Why Cellulite Occurs

No one really knows why cellulite occurs. A number of reasons and theories exist. Some individuals have a number of factors who predispose them to cellulite, whereas in others, there are no identifiable risk factors

Genetic: There is a genetic link to cellulite. Many women who do develop cellulite have other family members and siblings with the condition, but not every one in the family is affected. The exact gene and linkage remain unknown. It is thought that some individuals have some type of fat cells that readily accumulate fat or are sensitive to hormones.

Water: Some believe that cellulite is more common when the intake if water is limited. These researchers claim that water flushes out the toxins that cause cellulite and recommend 7 glasses a water daily. Cellulite is a fat product and can never be eliminated by just drinking water. However, individuals who do drink water also develop cellulite and so the water theory is meaningless.

Diet: Some claim that poor dietary habits such as eating spices, drinking alcohol and too much coffee make one predisposed to cellulite. However, there are many such individuals who do not develop cellulite. The link between eating spicy foods and cellulite is puzzling since millions of Asians who do consume such foods do not have cellulite.

Obesity: Obesity makes an individual more prone to get cellulite. The condition of obesity leads to increased fat deposits in all over the body. One has to remember that even thin people also develop cellulite.

Smoking: The role of smoking and cellulite is also questionable; there is no doubt that smoking is not good for health and that smoking odes create a lot of medical problems. Smoke contains 1000s of chemicals and can generate free radicals. How smoking affects the fat cells and causes cellulite is anyone's guess.

Stress: Others claim that both physical and emotional stress are contributors to cellulite. The stress is thought to affect the muscle and tissues of the body leading to accumulation of cellulite. Stress is the universal evil. One may be rich, poor, fat, thin, married, divorced or whatever, stress is always present to some degree in all individuals. Stress does cause an increase in a number of hormones but how they interplay and cause cellulite is not understood. Stress is an empirical risk factor for everything in life not only cellulite.

Medications: There is a lot of literature on the internet about consuming medications and cellulite. Every medication has been blamed to cause cellulite. To what extent certain medications do cause cellulite is hard to know because most individuals take so many pills during their life time that a cause and effect is hard to know.

Oral contraceptives. There is no doubt that women who take the birth control pill do put on weight and some of it may be cellulite. Estrogen is known to cause fat deposition in the waist, hips and buttocks. Estrogen also can cause fluid retention and lead to development of weakened vessels.

Pregnancy: Most women develop cellulite following pregnancy. The major causes are believed to be the weight gain and a surge of the hormones. The hormones weaken the connective tissues and enlarge the fat cells.

Exercise: The role of exercise and health is undisputed. Exercise is good for overall health. Lack of exercise does cause weight gain and cellulite also. But one should note that cellulite is also common in thin people who exercise. One should note that cellulite is always more worse in the inactive individuals

Massages: There is a belief that heavy, harsh or improper massage can lead to damage to the lymphatic vessels which transport fat. This then leads to deposition of fat in other parts of the body. This is just a theory as most lymphatics are found deep in the body. If rough massage was the cause of cellulite, the Thai massage industry would have been out of business decades ago. In North America, the massage parlors are flourishing and there is no one proof that such therapy is harmful.

Final Word

In truth, the exact cause(s) of cellulite is not known but many people voice their opinions without any scientific basis. Obesity, inactive life style and the female sex hormones are the dominant factors but how they interact with each other remains unknown. One can rest assured that cellulite once acquired is hard to get rid off.