Cracked and Chapped: Understanding the Causes and Treatments for Dry Lips, As Explained by a Doctor

One of the most uncomfortable sensations is chapped, dry lips that feel as if they are splitting. Worse, it seems that no amount of lip balm can fix the sensation of dryness, peeling or tight lips. While your favorite lip balm feels good in the moment and provides a shine that can be mistaken for moisture, these products don't address the root cause of dry, chapped lips. TBH, you might not know what's causing these flaky, uncomfortable dry lips. Although annoying, chapped lips are actually quite common and can happen for a variety of reasons such as drying beauty products, extreme temperatures and more.

What causes dry lips?
"Extremely dry lips can be caused by many things, such as weather, sun damage, humidity, dehydration, lip products, constant lip licking and malnutrition.

excessive temperature
"Extreme temperatures, such as dry heat or cold air, can dry out the skin on the lips and cause them to crack and peel," Dr. Koo says. In fact, environmental factors are a common cause of dry lips; For example, when the cold winter temperatures rise, the humidity and humidity in the air drop sharply, causing the moisture on your skin to evaporate quickly. Your lips are one of the most vulnerable areas on your face exposed to those harsh cold winds and will therefore dry out, crack or peel faster than the rest of your skin.

Makeup
Ingredients in lip products and lipsticks, such as dyes, fragrances, and perfumes, are another common culprit for causing dry, chapped, or chapped lips. "You want to make sure [the lip balm] doesn't have fragrance, menthol, camphor, or salicylic acid. If you're using a product and you feel like it's not getting better, you should usually switch to something milder. should consider switching to, Dr. Ugonabo said. Lip products that contain heavy fragrances and colors can dry out your lips over time because these ingredients can block your pores and disrupt your lips' natural oil balance. as well as potentially causing inflammation or irritation.

Vitamin and nutrient deficiencies
Aside from cosmetic products that dry out your lips, other items that are used daily or consumed frequently can be the undoubted culprits for dry lips. These items include mouthwash, toothpaste, dried or pickled foods with high concentrations of preservatives, and spicy and salty foods, Dr. Koo says. Strong ingredients in mouthwash and toothpaste can absorb into the lips and dry out the skin. Likewise, foods that are salty, spicy, or high in preservatives can dry out both the mouth and lips and cause chapped skin.

How to treat and prevent dry lips

Makeup
One of the first steps in dealing with dry lips is to make a list of the products you are using on them, as these are often the cause of the problem. Avoid using lip products that contain fragrances, which can cause irritation, as well as flavored lip balms that can lead to constant lip licking, Dr. Koo recommends. These products usually contain artificial colors derived from aluminum and are often listed on the packaging as "D&C Red No. 21" or a similar color and number combination.

Environment and weather
If you live in a climate with cold temperatures, "cover your lips with a scarf to protect them from drying out due to extreme cold temperatures and harsh winds," Dr. Koo says. Cold winds draw moisture from the lips, causing chapped and peeling lips.

Medical conditions
In extreme cases, your dry chapped lips can become infected and cause bacterial cheilitis (inflammation of the lips due to bacterial or fungal infection) and may require antibiotic intervention, Dr. Koo explains. If your dry, itchy lips do not improve after implementing the above methods, or if you experience bleeding lips, swelling of your mouth, hives (a skin rash that is raised, itchy), or difficulty breathing, You should consult a dermatologist.