been shown to work and worse yet, may even be damaging to skin! And I'm not a fan of wasting my money or damaging my skin! So I decided to formulate my own all-natural scar cream based on ingredients that have been proven to work in actual clinical studies. Here are a few ingredients that have been shown to effectively treat scars, stretch marks and discoloration:• Dimethicone: Silicone improves the appearance of both old and new scars. Silicone gel (Dimethicone) is the only silicone that is certified as safe; however, many products use potentially harmful silicones like D4 or D5 (e.g. Cyclomethicone, Cyclotetrasiloxane, Cyclohexasiloxane, and Cyclopentasiloxane). These D4/D5 silicones are also volatile, meaning that they evaporate after application on the skin. Dimethicone is non-volatile, extremely effective and easy to use.• Vitamin C (Magnesium Ascorbyl Palmitate): MAP is a highly stabilized form of Vitamin C. This miracle vitamin helps build one of the skin's main components- collagen. Scars heal through new collagen formation, which leads to faster and more cosmetic scar healing. Vitamin C also anti-inflammatory and is used to lighten dark scars and brown spots.• Linoleic Acid and Oleic Acid: Found in Olive Oil, Evening Primrose Oil Avocado Oil and Borage Oil these acids regenerate skin tissues, improve wound healing, improve scar elasticity, and lighten dark pigment (hyper-pigmentation) as well as provide nutrient rich moisture to the skin.• Licorice Extract has strong anti-inflammatory compounds, accelerates skin cell renewal, lightens dark scars and brown spots including melasma, and has anti-acne effects.
• Vitamin B5 quickly penetrates skin, is a potent moisturizer & softener of the skin, makes the skin more elastic, and soothes irritated skin. Studies have shown D-panthenol promotes stimulation of epithelization (heals minor wounds), relieves itching and has an anti-inflammatory effect. With continued us, it improves the appearance of the skin, including dryness, roughness, scaling, pruritus and erythema.• Vitamin A has potent skin regenerating properties, and has powerful anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, and anti-acne properties. Retinol helps reduce wrinkles and fine lines, increases collagen production vital for scar healing, smoothes skin texture, increases skin thickness, diminishes acne and blotchiness and decreases large pores.• Aloe Vera contains vital essential amino acids, vitamins and minerals that accelerate wound healing, decrease inflammation, stimulate new skin growth, and promote healthy healing in the deepest skin layers.
Many scar treatments on the market contain volatile D4 or D5 silicones, steroids, onion extract, or other ineffective ingredients. All of these either do not improve scar appearance, or worse still can cause contact dermatitis. Only stable forms of vitamin C, Dimethicone silicone and a handful of botanicals have been shown clinically to get rid of scars and brown spots.By Melissa J Andrews