Cold, dry weather, sun damage, and frequently licking your lips are just some of the reasons your lips might feel dry and chapped.
B vitamins
Chapped lips are a common symptom of deficiencies, especially in folate (vitamin B9), riboflavin (vitamin B2), and vitamins B6 and B12 ( 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ).
What Causes Chapped and Cracked Lips? Your lips don't have oil glands like the rest of your body, so they're more prone to dryness than other areas of your skin. Any of the following conditions can contribute to chapped lips. Dehydration – When you're dehydrated, your lips are more prone to dryness.
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.
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).
Being under stress for a long period of time, with accompanying symptoms such as low mood and tiredness, can result in cracked lips. As well as this, a poor diet which is low in iron and B vitamins may lead to lips becoming dry and sore.
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.
Iron deficiency can also cause the appearance of sore, red, flaky cracks at one or both of the sides of your mouth. This feels more extreme than when your lips are chapped due to cold weather.
"Chapped lips are often seasonal because cold air, brisk winds, and low humidity will cause the skin to lose more moisture," adds NYC-based Hadley King, MD, FAAD. "This can also contribute to seasonal flares of eczema." Furthermore, if left untreated, Dr. Cheung says dry, chapped lips can start to peel.
The secret to dealing with dry, sore, chapped lips is to find a way to lock in moisture and protect the lips from the cold, dry air. Vaseline® Healing Jelly is an excellent choice as it forms a protective layer on the lips and penetrates deep down to rehydrate the skin and speed up the its natural renewal process.
Overview. Lip damage from picking or biting can be a sign of dermatillomania.
White or pale lips are often accompanied by general paleness affecting the face, lining of the eyes, inside of the mouth, and the nails. This is usually caused by anemia, which is a low red blood cell count. Anemia that causes pale or white lips is severe and requires immediate medical attention.
Health issues like low stomach acid, poor nutrition, and an unhealthy gut can lead to chapped lips. If you are dehydrated, the body will absorb water from the remaining body to hydrate its cells. This can cause constipation and dry skin and lips.
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.
Chapped lips is an early sign of low thyroid function. A more severe form of hypothyroidism is called HASHIMOTO'S DISEASE.
Vitamin deficiency is the most common cause of cheilitis. The absence of vitamin B2 in the body slows down the metabolism of fats, proteins, and carbohydrates and decreases energy production. Thus, increasing the intake of B2 and eating foods like eggs, milk, and lean meat may help reverse the problem of cheilitis.
Cheilitis is an inflammation of the lips. It may be acute or chronic, involving the vermilion and/or surrounding skin of one or both lips.
Actinic cheilitis is a precancerous lesion that forms most commonly on the lower lip. Similar to actinic keratosis, actinic cheilitis can undergo malignant transformation leading to squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).
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.
Cracked Lips:
It is common to have cracked or dry lips during winters or with a habit of licking the lips frequently. But, people who lack enough iron can suffer from a specific type of cracking called “Angular Cheilitis” that affects the corners of the mouth. This makes it difficult to eat, smile or even talk.
Vitiligo of the lateral lower lip is a specific type of lip vitiligo which forms about 16% of all vitiligo patients. [1] It starts as a tiny dot at the lateral part of the lower lip and spreads medially as a linear streak along the vermillion border.