I have often wondered if over-stretching can be a problem. I have earned myself some stretch marks but was not sure about how effective the stretch mark creams are. Here’s an article for you to ponder:
The question that has plagued pregnant woman and bodybuilders for years is do stretch mark creams work? Well that depends on what you expect from a stretch mark cream. In this article I’m going to go over what to expect from a stretch mark cream and also what not to expect. I’m also going to go over a few home remedies that you can try today.
To understand how stretch mark creams work. We must first understand what causes these scars in the first place. Stretch marks occur in the dermis layer of the skin when it doesn’t have enough support to create new skin cells. This happens due to a variety of reasons ranging from rapid weight gain to hormonal shifts.
This occurs more often to woman entering puberty or shortly after pregnancy. Also to the surprise of many even men can get these pesky scars. Mostly from weight training and athletes that go though massive body transformations.
As you can imagine there are literally thousands of different home remedies for treating stretch marks out there on the internet. Here are a few of the popular ones that I recommend:
Home Remedies # 1 – mixture of Shea butter/karit’e butter, olive oil, and almond oil.
Use this mixture twice daily, once after you shower in the morning, and then again before you go to bed.
Home Remedies # 2 – vitamin E lotion and aloe Vera.
This one is easier to use and its pretty inexpensive. Wash and exfoliate the area affected. Then after the area dries, rub in the vitamin E lotion. Then wait 15 min in till the greasiness of the oil is fully absorbed before applying the aloha Vera. The aloha Vera adds a nice tightening effect to the skin.
Home Remedies # 3 – Der-ma roller, EMU oil, and Dermology Cream
This one is a little more expensive but it gives great results, first you need to purchase a Der-ma Roller. This is a small device used to exfoliate dead skin cells, They run about $20 . Then the Dermology cream is distributed and rolled around.
After showering use the Der-ma roller for about 10 min, this helps remove a lot of the dead skin cells. Then next rub the Emu Oil onto the affected area. After the Emu Oil has dried apply a thin layer of the Dermology cream on the area.
Now this may be the most expensive of the remedies but it is also the most effective, and its intended for someone with stretch marks larger then 2 Inches in diameter. Check out remove stretch marks naturally for more information, including removal cream reviews, and more articles on the topic.
Orginial Article: http://ezinearticles.com/?Do-Stretch-Mark-Creams-Work?-Some-Home-Remedies-You-Can-Try-Today&id=4851020
Question by dan k: How do I lessen the strain on my back while at work?
I work in a warehouse (making street sweeper brooms, if you were curious) and I spend 8 hours a day standing up and leaning over a table. Lately I’ve been experiencing some pretty intense pain in my upper back, between my shoulder blades, while working. I’ve tried stretching before work, and standing up as straight as possible, but the aches and pains are constant. Is there anything I can do to lessen this pain, if not get rid of it entirely?
Best answer:
Answer by sammy z
Use your knees more, when you lift heavy objects, take the time to bend your knees. Also consider getting a back brace that you can buy from any grocery/drug store.
Have a better answer? Leave your own in the comments!
If it’s feasable, raise the height of the table so that your posture is more erect, it’s the leaning over that is giving you all the grief, you may try a Supporter that helps keep the spine straight, When you get a coffee break and on lunch, if there is a narrow bench nearby, lay down on it and let your arms drop to your sides, that will stretch the Traps as well as ease the muscle and spine,
I don’t know if this will help but I was at one time employed by a chiropractor and he would suggest getting these heavy duty back support belts. They have suspenders and are worn by people here that work at places like Lowes and Home Depot. Like major supply chains that carry lumber, everything to fix up around the house, etc. A good doctor or a chiro could perhaps help get you one or you could ask at the store. And good supportive shoes are a must. A medicl supply store might have the belts as you need to be fitted correctly. Good Luck.
Unfortunately, it sounds like your pain is definitely being caused by your job–in particular the posture you have to use to do your job. It sounds like you are doing the right things by trying to stretch and use better posture. However, if you can’t change your job (which I’m sure you can’t) then the pain might continue. Although, since the issue seemed to occur suddenly, you could have something else going on.
Since you have to be bent over a table all day, your spine and muscles are being put in an “unnatural” position. This repetitive posture can eventually lead to misalignment of the spine and muscle tightness or spasm. Both of these can cause that pain that you described.
There are a few things that you can try. If it is just muscle issues, you can try using heat while you are at home every 15-20 minutes, every 3-4 hrs (Of course, as long as you don’t have a condition that would contraindicate this). This heat can help to relax these muscles and decrease the pain. While at work, you could try wearing a heat pack (like Thermacare).
If this doesn’t help, you could try to go to a massage therapist. Massage therapy helps to relax the tightened muscles, which will decrease pain. It also helps to increase circulation to this area, which can facilitate healing.
If these don’t work, you could try going to a chiropractor. Sometimes, our spinal vertebrae can get misaligned (because of our everyday activities like our job) and cause compression on the nerves. This can then cause pain. Also, because of this misalignment, the muscles surrounding this area can tighten, furthering the pain. If the underlying issue is not fixed, then the pain can continue and get worse. A chiropractor uses spinal manipulation and therapies to realign vertebrae, thus decreasing the pressure on the nerves and decreasing pain. It will also help to relax the tightened muscles.
If you are nervous about trying chiropractic, do your research. It is very safe and very affective in symptoms such as yours. However, you must understand that there are many different techniques chiropractors can use, so not every symptoms will respond to every technique. If you don’t want to “blindly” choose a chiropractor, ask your family and friends–You might be surprised to find that some of them go to a chiropractor regularly.
Hope this helps. Good luck
Dr. Heath Gallentine, Chiropractor
If you would like to learn about other topics like this, or more about chiropractic, visit my website at http://www.lexfamilychiro.com