Carrier Oils for pregnancy/stretch marks

[Barrabas Mcdougal]

Hi there

I have a 30 week pregnant client who has her first stretch marks and is hoping to keep any more at bay. I told her I would do some research about the best oil to massage into her skin in an effort to stop any more (but I did emphasise no guarantee!).

My research is tending towards jojoba, but would love to hear any other suggestions. I just used a weak blend of lavender oil with grapeseed oil for her first treatment, but want to see if anything else would be more helpful.

Thanks everybody, look forward to your replies

Lesley

 

[Jenzz]

Hiya

Vitamin E oil is about the best thing for stretch marks. If all you can get is capsules, empty one into your blend. Wheatgerm oil contains a lot of Vitamin E, but some people don't like the smell or are allergic to wheat. You might also want to try Evening Primrose oil or Starflower oil, both of which are available as carrier oils.

HTH

 

[Oliver]

Hi Chris

Thanks for the reply, I will check she doesn't have a wheat allergy before trying that one. Evening Primrose also sounds nice, but as taken orally for hormone regulation, is it safe in pregnancy?


Lesley

 

[rastabreezy]

Hiya

From what I've been able to find out, EP oil's benefits come from its high EFA content, which means that it nourishes and provides essential fatty acids as it suggests. I didn't suggest rose hip for the reason you gave. I've found an article on the NIH website (it's American) on EP: http://nccam.nih.gov/health/eveningprimrose/
which says it appears to be safe for use during pregnancy.

 

[PlaymnIminy]

Bio-oil is excellant for stretch marks and safe in pregnancy!

 

[The Unfunded Liability]

have been a midwife for over 30 years and am yet to find anything that really works for stretch marks... sorry not to be positive on this note... however the bio oil appears to be the most popular at the moment.

 

[Seltannosse]

I wasn't familiar with Bio-oil so checked their website for ingredients - main ingredient is mineral oil. Probably lucky for them that mineral oil tends to stay on the skin surface because Rosemary essential oil (one of the other ingredients) is not recommended during pregnancy, plus it's probably in such a small dose.

Mineral oil with sit on the surface of the skin, it creates an occlusive layer, it will keep any moisture in the skin in, but it won't absorb into the skin, it won't nourish the skin. The size of the molecules in mineral oil usually stops anything else being absorbed by the skin, so probably quite a bit of the other ingredients are being blocked from doing anything because of the mineral oil (some of it may be getting past the mineral oil)
Basically the massage routine they recommend with the Bio-oil is probably helping more than the oil. I recommend jojoba, no essential oils at all while pregnant or breastfeeding (babies' livers aren't fully developed to metabolise essential oils properly, no need to add to the chemical load with essential oils) jojoba is small enough to absorb into the skin, but doesn't enter the blood stream (like essential oils can) so it's not a concern for the liver issue. So while pregnant, jojoba only and follow the Bio-oil massage routine, work it in.

Once finished breastfeeding, jojoba/evening primrose/Vit E/calendula/etc blend can help with the appearance of stretch marks a lot. Everlasting essential oil is probably the best thing to add to a blend, but it is so expensive it tends to make a blend a bit too expensive

Having said all of that, if stretch marks are starting to appear during pregnancy, it's a bit late to start doing anything, the tears in the skin elsewhere are probably already starting. It's more good genetics than good skincare that minimises stretch marks. Massaging can stimulate the production of elastin in the skin, which can help with preventing stretch marks, but it's self care well before the marks are visible that has the benefit, once they appear it's generally a bit late.

 

[SmallTownGirl]

Hi,

Is Almond Oil safe to use during pregnancy?

I find Almond Oil is a good all rounder as a carrier oil but I would not use essential oils on a pregnant client.

Bearchen

 

[Whyte-out]

yes i believe it is -

 

[EddySays]

Hi,

As a rule don't wait till stretch marks appear, so start using something from early in the pregnancy and massage over abdomen, hips and tops of thighs from 4 months onwards. Very very difficult to get rid of once there.

Use almond oil with 2% Neroli and 1% Mandarin essential oils add some rosehip seed oil and 10% Hazelnut oil which is very rich in Vit E.
You could also use a rich cream or body butter made with Cocoa Butter with the same percentage of Neroli (2%) and Mandarin (1%).

Luv Binah
x

 

[just wondering78]

Sorry Binah, I've got to disagree, the generally recommended percentage (IFA etc) of essential oils to carrier oil in pregnancy is TOTAL 1.25%, that's a lot less than 3%.
Neroli is recommended as a labour oil, but it has extremely mixed recommendations during pregnancy, some say DO NOT USE, some say it's OK. Considering the price, it is one of the more expensive oils you can use, I doubt most people would be prepared to use it at 2% anyway.
As mentioned earlier in the thread, there are doubts about rosehip oil in pregnancy too.

 

[formerly_bob]

Hi Cola

Thanks for your reply. The source of the info I put on was from Patricia Davis Aromatherapy and A-Z (1999). Neroli (citrus aurantium bigurade) is safe to use in pregnancy and is one of the recommended essential oils to use for stretch marks, because it is non toxic and only has a trace of the keytone jasmone. The cost of neroli bigarade has no relevance, because if you were preparing a blend for a client following a treatment this would be costed into the equation.

When I give a full body massage for pregnant women I use a blend of 1.5 - I will check out any recent IFA research into oils and carrier oils in pregnancy.

I suspect that the reason for the higher percentage in a cream or oil for local use is based on the fact that the whole body is not being massaged and that only about one teaspoon or 5 mls - 10 mls is being massaged into the area most likely to be affected by stretchmarks i.e. hips, buttocks and abdomen.

Could you give me your reference source re. Rosehip oil not being suitable as a constituent in a carrier oil blend during pregnancy? Usually in skincare products it is used at quite a low percentage.

Luv Binahxx