How to prevent pregnancy stretch marks is one of the biggest concerns for pregnant women everywhere.
These concerns can often even over shadow the backache and morning sickness worries that women have.
This article gives tips and useful advice on how you can prevent stretch marks in the first place.
To begin with, stretch marks normally look like red or purple streaks on your skin (depending on your skin pigmentation).
Overtime these streaks become less prominent and look silver or white.
Stretch marks are most visibly around the abdomen but can also be seen around the hips, thighs, buttocks, breasts and arms.
Some statistics show that between 75-90 percent of all pregnant women develop stretch at some point during their pregnancy.
So how then do you prevent pregnancy stretch marks?

1. The most common way to try to prevent stretch marks is to apply a suitable cream.
   It is important to understand that you should not just buy any old moisturizing cream off the shelf and expect that to do the job for you.
   What you really need is a specialist product that can go deeper than the average moisturizing cream, one that can get past the epidermis (the top layer of skin).
   Look for ones with high amounts of vitamin A, vitamin E, collagen, elastin, glycolic acid, and emu oil, liposomes and aloe vera gel.
   These sorts of products are able to get really deep into the skin and even penetrate the dermis (the second layer of skin).
   This is crucial as the dermis is the layer where the stretch marks will begin to occur, unseen to begin with.
   These products are also great for replacing skin cells that have been damaged and also in reinvigorating the renewal of new healthy skin cells.
   
2. Drink an adequate amount of water.
   Most people don't drink enough water to keep their bodies hydrated.
   It is essential for healthy skin to make sure you have enough.
   However, don't drown yourself in water, also aim to eat lots of water rich foods like salads to give your body a healthy balance.
   Drinking water all day while eating junk food will not mean you are being healthy.
   Focus on a balanced water rich diet instead.
   
3. Focus on eating foods that enhance healthy skin.
   Foods that are rich in vitamin A,B,C,D and E.
   Other ingredients to look for are zinc, silica and protein.
   Foods that contain these sorts of ingredients are fish, nuts, citrus fruits and vegetables (especially leafy greens).
   It is essential that you eat the correct foods and drink the correct liquids (that means avoiding coffee, tea and other caffeine drinks).
   This will help keep your skin clear and help it to stretch better and bounce back to its original shape after birth.
   

Whether you get stretch marks or not is influenced by many different factors and even by following the tips above and any others you might read, this does not guarantee that you will not get stretch marks.
Things such as:

1. Genetics, if your mother or sister suffered from stretch marks you are more likely to suffer from it yourself.
   
2. Skin condition, dry skin is by its very nature less elastic and therefore more prone to stretch marks.
   
3. Your skin tone and ethnicity, is also a factor, the fairer your skin the more likely it is that you will suffer from visible stretch marks.
   
4. If you have had a baby before or if you are carrying a large baby or more than one, then you are more prone to develop stretch marks.
   

In conclusion, by following the tips above you can drastically reduce your chances of getting stretch marks.
However, no tips or products can guarantee 100% that you will not get them.
But by drastically reducing the possibility of getting them you also increase the chances of if you do get them that over time they will become less and less visible.