Your lips are thin-skinned, they lack oil glands and are completely exposed to the elements. This results in them being dry. There is also an age factor as well because as we age our lips become smaller, drier and will lose color. However, there are few women who make lip care a priority and this is something that you should consider.
Hydrate Your Lips From The Inside
Dry lips are one of the first signs that you are not drinking enough water. Dry lips can also be a sign that you are stressed as this will mess with your body and deplete the essential nutrients including water. Rehydrating does not mean that you have to force yourself to drink 8 glasses of water.
Coconut water and herbal teas, as well as vegetables and fruits with a high water content, will help you meet your water intake. The ideal amount of water that you should drink will vary depending on your lifestyle. If your lips start to feel a bit less dry, you are doing a good job.
Skip The Lipstick
The waxy balm that you apply to your lips is great for protecting against moisture loss, but it does nothing for adding any hydration. Lipstick is not absorbed into the lips to provide it with hydration. Additionally, if you have lipstick with camphor or menthol in it, your lips could dry out further and become irritated.
You should rather look at an ointment-like or creamy lip treatment which contains occlusives like shea butter and humectants like squalane which draw moisture from the air and into the skin. If you are in a tough situation, you could use hydrating eye cream instead as a temporary lip treatment. This cream will not be too greasy and should be applied in the morning and night as well as any time your lips feel dry.
Flaking Off
If you want to get rid of rough lip skin, you should prepare the lips with a moisturizing balm and then lightly brush the rough areas with a soft-bristle toothbrush. You can also look at using some brown sugar and coconut or olive oil which you rub onto the lip with your finger. You should then rinse the lips and apply another coating of your moisturizing balm. It is recommended that you exfoliate your lips once a week at most because more than this will leave them raw. If you want more info on lips, learn more here.
Protect The Lips
If your lip treatments do not contain SPF, you need to top it up with balms that do. You should look at balms that offer at least SPF 15 for every day use and SPF 30 if you are going to the beach.
