My nine year old has stretch marks!

[Sistermoondance]

My 9 year old daughter pointes out some red marks on her hip last week and I just thought she had grazed herself so I dismissed it saying they would clear up soon enough. Tonight in the bath she showed me they have got worse- she has red marks on both hips and both thighs, they look really bad like she has been dragged along some concrete or something. I still didn't twig what they were until my husband told me and said he had them when he was growing (I didn't even get stretch marks when pregnant so had no idea they started as red). I have reassured her that they are normal and that they will fade eventually and offered to get her some cream. But really, at 9? Is this normal? She isn't a skinny Minnie like me but neither is she overweight. She is very active doing dancing and gymnastics - she eats like a horse because of the exercise so has a little bit of a belly, but I wouldn't have said her legs or hips are chubby. What can I do for her? Are creams a good idea (thinking cocoa butter)? Or could this be a sign of something bad and I should take her to the doctor? I don't want to make her paranoid? I also feel so bad I didn't do anything when she first showed me them, but not sure if there is anything I could have done that would have made a difference. Thanks for any advice

I got them in early teens when my breasts suddenly doubled in size (i was skinny), but they weren’t visible by my early 20s so i don’t think it’s indicative of lifelong marks, just growing stretches.

i remember being told in first pregnancy that the creams made no difference, and it was down to genetic predisposition. That said, it might make her feel better to have some nice smelling cocoa butter, and massaging it in will definitely help if she’s having growing pains in her legs.

They get them all the time wait to teens

I recommend bio oil for stretch marks.

I’ve got stretch marks from growing and don’t think twice about them. If my mum has freaked out and made a massive deal about them and started offering me creams etc I’d have probably been massively self conscious about them.

I got them on my hips and bum at 11ish. Second bio oil and lots of moisturizing. They faded a fair bit.

They are natural. Don't make her paranoid about them by getting her to put creams on etc. She'll get self conscious and she's only 9 fgs.

My (now 17yr old) DS got stretch marks on his back from the age of about 13 to 15 - big red angry ones just about his waistline because he had a massive growth spurt.

Bio oil did absolutely nothing at all for him.

They're finally starting to fade now but become angry looking and red in the Summer.

worra my son is the same. He ran into the lounge convinced he had something awful but I reassured him they are perfectly normal for a lot of people.

Normal. I had them at 8 on my thighs. Had them badly on thighs, breasts and all over my stomach area when pregnant. All have faded.

I got them when growing, and my dd started getting them at about twelve I think. Both of us very thin teens so nothing to do with weight. I feel it is not just fast growth though, as she has had them appear when she has hardly changed, and I didn’t get any when pregnant, but did get a few in the month or two after giving birth. So they are slightly a mystery. Most people seem to get some at puberty though, it is entirely normal.

Northernsoullover I honestly had no idea what they were at first. Me and my DH were sure someone had hit him with something as they looked like marks from a whip

Then I saw a thread on MN where someone linked to Google images of 'back stretchmarks' and the pics were exactly the same.

I've never felt so relieved

Northern and worra - same with my Ds too!

Sorry, should have said that she said they felt sore and what could she put in them, she often gets insect bites or dry skin and I always give her cream and it makes her feel better to have something to rub on - sort of like a placebo effect. So before anyone starts getting all judgy about me offering her a cream, it is a normal thing for her to ask for and me to provide. And I didn't freak out to her, I told her stretch marks were normal and loads of people have them. I saved my freaking out for on here because they looked so angry and she is so young. Because I don't have them I wasn't sure if it is normal!

But a big thanks to everyone being reassuring :-) x

Before shelling out for bio oil, I've bought it before and it set my skin off severely.it was extremely expensive for a tiny tub.

I got awful ones above my boobs because they suddenly appeared and kept doubling in size. They stayed a long time but they're gone now. I didn't put anything on them.

Claphandsandsavethefairies I think you are right about the bio oil, some of my pregnant friends said it didn't help. I used it but never got any at all anyway during my pregnancy. I was actually thinking of cocoa butter or something similar as she has very dry skin anyway and was saying that the marks feel a bit sore. I don't think I will bother with any of the expensive gimicky creams / oils from what people are saying on here.

Bio oil is just petroleum based mineral oil with a little scent and very little in the way of vitamin e added. Use baby oil if you wasn't as it's cheaper but I would rather use a natural plant based product like shea butter.