The explanation may very well come from understanding that the skin matrix is in charge of the skin's mechanical properties, like firmness, strength, suppleness, and elasticity. Stretch marks are tears in a skin matrix altered by atrophy, a condition characterized by exactly the contrary of those just mentioned. Yes, skin injured by stretch marks is characterized by weakness, thinning, sagging, stiffness, roughness and decrease in the size of tissues, impaired cellular proliferation, and decreased functions, also called atrophia.

The skin matrix is a precious resource which is produced and consumed quite often during our lives. On one side, skin matrix is continuously synthesized by fibroblasts. On the other side, whenever it is damaged, malformed or worn out, skin matrix -particularly the structural proteins collagen and elastin- is broken down into fragments by collagenase and gelatinase enzymes, also named matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) and then reprocessed. By digesting key matrix proteins, such as collagen and elastin, MMP enzymes play an underappreciated yet critical role in skin physiology.

In healthy or youthful skin, the synthesis and degradation of the matrix are in order: damaged or disfunctional matrix is degraded while the deficit is restored by the progressing synthesis. Unfortunately, this complicated balance gets disrupted because of hormonal imbalances, malnutrition, or and as we age, too little of the matrix is synthesized and too much is degraded. As with any supply-demand imbalance, it can be improved by either increasing supply (boosting synthesis of the matrix) or reducing demand (inhibiting the breakdown).

In particular, the synthesis of elastin is physiologically crucial, although elastin is only 2% of the total protein in the epidermis. These skin fibers supply the flexibility of skin. Elastin synthesis and the regulation of the quantity of cross-linked insoluble elastin and collagen fibers depends on the interdependence between three factors. The first is the presence of active fibroblasts, which emanate the soluble precursor of elastin, tropoelastin. The second is the relative quantity of several skin matrix components within the dermis also secreted by fibroblasts. The third are enzymes that are in charge of both the cell degradation processes that allows the breakdown of dead cells into their component amino-acids and their renewal for the creation of new proteins (amino-acid chains).

So beware of products that contain soluble collagen and/or elastin, they will NOT do the trick.

What is necessary is the biosynthesis and appropriate self-assembly of complex skin structures from inside out your body. The first step in elastic fiber formation is the appearance of small cell surface-associated elastin globules (soluble tropoelastin) that enlarge in size with time (microassembly). The elastin globules are afterwards transferred to pre-existing elastic fibers in the skin matrix where, through an intricate and orchestrated biological process, they integrate into bigger structures (macroassembly) and become crosslinked funtional fiber-like polymers with changeable deformation and high resilience.

Collagen and Elastin Synthesis Boosters May Fail or Fall Short in People Affected by Atrophic Skin.

The most recent stretch mark treatments and prevention products are focused on restoring skin matrix by stimulating the synthesis of collagen or elastin (e.g. ascorbic acid, copper peptides, palmitoyl pentapeptide, oligopeptides and other|synthetic copper peptides, ascorbic acid, oligopeptides, palmitoyl pentapeptide, and other). Unfortunately, this method fails or falls short in most people affected by atrophic skin, apparently due to the particular chemistry of skin affected by such condition and an inability to answer to matrix synthesis boosters.

Their failure to treat existing stretch marks is most possibly due to something important ingredient absent in those products; an element that can help your skin to get rid of scar tissues and stretch marks. In fact, your body needs two things to accomplish this.

One, your body needs to be able to differentiate or identify scar tissue from the surrounding functional tissues in the skin matrix. Second, it must be able to process the proteins that those scar tissues are made off and divide their component amino-acids to then afterward use them to create new skin matrix elements.

This can only be accomplished by the action of two types of ingredients that act together. One is carrier molecules able to link communication between cells and allow them to differentiate scar tissues from functional and/ or healthy tissues and trigger fibroblast development. The other main ingredient is enzymes that dissolve the non functional, worn out, or damaged tissues that were identified by the messenger molecules.

Combined methods that include some form of abrading to physically break down some of the more superficial scarring, and a topical product that has not just moisturizing enhancers or collagen synthesis boosters, but also cell communicating ingredients, enzymes that 'dissolve' damaged cells and scar proteins and skin regenerating activators can provide significant improvements.

Such product can also effectively prevent stretch marks.