Belly Body Butter to Prevent Stretch Marks

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Last Updated on February 8, 2024

With every new baby comes new memories, little baby clothes, lots of cuddles, and unfortunately for many moms, stretch marks. If you’re dealing with old stretch marks, or want to prevent new ones, there are ways to help your skin repair itself. With this belly body butter, you’ll be able to prevent stretch marks and soothe itchy skin.

Unsightly stretch marks

When I was pregnant with my son, I kept waiting around for the belly bump to show up, but for the first 6 months I just looked like I’d eaten too much for supper. Once the cute baby bump did show up, so did the stretch marks. Lots of them.

I didn’t know very much about natural health and bodycare at the time, and I wish that someone had given me this recipe when I was pregnant! During pregnancy your body is going through lots of changes and the skin on your stomach is doing a lot of stretching. It can be an itchy, uncomfortable process, but it doesn’t have to be.

Shea butter and cocoa butter are well known for soothing skin and keeping it supple. They’re both rich butters that give your skin tons of moisture. You don’t need very much, or your skin will feel overly greasy. This recipe combines the rich, heavy butters with the thinner, faster absorbing sweet almond oil to prevent that overly greasy feel.

Essential oil magic

Essential oils are great for so many things, and stretch marks are no different. Some essential oils shouldn’t be used during pregnancy, as they can cause uterine contractions or irritation. Aromatic and even diluted topical use of certain essential oils is okay and even beneficial during pregnancy. Some generally recommended to wait until the second trimester before using any essential oils, however I personally think that’s overly conservative. Regardless, do what you feel comfortable with.

Neroli essential oil is safe for use during pregnancy and helps to prevent stretch marks and repair scars. It’s a rejuvenating and regenerating essential oil, making it perfect for a stretch mark preventing belly body butter! Neroli comes from the blossom of the bitter orange tree and has a sweet, almost honey like scent to it.

Frankincense essential oil is the other essential oil in this belly body butter. It comes from the resin of the frankincense tree and has a deep, musky, amber like smell to it. Not only is this one good at preventing stretch marks and regenerating skin cells, but it also helps to diminish the appearance of old stretch marks.

This recipe contains .5% of each essential oil for a total of 1%. This dilution is half of what’s typically used for skincare, and is considered safe for those with more sensitive skin and pregnant women. Don’t think that because it’s diluted it isn’t powerful though. Essential oils are highly concentrated substances, and should almost always be diluted.

Belly body butter to prevent stretch marks

• 2 T. cocoa butter, or 6 cocoa butter wafers
• 3 T. shea butter
• 1/3 cup sweet almond oil
• 13 drops neroli essential oil
• 13 drops frankincense essential oil

1. Fill a saucepan half full of water. Place a glass bowl on top of the sauce pan to create a makeshift double boiler.
2. Place the cocoa butter, shea butter and sweet almond oil into the glass bowl. Turn the heat on and melt the oil and butters together, stirring occasionally.
3. Once everything has melted and is thoroughly combined, remove the glass bowl from the heat and allow the mixture to cool for a few minutes.
4. Add the essential oils and stir the belly body butter very well to incorporate. You can  also whip the mixture with a  stand  mixer.
5. Store in a glass jar and apply a thin layer to growing, and/or itchy skin as often as needed.