Itchy belly!

bio oil is probably the worst thing you can use on your belly during pregnancy. it has no moisture in it, which your body needs. Bio oil is good for after pregnancy though. I know a few people who have and havent used it. All of the ones who used bio oil got stretch marks.

You're going to get heaps of different suggestions and various claims of wonder creams. The reality is that some people get stretch marks and some don't. I think keeping well hydrated and moisturising with any kind of product can help to an extent but it's not proven to prevent sm's. As for the itching, you will just have to try different products until you find the best one for you - avoid ones with any perfume. Oatmeal and calomine are both well known for controlling itch. Another suggestion is to get some lavender oil and put a few drops in a warm bath. I remember being reallly itchy during my pregnancy too and scratched so much that I bled sometimes. I wish I hadn't though, I don't know if that caused my skin more damage or if it would have looked like a deflated balloon anyway sad

Just double check with your Dr as well, by the time I was 12 weeks with DD I started getting very itchy and was developing a rash, by 18weeks the rash/itch had spread across my whole belly (on the lowest part of bump) and no creams worked very well at all. I asked my Ob and he had a look at it and said I was allergic to the pregancy hormones (apparently about 20% of people are and this is how it usually manifests) I was prescribed a steroid cream to put on 3 times daily. It gave me alot of relief. He said it would go after birth, and sure enough within 3 weeks of birth it was pretty much gone

If you want to treat yourself then I would highly recommend Clarins Huile Tonic body oil. I just bought some and it is so lush! Smells beautiful, leaves my skin really smooth and hydrated and my skin doesnt feel tight and itchy anymore around my belly. It's a real indulgence but has made me feeling really good after months of feeling pretty blah during my pregnancy smile

I found that bio oil or any cocoa butter creams seemed to only aggravate the itching, to soothe it i would get a warm flannel and just place it on my belly. It only temporarily relieved the itching but i found that helped the most.

Its pretty much your genes that give you stretch marks. But using a low/non chemical cream/oil is the best and cheapest option. Bio Oil is just another Product that Advertisers want you to buy to waste your money. Just like the excess price of Elevit. A base oil with a couple of drops of essential oil is all you need. But buy from an Aromatherapy place or somewhere, not one of the chemical laden dodgy chemist or Department Stores. The truth is all in the Ingredients Labels. What you put on your skin "soaks in".....

The condition of your skin will depend on the nutrition in your diet. Lots of healthy fats and fruits and vegetables to create healthy skin cells. Drinking plenty of water (min 2 Litres) a day is also important. Stretch marks are usually caused by a lack of elasticity and integrity of the skins cellular structure.

Keep away from any creams that contain chemicals and mineral oils (bio oil is a mineral oil) as they can damage the skin. I use organic, cold pressed coconut oil as my moisturiser and have made up a belly oil of sweet almond oil with mandarine, palmarosa and geranium, all of which nourish skin tissue and encourage elasticity. But at the end of the day, no cream will work wonders if your body isn't getting the nourishment it needs from the inside-out.