First off...I'm posting a link to perhaps the most-viewed thread (or one of the top five, anyway!) here at 3FC:
Weight Loss & Skin FAQ
Even though it's primarily about loose skin...still what the heck...
I know quite a few folks who SWEAR by those 'after pregancy' stretch mark creams (most of them containing cocoa butter). Also, Mederma (a scar reducing gel) is marketed as being effective on stretch marks - but that would be VERY expensive to try out - last time I checked (and it's been awhile) it cost about $22 for a small tube, and the instructions were to apply and re-apply multiple times a day which could be a real PITA, IMO.
You probably have a better shot at reducing the look if you 'get 'em while they're fresh' - with older stretchmarks (white, silvery - like I have in abundance...
) you're probably just wasting your time and money. I think a lot of it has to do with genetics - I know several women who have been preggers and have no stretch marks that I can see, and then there's folks like ME, who have had them as long as they can remember (I can't recall a time when I DIDN'T have stretch marks...I figure I started getting them around 4th or 5th grade, about the time I had to start wearing a bra.
)
Anyways...that's my take on it...