People look for home remedies for stretch mark problems because they want to get rid of unsightly stretch marks without undergoing costly, potentially painful procedures like chemical peels, microdermabrasion, and laser surgery. We found a lot of suggested home remedies for stretch marks, some of which sound pretty silly, like rubbing slices of raw potato on the affected area. We didn’t find much evidence that many home remedies actually work to remove stretch marks, though.
Popular Home Remedies For Stretch Mark Problems
We found literally dozens of suggested home remedies for stretch marks online but most appear to have no science behind them. If they work, we don’t know why. Since stretch marks generally fade some in time even without any type of treatment, it’s possible people that use some of these home remedies think they are helping when what’s really happening is that the marks are just naturally fading as they would anyway.
Tea Tree Oil
Tea tree oil is often used for a wide variety of skin problems, including acne, ringworm, athlete’s foot, psoriasis, and toenail and fingernail fungus. It has antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties. Some people recommend tea tree oil for stretch marks but those are not caused by any type of bacterial, viral, or fungal infection, so we can’t see any reason tea tree oil would help. Applied topically to stretch marks, it probably won’t hurt, although in rare cases it does cause some skin irritation, it probably won’t do any good, either.
Olive Oil
Olive oil is another home remedy for stretch marks suggested by some people, but there is no evidence at all that it actually works to eliminate stretch marks(1). It will moisturize your skin, but stretch marks aren’t caused by excessively dry skin.
Aloe Vera
Like olive oil, aloe vera is often recommended for stretch marks. And like olive oil, there is no evidence at all that it actually does anything for stretch marks(1). It will moisturize and soften your skin, but it won’t get rid of those red streaky lines.
Cocoa Butter
Again, good for moisturizing skin and eliminating dry skin, but not so good for getting rid of stretch marks.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E can be taken orally or applied topically in a gel to stretch marks. Vitamin E is needed for healthy skin and it helps protect against the harmful effects of sun exposure and may even help protect against skin cancer. When applied topical, it soothes dry, itchy skin and softens scars. None of this means it will get rid of stretch marks, however.
Vicks Vapor Rub
We found this home remedy for removing stretch marks on a few different websites but found only anecdotal evidence that it might work and not a whole lot of that. Some people claim that if you apply Vicks Vapor Rub to stretch marks, then wrap the area with plastic cling wrap for a few hours, that will eliminate the stretch marks. After looking at the ingredients in Vicks Vapor Rub, we have no idea why this would work, though, and we haven’t seen any real evidence that it does.
Our Favorite Home Remedy For Stretch Marks
Our favorite of all the home remedies for stretch mark problems is Insta Natural Stretch Mark and Scar Cream. It’s available for use at home without a prescription. It contains a number of ingredients known to benefit the skin, including vitamin C, evening primrose oil, grapeseed oil, and rosehip oil. The unique combination of ingredients is designed to work together to help rebuild collagen and elastin in the skin, as well as nourish and heal damaged skin. According to our research, it seems to work pretty well; people who’ve used it rate it 4.8 stars out of five stars. To learn more and read reviews from others who’ve used Insta Natural Stretch Mark and Star Cream, just follow this link to Amazon.com.