Pregnancy is an amazing experience. Feeling a new life growing inside, kicking at you and responding to your actions is a truly unique experience. You really gain a new appreciation for the abilities of the human body as your stomach stretches beyond anything you had ever imagined to accommodate a new baby. However, there are definite downsides to being pregnant and one of them is the side effect of all that stretching . . . stretch marks.

What Causes Stretch Marks

Stretch marks occur when the skin is stretched beyond it´s elasticity. The upper layer stretches and the lower layer of skin tends to tear, causing small rips in the tissue. This results in some rather ugly red marks that feel different from the regular texture of your skin. These will fade to white after your pregnancy, but this can take time and they never really do go away..
Whether or not you will get stretch marks really depends on genetics, the elasticity of your skin and how big you get during the pregnancy. Some women don´t grow much at all and have more than sufficient elasticity in their skin to withstand the stretching and remain completely unmarked.
Preventing Stretch Marks

The best way to get rid of stretch marks is not to get them at all. While 90% of women have the genetic predisposition to stretch marks in pregnancy, that doesn´t mean you have to just sit back and let them happen. Prevention is truly the best medicine when it comes to these nasty lines. They may be a banner of your ability to carry a child, but really, most women would prefer to avoid them all together. The best time to start prevention is as soon as you know you´re pregnant, long before the skin needs to expand.

It´s important to only use organic skin products while pregnant. Most chemicals are not proven safe for your unborn baby and it’s best to just avoid them. Going organic will give you peace of mind and you’ll be able to treat your skin without fear of affecting the child inside.

Organic skin products are just as effective against stretch marks, if not more so, than commercial, chemical laden ones. You´ll find that natural ingredients work naturally with your skin to soothe it and soften it. Not only will you be preventing stretch marks, you´ll also be promoting softer, more hydrated skin.

What to Look for in Stretch Mark Prevention Treatments

Certain organic ingredients work better than others against stretch marks. Basically, you want to moisturize your skin and enhance the elasticity. A good prevention cream will also provide some healing power to help any existing tears in the skin heal faster, without getting worse. This is particularly helpful if you are starting treatment later in the pregnancy.

Organic stretch mark creams usually use one or more of the following ingredients:

Shea Butter: By far the most common ingredient used in stretch mark prevention since is one of the best natural moisturizers on the market. It also has healing properties to help with any existing stretch marks.

Coconut Oil: A very good moisturizing oil that also enhances elasticity and hastens healing of existing problems.

Olive Oil: Another good moisturizer that helps boost elasticity and soften skin, making it more supple and resistant to tearing.

Any organic skin product designed to treat and prevent stretch marks should include one of the above ingredients for maximum benefit. Often they will have other natural ingredients, as well , to promote healing and enhance the moisturizing effect.

By: Amy Nutt

If you have a new baby, there are some important things you should know. Even if this isn’t your first child, you should take in this information. There are many challenges new parents face and you will find that each baby is an individual and can bring along unique challenges that you didn’t face before.

As you may already know, babies don’t come with an instruction manual so here are some things you should know. First, you should only sponge bathe your baby until the umbilical cord falls off. This can take one to two weeks after the baby is born. After that, you can bathe your baby in a baby bath, small tub or even the kitchen sink. Just be sure you never leave your baby alone in the water. Even a very small amount of water can drown a baby and they will be very slippery from the water and can also be injured if they slip out of the tub.

If your male baby was circumcised, it should heal quickly and easily on its own. Be sure to follow your pediatrician’s instructions for keeping the area clean and dry.

Be aware of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and the circumstances that can contribute to the risk of it. Male babies are more likely than females to have SIDS as are minority children. Premature babies also carry a higher risk. Statistics also show that babies of young, single mothers also carry a higher risk. Avoid placing blankets, stuffed animals and other items in the crib with your baby.

These are some basic tips for baby care of new parents. Of course this doesn’t even come close to the things you need to learn about your baby or how to care for a new baby but they are some basic starters. You should seek as much information as possible about baby care and always have a good support system to turn to for help with your baby questions.

By: Lisa A Mason

Bringing home a new baby is an exciting moment but as you step into the world of motherhood you have a whole new list of things to worry about. You have to make sure you get the proper nutrients so your baby stays healthy and keep an eye out for anything that could imply they are sick. You also need to have the right skin care for newborns so that your baby is happy and healthy.

You might wonder what skin for newborns has to do with a healthy baby, outside of keeping their skin soft and clean. The reason skin care is so crucial is because the first few months of an infant’s life is when they start to develop their immune system. They need to be exposed to bacteria, germs, and the common “bad things” that the body faces every day so that their bodies learn to resist it. If you use lotions and soaps with antibacterial in them then you are killing the germs for your baby’s body so that their body won’t learn to do it itself. Baby products are filled with “helpful” bacteria killers and sterilizing chemicals so wait to use them until your child is a few months old.

Babies don’t get dirty every day. Unlike you, they aren’t walking around all day and exposing themselves to all kinds of dirt. They also generally aren’t spending all day sweating from overworking themselves or having to wear clothes even on really hot days. This means that you shouldn’t be giving your baby a bath every day like you might do for yourself. The oils in a baby’s skin differ from the oils in adult skin and your baby desperately needs to keep the oils their skin is naturally producing. When you give your baby a bath you are removing those necessary oils, so the less often you do it the better. Of course, babies do get dirty sometimes so a sponge bath a few times a week is enough to keep them clean while still practicing good skin care for newborns.

Just because you shouldn’t wash your baby too often and use antibacterial soaps on it doesn’t mean that you can’t clean the things that you baby will be exposed to. You should be washing everything that the baby deals with on a regular basis and especially wash new products you bring home for them. Whether you get them from a yard sale or brand new sealed tight in plastic packaging you should clean all the toys you buy for your baby to play with and wash the clothes you get for them to wear. If you buy used items you should definitely use antibacterial soaps because you don’t know what those items were exposed to. New items should be cleaned with regular soap and water. All of these things will not only affect the skin care of newborns but half the time they’ll wind up in your baby’s mouth too. Cleaning the things they come into contact with will help avoid rashes and other ailments they could pick up from touching dirty toys.

By: Amy Nutt