Nobody likes dry lips.
Nobody likes dry lips.Dry cracked lips are uncomfortable. We all know it. Think about talking to someone while you are fighting a losing battle with your chapped lips. You're licking them, you can feel them peeling, they're tight and awkward, and you feel like they're all the person you're talking to is focusing on. And you might be right.
Dry lips can also be painful. Left untreated, lack of moisture can cause tiny splits and cracks in your lips, making certain foods like citrus or tomatoes nearly impossible to eat.
If you're someone who wears lipstick, forget it. The color will clump up on dry skin patches and leave your lips looking unappealing. Even if you don't wear lipstick, nobody likes the appearance of chapped lips.
What causes chapped lips?
So how do you get chapped lips anyway? There are so many reasons, it seems almost impossible to avoid them all:
- dry, hot or cold weather
- changes in weather
- air conditioners in the summer, heaters in the winter
- singing, talking, laughing
- licking your lips
- not drinking enough water
- not eating enough fruits and vegetables
- some mouth care products and certain medications
Don't forget breathing through your mouth, which even if we don't do during the day, most of us do at night while we're sleeping (Imagine laughing at your friend or partner in a deep sleep, spread out with their mouth hanging open. We all do it!).
Why are lips so sensitive?
You probably already know that your skin is what protects your insides from the outside. It's important. And, for the most part, it produces its own oil (sebum) through sebaceous glands. If it's not in balance, it might produce too much oil or too little oil, but at least it has a defense system.
Your lips don't have sebaceous glands (if you've heard that we have ectopic sebaceous glands in our lips, remember that ectopic=abnormal), so they can't produce protective oil on their own. In addition to this, the stratum corneum (the surface layer of our skin) is thinner in the lips than anywhere else. This is the reason your lips are reddish - your capillaries are closer to the surface. Cool, huh?
Without their own oil glands, lips are prone to drying out, and with only a thin surface layer for protection, overly dried lips can easily crack and peel.
Go to Lip Care Guide, Part II - How to prevent dry chapped lips.
Skip ahead to Lip Care Guide, Part III - Why use natural lip balm?
Buy Wunder Budder natural lip balm now.
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