Lip Care

           The skin of the lip, with three to five cellular layers, is very thin compared to typical face skin, which has up to 16 layers. With light skin color, the lip skin contains fewer melanocytes (cells which produce melanin pigment, which give skin its color). Because of this, the blood vessels appear through the skin of the lips, which leads to their notable red coloring. With darker skin color this effect is less prominent, as in this case the skin of the lips contains more melanin and thus is visually darker. The skin of the lip forms the border between the exterior skin of the face, and the interior mucous membrane of the inside of the mouth.

             The lip skin is not hairy and does not have sweat glands. Therefore, it does not have the usual protection layer of sweat and body oils which keep the skin smooth, inhibit pathogens, and regulate warmth. For these reasons, the lips dry out faster and become chapped more easily.

Your lips are one of the most prominent and visible features on your face. So, sporting chapped, unhealthy looking lips may just take away from your personality and may be a turn-off. And with the dry season approaching, lips are almost always the first part of the body to get affected, given that they have a very thin outer layer of skin. So here's our guide to a few things you need to make sure to have luscious, super-kissable lips!

Moisturise

           Since your lips have very few oil secreting glands, they are the first to fall prey to any sudden drop in temperature. A number of over-the-counter lip balms always do the trick. Dr Sandip Jain, cosmetic surgeon, says petroleum jelly is the best thing to guard your lips. "It is best to use non-flavoured petroleum jelly as it great at coating your lips and preserving the moisture content," he adds.

Quit licking your lips

            With dry lips, people have a natural tendency to lick them to moisturise them. This is a wrong way to go about it since it could lead to them further cracking up. At times, people even develop angry looking red circles on lips since licking them often robs them of the delicate natural oils. Try using a mix of petroleum jelly and honey if you're in the habit of licking lips, since petroleum jelly is amazingly resistant to moisture.

Keep a good diet

            Chapped lips are sign of overall ill health. Try and maintain a healthy diet. Eat a lot of fruits and foods with high water content like grapefruit, watermelons and oranges. Also, if you have problems with blisters appearing on your lips, avoid fatty foods as they could alleviate the condition.

Smoker's lips

Smoking may cause your lips to get discoloured because of the high nicotine content in cigarettes. The best way to avoid this is to entirely quit smoking. But if you cannot for some reason, try washing your mouth after a cigarette. Dr Jain says all citrus fruits are good bleaching agents, "One can use lime juice on the dry part of their lips to try and lighten them," he says. Also, apple cider vinegar and lime juice have properties of a mild bleaching agent. Rub a cotton ball dipped in these liquids and rub them over your lips. Over a period of time it may help lighten the dark skin.

Article By: Reza Noorani