Almost all women hate having any type of blemish on their skin, this includes all types of scars and stretch marks. While scars can be prevented by avoiding situations that may expose you to potentially harmful circumstances, stretch marks are harder to prevent as they occur as a natural byproduct of the body's physiology.

During puberty is one of the first times in life when marks are prone to forming. This is because the body increases in size very rapidly, while the skin may be unable to keep up with its growth. Other causes may also be due to excessive eating which results in a rapid increase in size, and also during pregnancy.

Comparing men and women, women are more prone to the development of stretch marks. This is because they are subjected to more bodily changes in a lifetime compared to men. This is especially evident during pregnancy. In addition to this, the various hormonal changes that occur in women may also contribute to the easier tearing of the skin.

But this does not mean that men cannot form these marks. Aside from puberty, other times that men can form these marks are due to excessive body building. A very rapid increase in size, similar to excessive eating, can also lead to the formation of these scars.

As with all problems, situations and sicknesses, it is always better to prevent them from happening in the first place. Unfortunately, this is a different case as it is very hard to prevent the formation of stretch marks. Most people would not be conscious about their bodies during puberty thus marks formed at this time in life are rather unavoidable.

But there are also times when stretch marks may be prevented. Like during pregnancy, women can anticipate their bodies will grow, so they can take supplements which can enhance the elasticity of their skin. They can also apply cocoa butter on areas that may increase in size such as the belly and thighs. As for body building and eating too much, these can simply be controlled so the body does not grow too fast for the skin to cope up with.

For marks that are already present on your skin, there are several ways that you can try to eliminate them. The more effective and expensive ways of getting rid of them is through laser treatments or microdermabrasion. Other cheaper ways is by using scar removal creams and other home remedies. These may not completely eliminate scars and marks but they can lighten their appearance thus making them almost invisible.

The best way to avoid these stretch marks is by preventing them from forming. Unfortunately, this is very hard to do as some may still form no matter how much prevention you do. In these cases, you may resort to scar removal techniques so that you can regain your flawless looking skin.