Even though Jessica Alba apparently loves (her) stretch marks not every woman agrees with her. OK, we have to admit we don’t know a single woman who would agree with Jessica’s statement:

“Even though some might consider them a flaw, I’ve learned to love my stretch marks. Pregnancy was the most incredible experience I’ve ever had. So I’ll take the stretch marks.”

Stretch marks (or striae) are a form of scars caused by the pulling and stretching forces in the underlying layers of the skin (dermis). Most women (up to 90%) will develop stretch marks during pregnancy .

Various treatments are available for the purpose of improving the appearance of existing scars or stretch marks, including laser treatments, dermabrasion, prescription retinoids and silicone gels like Strataderm.

There are claims that cocoa butter is effective against stretch marks, however no research studies have shown its ability to either prevent stretch marks, or to reduce their appearance once a stretch mark has already formed. On the contrary –  the studies have clearly shown that the application of cocoa butter does not reduce the likelihood of developing stretch marks

The same applies for products like Bio-Oil® – the UK Advertising Standards Authority has gone as far as to prohibit claims that it helps scars or stretch marks because such claims could not be supported by clinical evidence.