Stretch marks are a common skin condition that is primarily a cosmetic issue which typically occurs in women more so than men. At first glance stretch marks look like shallow scars that appear red to purple and tend to lighten in color over time.

The main causes of stretch marks are things like pregnancy, dramatic weight changes, hormonal changes in adolescents and muscle building exercises. When it comes to places on the body where they occur, they usually appear on the breasts, thighs, hips and buttocks.

There are a number of stretch mark removal products on the market that are available for you to purchase over the counter at your local pharmacy or order online. These can help you lessen the appearance of your stretch marks and overtime they may actually completely fade them.

Another good thing to know is that most of the products available offer free trials, so you can actually try out the product and see if it works for your skin before you spend your hard earned cash on larger quantities of the cream or lotion.

It is always a good idea to research a new product before purchasing it. You can read customer reviews and testimonials for your research and then you just go and make sure you buy from a reputable company to increase the chances of getting a top quality cream or lotion that actually works for you.

A home remedy that you may want to try includes applying cocoa butter at least twice a day to the affected area, especially just before going to bed. Also eating more foods with Vitamin E like carrots, papayas and tomatoes can help your skin repair itself.

If you want to encourage the growth of new skin cells you should eat foods rich in fatty acids like fish. At the end of the day, we all have different skin types so there is no magic solution that will get rid of all stretch marks.