Stretch mark cream

[Unicornandbows]

Hi just wondering which cream is best to prevent stretch marks any advice welcome thanks!

---

MNHQ Update
This is an old thread, but if you've landed here while on the hunt for recommendations or advice on stretch mark treatment and prevention, our guide to the best stretch mark cream has been recently updated. It includes a wide range of options and has been compiled based on the advice of Mumsnetters and skincare experts. We hope it's helpful!

Don't waste your money. If you get them you get them, if you don't you're lucky.

Yep. Save your money.

No cream can prevent stretch marks unfortunately.

Thanks I know I will get them as I had them growing up so I thought perhaps creaming might help.

I found them getting itchy the tighter my tummy got so I would recommend using any moisturiser you have to prevent that feeling!

As PP said, just a regular moisturiser to stop the itch as you get bigger. Fancy creams won’t stop you getting stretch marks- they don’t permeate deep enough through the different layers of skin where the damage actually occurs.

My mum got big stretch marks having me, so I assumed I’d get the same, but so far (35 weeks) nothing. A couple of tips I have heard/picked up though: If you don’t gain weight too quickly then your body has a chance to stretch more gently; drinking plenty of water keeps you hydrated; and massaging coconut oil on your belly every day (I buy it from Holland & Barrett). Worth a shot! And as PP have said, moisturising your belly can help reduce the itchiness as your skin stretches.

Thank you all for your advice!!

I'm using 100% pure Shea butter twice a day since about week 16 or so. It's about £5 for a tub that lasts me around 2-3 months. It took me a few days to get used to the somewhat savory nutty smell but I actually quite like it now, plus it disappears anyway after applying (I previously tried 100% pure raw coconut oil but that seemed to develop a very unpleasant smell on me after a few hours)... I have some stretchmarks on my thighs from when I was a teenager and therefore expected to get stretch marks now too, but at 34 pregnant I haven't gotten any new ones yet. Fingers crossed :)......

I used bio oil morning and night religiously from 12 weeks in both my pregnancies. I didn't get any stretch marks, it could be luck/genetics as my mother didn't get any either.

• slow and steady weight gain
• lots of water (keep hydrated)
• moisturise with something like coconut oil (won't stop stretch marks but can help with itching)
• healthy diet

If you're going to get stretch marks you're going to get them. You can prevent them to an extent by not putting on weight too fast, however your skin type/genetics/hormones play such a big part that it's impossible to stop them altogether.

If creams really worked, nobody would have them

YY Carlita. I remember being mildly smug at the end of my pregnancy that I didn’t have any. Then BAM! 39 weeks and some just appeared overnight round my belly button. I was incensed! They faded really quickly after birth though- they’d totally disappeared by 5 months pp.

That's good to know @dinosaurkisses ! I'm 34 weeks and just discovered my first ones. They're red and angry and I'm feeling a bit sad about them

I was the same- I have a far from perfect figure but I never got stretch marks during puberty etc so I put more importance on not getting them than I really should have. I’m 11 months pp and just had a quick double check to make sure I wasn’t deluding myself, but nope- they’ve really gone! I’m pregnant again and just hoping to dodge that bullet for the second time!

Hi @Unicornandbows I'm prone to them too as I got them growing up.

But I used Bio oil each night and Palmer's Coca Butter stretch mark cream each morning and I didn't get a single one. I was amazed to be honest.

I swear by BioOil (it’s expensive but I’ve managed to get it on offer at T-K Max). I’ve used it on my belly since I found out I was pregnant. At 30 weeks I have no stretch marks on my bump so far but I have stretch marks on my boobs where I didn’t use the BioOil!

Thanks I will be using cocoa butter as my skin is so dry around my stomach.

Thank you all for your advice much appreciated

i’ve used bio oil during all three of my pregnancies and i’ve never had stretchmarks. i use this in combination with coconut butter - but that’s mostly because my skin becomes super dry during pregnancy.

I used mama mio and loved it. Fresh scent, stopped the itching and I got no stretch marks(could just be luck 💁‍♀️) hoping not to get them this time round but who knows x

I've ordered unrefined cocoa butter from amazon 1kg for about £10 and I have almond oil already at home so I think I will mix the two and use that all over as my skin is super dry (eczema) and hopefully that will help with the itching as well.

I was tempted to buy a branded cream but then thought natural might actually be better. I think 1kg should last me the year if not more.

Fingers crossed for a more hydrated skin!

Yeah, no cream can stop them, they're genetic. Feel free to use whatever moisturiser smells and feels nice to you, but whether you get them or not is out of your hands.

Fwiw I have them all over thighs and arse from puberty, but I carried two babies to full term in my thirties without acquiring a single further one. Weird. (And it wasn't because I was oiling myself up either, because I wasn't.)

Yeah, no creams will do anything. I religiously used bio oil and palmers coco butter every day (one am, one pm) and drank loads of water and didn't gain much weight. Got to 35+4 and thought I'd beaten the stretch marks. Then lo and behold, they appeared almost overnight!

I used palmers tummy butter whilst pregnant with DD, not a single stretch mark. I thought I'd be covered in them, considering my mum and sister have loads from pregnancy and it's supposedly down to genetics, plus I had loads on my boobs and thighs from before I was pregnant due to weight loss/gain. But no not a single one on my tummy, don't know if it's due to the tummy butter or if it's just a coincidence?

It's only around the £4 mark and a tub lasts ages since a little goes a really long way, it's definitely worth a try. I'm currently 9 weeks pregnant with DC no 2 and I'm using it again, fingers crossed I have another stretch mark free pregnancy!

I see some PP have said about steady weight gain. Unfortunately, its not that simple. I am 32 weeks and have only gained so far 11lb from eating healthy yet my belly grew so quick at 29 weeks that I was showing back then, at 32 weeks! I have about 4 stretch marks from that I believe. I had no control over that!

They are coming out of my appendix scar though, so perhaps if I didn't already have that, I would have got away with that growth spurt Scott free... but I'm now patiently awaiting the next one!!

Have been using bio oil though.