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Are your lips getting chapped by weather or something else?
Chapping is not only a cosmetic problem, but it also causes problem in eating. Lips may hurt if they get cracked and blood comes out of those cracks. Is chapping of lips only because of change of weather? Most of us think that cold weather or the wind causes chapping of the lips and a good moisturizer will treat the chapping and make lips look healthy again. That is not true for all of us. Some of us may have chapped lips all through the year because of other reasons. Many skin diseases, allergies and drugs may cause it. Learn more to keep your lips beautiful. Let us first find out more about lip skin.
How the lip skin is different?
Lips do not have sebaceous glands. Because of absence of sebaceous glands, lips are not protected by the sebum. Lips also do not have any sweat glands. The dead layer on the epidermis of lip skin is much thinner compared to body skin. The thin dead layer also makes lips more susceptible to damage from weather and other factors.
Reasons For Chapped Lips
Weather is one of the main reasons of chapped lips. The cold weather dries the lips. Similarly if the air is short of humidity as in air conditioned areas, or heated areas, lips lose moisture. This loss of moisture chaps the lips. Wind can also chap the lips. If you walk out on windy days without protecting your lips, you may get chapped lips.
Other Reasons For Chapped Lips
Chapping may be because of allergies, side effects of medications or skin problems.
Excess Vitamin A
Look at your medicines. Are you taking more than required amount of vitamin A? Are you using any skin care product containing retinoids on lips? That may be one cause of chapped lips. Vitamin A in excess peels and dries the skin.
Diseases That May Cause Chapped Lips
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Psoriasis and lichen planus can cause chapped lips. These diseases may affect the lips and unless you treat the cause, the chapped look will not go.
- Candida infection may chap the lips at the corners. You will have to talk to your doctor and find out the cause of the cracks at the corners. This problem is also called as Angular Chelitis.
- Cracks at the corners of the lips may also form due to saliva and allergies. You may be allergic to lip care products. You may also be having contact allergy to some foods, which may cause allergic contact dermatitis on your lips. Other reasons may be allergy to candies, flavors, etc. Your doctor will guide you more about allergies.
- Some medications may be causing chapped lips. Talk to your doctor about that.
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