Our lips are SO important. When they are soft and plump, we smile more and even talk more. When they feel good, we feel good. We might even be prone to smooching when our lips are looking and feeling particularly healthy. On the other hand, when our lips look dry and chapped our subconscious kicks in and we either shy away from conversation so that no one will notice our pitiful lips, or we draw attention to them by announcing our struggle.
“I chew my lips because I’m stressed! Don’t look at them!”
It sucks when our lips feel bad, but it sucks even more when WE feel bad, too. How can we end this vicious cycle?
We love ourselves, that’s how.
Taking care of your lips should be as important as taking care of your teeth, your hair, and your nails. Don’t take them for granted; they need love, too. Get started by arming yourself with some helpful information about your lips.
1. Why do lips become dry?
There are no sweat glands in or around the lip area. This means that they need to stay moisturized. This also explains why they dry out so darn fast. Dry lips need to be corrected right away as the dryness can lead to even more annoying cracking and inflammation. No, thank you.
2. Why do lips lose their pucker?
That plumpness in our lips is a result of an important protein called collagen. As we age, our collagen production decreases. This sad reality is the reason that lips become thinner.
3. Why are all lips not created equal?
Ever notice that your natural lip color is not the same as anyone else’s? This is because the skin on our lips is thinner than anywhere else on the body which causes the blood vessels to be visible. That’s right, the natural color of your lips is actually the blood flowing underneath the skin!
NOW WHAT?
Maybe you’ve neglected your lips up to now. Don’t beat yourself up (even if you’re tasting blood from the relentless chewing of your inner lip because, let’s face it, that’s abuse enough). The good news is that they haven’t fallen off your face, so you can begin to care for them NOW.
Follow these suggestions and you’ll be on your way to the perfect pucker.
1. Stop licking your lips
This only dries them out even more.
2. Exfoliate your lips
We exfoliate our faces in order to remove dead skin cells and reveal glowing healthy skin, don’t we? Our lips deserve the same treatment. Be careful though! Don’t wait for your lips to be cracked and damaged as exfoliating can lead to more damage. If there is no sign of damage, exfoliate simply using warm water and a washcloth. Sugar scrubs are also an indulgent and delicious way to slough off dead skin, but make sure that the sugar is very fine as large granules can injure the skin.
3. Love your lips with moisturizer
Moisturize your lips with natural oils and/or organic lips balms. Oils are such an easy way to keep your lips hydrated and they are easily accessible, so there is no reason for your lips to be dry. Don’t have Jojoba or Argan oil on hand? Grab your good ole olive oil from the pantry and get to moisturizing.
Balms, on the other hand, are a way to treat your lips to a combination of beautiful oils. If you like the feel of an emollient balm blended with sweet smelling and beneficial essential oils, then lip balm is for you. Be sure to READ labels in order to avoid balms with toxic and harmful ingredients that can be damaging. Which ingredients should you avoid? Petroleum or petrolatum, Parabens of any kind, mineral oils, fragrance, and chemical sunscreens!
Many beautiful oils contain natural sunscreen protection like coconut oil, almond oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil, and red raspberry seed oil coming in with the most natural SPF of between 30 to 50!
4. Apply lip balm before bed
If we are not talking in our sleep then we are not using our lips and they can rest blanketed in the nourishing moisture of whichever beautiful balm we’ve used. Choose a lip balm that is thoughtfully formulated with the most beautiful and organic ingredients. Seriously, you should be able to eat it.
Whichever lip moisturizer you choose, just be sure that you’ve chosen carefully, and …
JUST DO IT!
Remember, you and your lips are important. Don’t neglect them or yourself.
Now, go and take care of those smoochers!
Sources
1. Cleveland Clinic
2. Encyclopedia Britannia
3. New York Institute of Aromatic Studies Media Medica
