Symptoms of chapped lips include: Dry or scaling lips. Cracking skin. Peeling skin.
They are flaky and sometimes red or bloody, and they can be uncomfortable or painful. Chapped lips, also known as cheilitis, are very common, and they're most often caused by cold, dry, windy weather. While chapped lips are usually harmless, it's important to protect and hydrate them with the right treatment.
5. Your lips feel chapped. Dry, cracked lips could come from more than cold weather. Dehydration can also cause you to reach for lip balm, says Sheahan.
Apply a non-irritating lip balm (or lip moisturizer) several times a day and before bed. If your lips are very dry and cracked, try a thick ointment, such as white petroleum jelly. Ointment seals in water longer than waxes or oils. Slather on a non-irritating lip balm with SPF 30 or higher before going outdoors.
Both Dr. Brown and Dr. Gohara agree that treating chapped lips can take up to two to three weeks.
Saliva, spicy food, the sun and certain products can be irritating to your lips, while some medications and health conditions can cause your lips to be drier than usual. For instance, medications that cause dry mouth can also lead to drier lips.
Drink plenty of water and use a humidifier in your home to provide your lips with the moisture they need. Try a home remedy, like applying honey to your lips to soothe, heal, and moisturize them. Don't lick or pick at your lips.
Concussion, menopause, and hypothyroidism all have symptoms similar to being dehydrated. Here's how to tell them apart and when to seek an expert opinion. When you feel a headache (or fatigue or dizziness or mental fuzziness) come on, you may be quick to assume you're dehydrated.
Dry lips are considered an indicator of the entire body dehydrating, especially if you do not drink enough during the day.
As the saliva quickly evaporates, lips will likely end up drier than before. Occasionally licking the lips may not cause any problems. However, persistent licking throughout the day could dry out the lips and lead to chapping, splitting, flaking, or peeling.
When your lips are chapped, they can be rough and start to peel. Taking off skin that isn't completely dead, however, can lead to bleeding and pain — so be careful. Apply a gentle exfoliator like a sugar scrub with your finger. Be sure to follow with a good moisturizer.
Also known as xerostomia, dry mouth in people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes is common, but if you're experiencing it nearly every day, you shouldn't ignore it. In addition to your mouth feeling constantly dry, symptoms of xerostomia can also include: dry, rough-feeling tongue. dry, cracked lips.
Vaseline is known as an occlusive, which means it can hold in moisture . If you use Vaseline on your lips before they're dry and chapped, you may be able to stave off dryness. However, petroleum jelly isn't all that effective at restoring moisture once it's been lost.
According to Hayre, petrolatum, shea butter and other occlusives are the best ingredients for hydrating the lips.
HYDRATE: It is vital that you keep your lips hydrated by drinking enough water. Drinking sufficient water will help you get plump lips. Also, use a good lip balm with SPF.
Cracked or peeling lips: Heartache, worry, dryness in the body, feeling cold. Discoloration or faded colour in the lips: Lack of proper circulation throughout the body. Hot/burning/red lips: Inflammation or too much heat within the body due to overly spicy foods, too much sugar, alcohol or caffeine.
“Lip balms containing ingredients like phenol, menthol and salicylic acid actually make your lips drier. So you apply more, and it becomes a vicious cycle.” Some of these product also cause a tingling feeling when you apply them. This either causes irritation or removes outer layers of the skin, like an exfoliant.
Vitamin B-3 Without enough vitamin B-3 or niacin, a person may experience dry, cracked lips or tongue and a red, swollen mouth. A deficiency of this vitamin can also lead to dermatitis. People can get niacin in their diet by eating beef, pork, halibut, tuna, poultry, whole grains, dairy, and green leafy vegetables.
Chapped lips are harmless and could cause temporary irritation until treated. Persistent and severe chapped lips could be a sign of an underlying medical condition.
What does it look like? Solar cheilitis predominantly affects the lower lip because it tends to be more prominent. The homogenous pink color of the healthy lip (Figure A) is replaced with non-homogenous white/gray, pink, red, or brown areas and the normally sharp vermillion/skin border becomes less distinct (Figure B).