The war against stretch marks

Yesterday I mentioned the Tummy Butter I slather all over myself every day and I thought I’d tell you a bit more about it ’cause I figure: A) you moms-to-be wanna know, right? and B) I need to reassure the rest of you that no, I am not in fact rubbing butter on myself. Although, I do love me some butter. Mmmm… butttterrrrr…..

Stretch marks. The very words make me shiver.

Actually, what makes me shiver is this photo ( if you don’t want to be scarred for life, you’ll resist clicking that – don’t say I didn’t warn you). Ok, that’s a bit of a stretch (har har) but it’s a fact that  between 75%-90% of women develop stretch marks during pregnancy so it’s highly possible I will too.

Because of my cautious nature, I started early with the stretch mark cream. I think I was in my 10th or 11th week when I first started slathering, and I’ve been quite vigilant about it. And despite my rapid weight gain (I passed the 20 lbs mark already, people!!), so far I’m happy to say that so far it seems to be working. That is, I like to think so. I’m no fool – I know genes have more to do with it than creams. But the truth is, I really, really enjoy my little morning and evening ritual of belly rubbing. It’s calming, makes me feel beautiful, and I like to think my wee baby boy enjoys it too.

The first belly stuff I bought was Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Cream for Stretch Marks but once I used that up, I thought I’d be daring and try Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Formula Tummy Butter and I will never go back. I love it. It’s smooth and creamy and the oh-so-lovely lavender smell make me feel lusciously luxe. Plus “Tummy Butter” is just so much more fun to say. I also use it on my boobs and thighs juuuuust in case it does actually do something to fend off stretch marks. One can never be too careful, yes?

I also like it because for some reason, it doesn’t feel as cold as the Massage Cream did and we all know there are few things more unpleasant than slapping freezing cold cream on your skin first thing in the morning. I even kept the cream propped up on our heater in the bathroom but even that didn’t help much. Thankfully, I’ve never had that problem with the butter.

From what I’ve read, there aren’t a lot of studies that support the premise that cocoa butter actually prevents or reduces the appearance of stretch marks but it seems vitamin E might. The Tummy Butter I use has both, so you get the best of both worlds. You could also supplement your butter regime with a product that has a higher concentration of vitamin E (like Jamieson Pure Vitamin E Oil). I’m thinking about it but I’m not sure it’s necessary at this point… plus the thought of getting that stuff all over my clothes isn’t so exciting. I think I’ll stick to eating lots of vitamin E-rich foods like almonds, sunflower seeds, avocado and spinach for now.

If you’re looking for a tummy cream to buy, I highly recommend Palmer’s Tummy Butter as a start. And no, they’re not paying me to say that (though if they sent me some, I promise I would share it with you).

One final word on this.

On the surface, stretch marks are maybe not the most attractive things in the world and of course we’d all like to prevent them if we can. But it’s important to remember they are also a badge of honor. If I develop them carrying my son, I know that it I will be grateful to my body for its amazing capacity to stretch and change and accommodate this growing baby. I often think about how it’s nothing short of a miracle that our bodies are able to do this and what’s more, with no instruction from our conscious minds. It blows me away. So yes, I will try to do my part in keeping them at bay but at the end of the day, they’re a natural part of life and if I get some, oh well. There are more important things in life to worry about.