The Ugly Truth About Cocoa Butter For Stretch Marks Finally Exposed

By Tiallana Hirano

Are you considering using cocoa butter to get rid of your new or existing stretch marks? You are pregnant or planning to have a baby, and you wonder if cocoa butter can help prevent stretch marks. Obviously, whatever the reason is, you want to know if it can work.

Does Cocoa Butter Remove Stretch Marks

Many people have the wrong assumption that cocoa butter can help with their existing stretch marks. It could be due to the many cocoa butter for stretch marks reviews that have done a poor job of revealing the truth.

Stretch marks are the results of the breaking down of collagen and elastin fibers in the dermis (the layer below the epidermis) when the supporting fibers fail to respond to the undue stretching. According to several skin care experts such as the famous Dr Oz, Sarah Humphreys of Real Simple's Magazine, and Dr. Yvonne Bohn, co-author of The Mommy Docs' Ultimate Guide to Pregnancy and Birth, cocoa butter does not have the ability to penetrate down to the dermal layer. So, if this natural vegetable fat cannot reach the dermis, how does it help to repair the damaged fibers?

For any ingredient to reduce the appearance of stretch marks, it has to stimulate the production of collagen. But cocoa butter does not have any effect on the production of collagen.

Does Cocoa Butter Prevent Stretch Marks

So, if cocoa butter cannot remove stretch marks, what about preventing them? You may be thinking that the only reason Claudia Schiffer uses cocoa butter at home on her belly is to prevent stretch marks. Is it possible?

Sometimes you come across a pregnant woman who uses a cocoa butter product, and she has no stretch marks after pregnancy. You can consider her lucky. The credit doesn't really go to cocoa butter. She probably has a strong elastic skin which explains why she doesn't have any of those unattractive reddish threads during her pregnancy. Or she should be grateful to her maternal ancestors since the development of stretch marks is a matter of heredity!

So, if we take the heredity factor out of the equation, what are the chances of preventing stretch marks using cocoa butter? In 2008, a group of dermatologists and obstetricians led by Dr. A. H Nassar performed a test on women who were pregnant for the first time. They wanted to find out if cocoa butter could help prevent stretch marks during pregnancy. 210 women participated in this study but only 175 finished the test. One group was asked to massage cocoa butter lotion everyday until the birth of their babies while the other group used a placebo. At the end of the test, the results showed that cocoa butter could not prevent stretch marks as both groups developed them on their abdomen, breasts and thighs. Moreover, there was no difference in terms of severity of these pregnancy scars.

Why Do Doctors Recommend Cocoa Butter

Watch this video. Dr. Jill Hechtman M.D., a gynecologist and obstetrician, mentions using cocoa butter to prevent stretch marks during pregnancy.

Leslie Baumann, MD, director of the University of Miami Cosmetic Group and author of The Skin Type Solution believes that prevention is important because it is difficult to treat stretch marks, especially when they turn white or silver.

According to Baumann, you should moisturize your skin to prevent stretch marks. Properly hydrated skin is usually more elastic. This allows the skin to respond well to stretching. It is recommended that you massage prone areas such as belly, thighs, buttocks, and breasts with cocoa butter three or four times daily.

Even though, the study by Dr. A. H Nassar is not encouraging, yet many doctors still recommend cocoa butter oil to their patients who are expecting. Yes, I know. It can be confusing. But I believe there are some good reasons behind their recommendations.

1. Cocoa butter is natural. This means it is safe to use especially if you're pregnant. And you don't have to worry much about side effects unless you've a unique skin type that reacts adversely to this natural vegetable fat.
2. It revitalizes the epidermis due to its rich content of essential fatty acids.
3. If cocoa butter doesn't help your stretch marks, it can at least relieve the itchiness of the skin that is common during pregnancy. However, don't slather too much of this edible fat on your skin as it can cause rashes. Moderation is the key.

How Does Cocoa Butter Help Your Stretch Marks

Well, you may not be happy with what you've read so far. You still believe that cocoa butter lotion can do something about stretch marks. Maybe you're right. Let's take a look from another perspective.

Cocoa butter is extracted from cacao beans. It is rich in vitamin E. You already know that vitamin E is an antioxidant. It protects collagen from the damaging effects of free radicals. So, for sure, your skin will continue to be elastic. As your skin is elastic, it can withstand the undue stretching. The question is how does it keep the free radicals at bay when it cannot reach the dermis.

Cocoa butter is also a rich moisturizer. Michael Tick from the Institute for Skin Science states that cocoa butter can keep the skin hydrated and moisturized. Dry skin is prevalent during pregnancy. Cocoa butter can prevent any moisture loss by creating a protective layer between your skin and the harmful environment. Skin with retained moisture is usually elastic with the ability to stretch back and forth without tearing. This should help prevent stretch marks.

So, you may be right after all. Cocoa butter seems to help.

When Is The Best Time To Use Cocoa Butter Cream For Stretch Marks

If you're pregnant, it is best to start using cocoa butter cream before your belly grows. It is not a hundred percent guarantee that you can stop stretch marks completely from appearing. Even if the stretch marks develop, they should not be so noticeable.

As mentioned before, you have to apply it often on a daily basis.

What Is The Best Type Of Cocoa Butter For Stretch Marks

Although cocoa butter is natural, but the products that contain this cream-colored fat may include other additives. Among them are colorings, preservatives and fragrances. They may irritate your skin. If you want to order a top cocoa butter lotion that is not too expensive, what would be the recommendation?

Chances are you have heard about Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Cream for Stretch Marks. For most pregnant women, this name is no stranger in the skin care market. This stretch mark cream contains pure, natural cocoa butter and other ingredients such as vitamin E, collagen and elastin that are supposed to repair stretch marks. This brand has established itself as a household name. So, Palmer's can be considered as the best cocoa butter cream for stretch marks.

Why Do Women Complain About Cocoa Butter Lotion For Stretch Marks

Even though cocoa butter stretch mark cream is highly recommended by many and is popular, there is still a number of women who cannot put up with the overpowering odor of chocolate on their body. This is true because their sense of smell intensifies during pregnancy. To many of them, the smell is disgusting, sometimes making them smell like stench. Should the unpleasant smell bother you a lot, there is always the choice of using one without any fragrance.

Some people have low tolerance towards cocoa butter. To some extent, their skin develops a bad rash. This could make their stretch marks worse.

Final Words

So, let's go back to the question: “does cocoa butter get rid of stretch marks?” Under normal circumstances, probably not because it cannot to reach the dermis to perform the repair. And it does nothing in encouraging the skin to produce collagen and elastin. Till today, no study can validate its effectiveness in stretch mark removal. If you're relying on cocoa butter alone, then don't bet your life on it that you'll see results.

What about prevention? I think there is nothing much you can do to prevent stretch marks unless your skin is very elastic. Furthermore, if you're expecting, weight gain is unavoidable which contributes to the formation of striae. Moisturizing your skin may help but how much moisturization is enough to stop these ugly reddish streaks from appearing? No one really knows.

For effective stretch mark prevention and treatment, you need something that can boost the production of collagen and elastin. If, for some reason, you don't want to use cocoa butter, you can always try Trilastin-SR. It is an odor-free, non-greasy cream which rebuilds the collagen and elastin, thereby reducing the appearance of stretch marks.

Photo credit: Angelastic