How Our Tallow Balm Helps with Stretch Marks & Scarring

We all have scars. Life is full of big and small moments that leave their marks on us in various ways and places, and there is no shame in that. The stories scars can tell they are powerful and undeniably beautiful in their own right. Our bodies will, however, always seek to heal them, to preserve our health. Stretch marks are living proof of this self-preservation tendency – as our bodies grow, whether throughout pregnancy or in fits and bursts during puberty, if our body doesn't have enough collagen to support the growth, rather than damaging other vital organs, it chooses the gentler route and stretches our skin out instead. 

 Does Our Tallow Balm Help with Stretch Marks and Other Scarring?

The benefits of tallow for both internal and external use are seemingly endless. Used topically in the form of tallow balm, it is one of the oldest forms of natural moisturizer in the world. Its compositional simplicity renders it a safe option to aid in healing stretch marks and other scars without irritating sensitive skin, as some plant-based oils or commercial moisturizing products might. In addition, regular use of tallow for skin care can help the prevention of stretch marks in the first place, as it is a rich source of Vitamin A, which encourages collagen and elastin production, and is a well-known anti-aging agent.

 What is Pasture-raised Tallow?

To better understand how tallow balm stands apart regarding skincare ingredients and natural scar amelioration, let us quickly explain what fat is and what makes Summer Solace's line of tallow products unique.

Tallow is by nature a clean, rendered animal fat that has traditionally been derived from cattle suet, the fat surrounding the loins and kidneys of the animal. Because of our equal commitment to both the earth's and our customer's health, we at Summer Solace choose to carefully source all of our suet from local Northern California ranches raising beef cattle on regenerative pasture and rendering it in-house ourselves. This fully traceable process ensures utmost freshness and purity, which make for higher quality tallow. Studies show that grass-fed tallow contains up to 4x more Vitamin E than tallow from grain-fed cows, not to mention that toxins tend to store themselves in fatty tissues, so any synthetic chemicals used in conventional cattle farming may remain in the final tallow product, which is not something you want from a skin care product. Your skin deserves the best.

Because of its animal origins, the fatty makeup of tallow is more similar to our natural, healthy body oil – sebum – than any plant-derived oil on the planet. Side note: the words suet (the source of tallow) and sebum, by the way, share the same Latin root, showing how long the history of using tallow for skin care extends! Even amongst animal fats, grass-fed tallow is uniquely and supremely compatible with human cell biology, primarily due to its high saturated fat content. Saturated fats comprise about 50% of the cell membrane structure in humans, with the remaining amounts consisting of monounsaturated and, to a lesser degree, polyunsaturated fats.

Tallow is rich in a broad range of fat-soluble Vitamins – A, D, K, and E, respectively – as well as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and palmitoleic acid, which contribute natural anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. This powerful combination of nutrients means tallow helps to strengthen your skin to keep it firm and smooth, soothe irritation, even out skin tone, protect against free radicals that can cause premature aging and reverse the damage, and deeply hydrate your body from the outside in—all of this in one simple ingredient.

 Incorporating Tallow into Your Routine for Healthy Skin

As they say, prevention is the best medicine. With pregnancy being the exception, predicting stretch marks is near impossible and not worth fretting over. With consistent, regular use of grass-fed tallow balm, you can supply your body with as many nutritive tools as possible to prepare for whatever life might bring your way, from minor cuts and burns to stretch marks.

We recommend finding a balm formula that resonates most with you and your skin goals. If you have sensitive skin or want to create your own essential oil scent blends, we suggest sticking to our Pure Unscented Tallow Balm formula. For those reasons, if you're currently pregnant or breastfeeding and want to stick to something milder, our Baby Soft Tallow Balm, with its delicate lavender scent, is ideal. All Summer Solace balms are safe to use anywhere on the body, wherever your skin might need some extra love.

Anytime your skin is feeling thirsty is a good time to apply tallow balm. Still, the best time – when your body can absorb all of the goodness grass-fed tallow has to offer – is post-bath or shower, when your skin is clean and warm, and your pores are open and available to take in all the available nutrients. After application, tallow balm, unlike other skin care products, which might leave your skin looking and feeling greasy, gives your skin a radiant and incomparable luscious feeling that will have you coming back for more.

Remember, human skin is incredibly resilient and wants to heal; all it asks is that you provide it with the care it needs to reciprocate.