We all love to pout when clicking a picture, but pouting with dry and chapped lips, is definitely not pleasant. So, as much as we put time and effort into our skincare routine, we must give some time to our lips as well. Most often we tend to ignore our lips and end up having dry and cracked lips. Apart from not taking care of our lips properly, we also make some unknown mistakes that severely damage our lips.
“Lip care is also an integral part of the skincare routine and it is necessary to use the right products for our lips to have beautiful and luscious lips,” says Celebrity Dermatologist and Founder of Tender Skin International, Dr. Sonia Tekchandani. She points out a few common mistakes most of us do that leave our lips chapped.
Remains of your lipstick
Are you someone who can’t step out without using lipstick? Well, if you want to ensure that your lips make a statement every day, you need to get rid of your lipstick remnants properly every day. Often, we do not remove our makeup thoroughly, especially from the lips and it can make your lips age faster. As the makeup particles remain on your lips for longer, they can damage the skin of your lips and even darken the lips. So, ensure to remove your lipstick, lip-gloss, and lipliner at the end of the day with micellar water or coconut or almond oil.
Using the same old lipstick
We all have our favorite lipsticks and we use the same one until its completely finished. Well, using the same old lipstick can be quite damaging to your lips. When you repeatedly use the same lipstick, it tends to gather a lot of gunk and when you apply I on your lips all those dirt and bacteria are transferred to your lips. This can not only cause irritation, itching or even redness on your lips but it can also lead to pigmentation in future. So, always make sure you are not using any expired lipstick and sometimes give your lips a little break from lipsticks and you can use tinted lip balms or lip gloss for that touch of color.
Skipping Exfoliation
Picking off the flakes from your lips can be quite harmful to your skin. Dry and chapped lips often lead to flakes on your lips that is nothing but built-up of dead skin cells. So, your lips too need exfoliation once a week to ensure that it gets rid of all the dry flakes and regular exfoliation makes your lips softer and supple. You can mix in one teaspoon of sugar with olive oil or honey and exfoliate your lips once a week for 2-3 minutes.
You are missing out on sunscreen
Yes, you heard that right. Your lips also require sunscreen to protect them from the harsh rays of UVA and UVB. A lip balm with an SPF not only protects the lips from sun exposure but also aids in keeping hyperpigmentation at bay. Besides, excessive sun exposure can lead to dryness and chapped lips which can be hard to get rid of in the future. So, ensure to use a lip balm with an SPF of at least 20 to shield your lips from the sun and any kind of external damage.
