Got Chapped Lips? The Ultimate Lip Care Guide

Dry lips got you down?

We have all been there!

No matter the season, sometimes our lips are just dry. But why?

We decided to do a look at some of the causes of chapped, dry lips and find the best tips to keep them smooth and hydrated. After all, a proper lip care routine could be the answer you are looking for.

Causes

There are many causes of dry lips. Some of these include:

• Constant Lip Licking
• Dehydration
• The Weather
• Illness
• Medication

According to Healthline, lips do not have oil glands. This means that it is easier for lips to dry out. When you add the many factors that are listed above, it can make dryness on your pout even worse.

Exposure

Our lips are constantly exposed to the elements. Environmental factors, like weather, often play a role in chapped lips. This is especially the case if you live in a colder climate and deal with harsh winters and severe cold that can bring wind and dry air.

However, did you know that the summer heat can affect your lips too?

Sun exposure in the summertime is often the main culprit to dry lips.

Since our lips are on our face it is exposed to the elements on a daily basis 24/7.

Hydration

The weather is not the only reason your lips are dry. Maybe you are dehydrated?

Not getting enough fluids daily can lead to dehydration. This often leads to dryness not only for your lips but all of your skin.

Malnutrition is also a factor as well. Making sure your body if properly nourished is important to stay healthy and maintain hydration in your lips.

To Lick or Not to Lick

Do you lick your lips a lot?

Many of us do and sometime we may not be aware that we do it that often too. You may think that licking your lips is adding moisture but it actually does the opposite!

The saliva from your mouth can dry your skin out instead of hydrate. According to Nivea USA,  your saliva evaporates quickly and leaves your lips drier than before due to the enzymes it contains. The enzymes are harsh on the skin.

Our lips are delicate, so even though it may be hard to stop, we should not lick our lips!

 Other Health Factors

Another factor that you may not realize affect your lips are some health conditions and certain medications.

According to Everyday Health, such conditions can include:

• Thyroid Disease
• Vitamin Deficiencies (i.e.: low iron, low zinc & low B Complex levels)
• Crohn's Disease
• Angular Cheilitis (This is cause by yeast overgrowth, cold weather, and/or irritation)

Another condition named Actinic Cheilitis occurs when the lips have sun damage. This condition will create constant dryness in the lips especially to the bottom lip. The bottom lip is constantly exposed to the sun. 

Some of the symptoms to look out for according to Healthline are:

• a dark pink or red color
• lumpy texture
• ulcers
• development of white plaques on the surface of the lip
• cracked skin at the corners of the mouth and on your lips

If you feel like you have any of these symptoms or diseases, consult your physician or dermatologist.

How can we prevent dryness?

A proper lip care is all you need in most cases to prevent dryness and chapped lips.

Most of the time we concentrate on a skin care routine for our face and feet, or a beauty care routine for our hair, but we often forget about lips!

A lip care regimen can aid in keeping your lips healthy, clean, smooth, and hydrated.

It is important when setting up your beauty regimen to look at the ingredients in the products you use. There are many products out there that contain harmful and irritating ingredients that will not help your skin feel relief.

Beauty By Earth mentioned to choose your lip products free from irritants and chemicals and use products with natural ingredients in their place.

A Natural Lip Care Regimen

A natural Lip Care Routine should be something done daily. Just like we have a routine for our face, we should include a daily lip care.

The first step to any routine is to make sure that it is done daily and consistently. This is the best prevention of dry and chapped lips. 

The next step should be to make sure you clean all of your make up from your lips every night. Your pores need to breath and should not sleep with lip line, lip gloss, lipstick etc. 

Exfoliation cleans our skin and removes any dead skin cells. This can be done with a natural scrub of sugar or even salt. Also a pumice can be used as well. When exfoliating, make sure your hands are clean. Gently massage your lips with the exfoliant and rinse once complete.

You should exfoliate lips no more than 1-2 times per week. If you exfoliate more than that, it will make your lips irritated. It can cause soreness, redness, pain, and irritation.

After exfoliating, it is important to moisturize with a natural lip balm. It is also important to moisturize and apply a natural lip balm at lease twice daily. Ideally in the morning and evening. Lip Balm should be applied before make up in the morning.

Check out our Lip Care Guide

With a daily lip care routine your lips will be healthy, hydrated, clean, and picture perfect!

Do you have a daily lip care regimen?