Women have used cocoa butter, a fat extracted from the cacao bean, for years to help reduce unsightly stretch marks. While there is some evidence that applying cocoa butter to affected areas of the skin can help diminish the appearance of stretch marks, it will not get rid of them entirely.
How It Works
Cocoa butter is sold as a cream at most major drug stores, and is very inexpensive. Many brands on the market also add vitamin E, collagen, elastin and shea butter to their cocoa-butter formula. Both cocoa and shea butters are great moisturizing elements for the skin and help promote skin elasticity. Collagen and elastin work in tandem to fill in dips in the skin and make the area smooth, while vitamin E helps reduce the appearance of scars on the skin.
When to Use Cocoa Butter
Apply cocoa butter once or twice daily for at least four weeks to the affected area, particularly after bathing, when the skin is moist. Rub the cream in thoroughly, and don't use more than 1 tbsp. or so---a little bit goes a long way, and applying more won't help reduce the stretch marks more quickly or effectively.
Cocoa butter is best used to prevent stretch marks, rather than making them disappear after the fact. At the beginning of pregnancy, during substantial weight gain or loss, or at the beginning of a teen growth spurt, cocoa butter can help trap moisture in the skin and keep the skin well hydrated and able to deal with significant expansion or contraction over a relatively short period of time.
Tags: stretch marks, cocoa butter, help reduce, skin help