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Lip Tips: How to Take Care of Your Lips for Your Next Vacation

Lip Tips: How to Take Care of Your Lips for Your Next Vacation

Girl Touching Her Lips Pink Background

As an avid traveler, you’ve probably noticed that galavanting around the globe can cause your makeup to oxidize and your lips to chap, crack, or sprout a cold sore or two. While these lip woes are especially annoying and painful, there are ways to healthify your pout. For example, using a good-quality lip balm and adopting a nightly lip routine can make a world of difference. 

To learn more lip tips and tricks, along with how to take care of your lips for your upcoming summer vacation, keep reading:

Lip Tips: Learn About Your Lips

Anatomy of the Lips

Pictured: Lip Tips: Learn Your Lip Anatomy  |   Source: Rejuvent

Before we get into lip tips and how to take care of your lips for your next vacay, it’s important to start with the basics. While you’re probably aware that your skin has an epidermis, did you know your lips have one, too? Your lips’ epidermis is much thinner than the skin on the other parts of your body, meaning that they’re more sensitive and prone to things like dryness. 

Dryness happens because your lips don’t have oil glands, making it hard for them to retain moisture on their own. Additionally, the skin on your lips doesn’t have hair follicles or sweat glands like the skin on your body, which is why it’s important to use gentle products. When traveling – especially – make sure to be mindful of the weather and how it can impact your lips.

Some fun (and factual) lip tips to remember are:

  • Just like your fingerprint, your lips are unique.
  • Your lips get thinner as you age.
  • The outline of your lips is called the Vermillion Border (see photo above).
  • Your lips are made of complex muscles known as orbicularis oris.
  • Your lips can’t sweat.

Common Lip Problems You Might Have Encountered and Their Causes

Chapped Lips
Pictured: Lip Tips: Chapped Lips

Ever gotten to your travel destination only to find yourself with chapped lips after a few hours? Or maybe you noticed a cold sore making its sly appearance during the flight? Either way, these lip issues can put a damper on your vacay and take away from your relaxation

To better learn how to take care of your lips for your next adventure, here are a few lip tips on common conditions you might encounter (or have encountered): 

  • Chapped Lips

  • Chapped lips can happen to you anywhere and anytime.
  • Some causes of chapped lips may include irritated skin, allergies, frequent sun exposure, infection, and autoimmune conditions.
  • Chapped lips are usually dry and scaly with small cracks.
  • Sometimes, chapped lips may be accompanied by a pink, scaly ring around your mouth and mild-to-moderate swelling of your lips.

SUBTL BEAUTY PROTIP: To prevent and treat chapped lips, apply a good-quality lip balm daily in a way that slightly overlines your lips.

  • Split/Cracked Lips

Split Cracked Lips

Pictured: Lip Tips: Split/Cracked Lips

    • A cold sore is a blister that typically appears on or around your lips.
    • Caused by a viral infection, cold sores are widespread and affect more than half of Americans between the ages of 14 and 49.
    • A cold sore can develop multiple times a year or only once or twice in your lifetime as the frequency of an outbreak varies from person to person.
    • The first sign of a cold sore is a tingling, burning, or itching sensation on or around your lips.

    SUBTL BEAUTY PROTIP: To avoid re-infecting your lips and getting another cold sore, use cotton swabs or your finger to apply lipstick if the cold sore is visible.

    • Cold Sores

    Cold Sores

    Pictured: Lip Tips: Cold Sores

    A cold sore is a blister that typically appears on or around your lips.
    • Caused by a viral infection, cold sores are widespread and affect more than half of Americans between the ages of 14 and 49.
    • A cold sore can develop multiple times a year or only once or twice in your lifetime as the frequency of an outbreak varies from person to person.
    • The first sign of a cold sore is a tingling, burning, or itching sensation on or around your lips.

    SUBTL BEAUTY PROTIP: To avoid re-infecting your lips and getting another cold sore, use cotton swabs or your finger to apply lipstick if the cold sore is visible.

    Lip Tips on How to Care For Your Lips

    Do not lick Lips

    Pictured: Lip Tips: How to Keep From Licking Your Lips

    When it comes to lip tips on how to care for your lips, it’s important to always remember that prevention is key. Just like with SPF, it’s vital to protect and nourish your lips before, during, and after your next vacay to make sure they stay ultra-healthy. Here’s how:
    • As we mentioned previously, your lips don’t have any protection of their own, meaning that each time you lick or touch them, they’re directly impacted. Think back: If you’ve ever licked your lips, you’ve probably noticed that while you get a fleeting second of relief, your saliva often evaporates in record time, leaving your lips dry as a bone yet again.

    • This is because your saliva is chock full of enzymes that are incredibly harsh on your delicate lip skin. When you lick your lips, these enzymes take up residence, worsening your dry lip symptoms. Touching your lips – on the other hand – could pass bacteria and viruses resulting in cold sores and/or severe chapped/cracked lips.  

    • Follow a Healthy Diet and Stay Hydrated

    Good food for the lips

    Pictured: Lip Tips: Foods Good for Your Lips

    You probably don’t need us to tell you that the foods you eat matter. When it comes to your lips – studies have shown that vitamin C-rich foods (citrus fruits, tomatoes, and bell peppers) can lessen your risk of dry, chapped lips. Foods with zinc (oysters, beef, crab) and vitamin E (nuts, leafy greens) can also keep your lips smooth and moisturized. 

    If you’re traveling somewhere this summer that requires you to get on a plane, it’s vital to maintain your hydration levels for optimal lip health. Planes tend to have low humidity, which can cause your skin and lips to dry out and/or crack. The Aerospace Medical Association says to drink eight ounces of water for every hour you’re in the air to keep in tip-top shape. 

    • Have a Lip Care Routine

    Lip Care Routine

    Pictured: Lip Tips: DIY Lip Scrub Recipe

    As for how to care for your lips – having a well-thought-out lip routine can keep you from dealing with any lip-related travel hiccups. For example, make sure to always take off your makeup at night to let your lips breathe. To do this, use a gentle washcloth to delicately swipe off the lippy you wore all day. Next, use a mild lip scrub (or make your own) to remove any dead skin cells.

    If you’re feeling a little extra, you can also try taking a digital detox and massaging your lips with nourishing oils for around four to five minutes. This can improve your lips’ blood circulation and make sure they’re getting the nutrients they need. Before bed, remember to turn on your humidifier and throw on a lip cream or even some petroleum jelly for optimal hydration. 

    The Ultimate Lip Tip on How to Care For Your Lips: Grab the Subtl Beauty Lip Balm

    Subtl Lip Balm

    No matter where your travels are taking you this year, it’s always important to care for your lips as they’re extremely delicate and need a little extra TLC. To travel without the worry of chapped lips and/or annoying cold sores, add the Sutbl Beauty Lip Balm to your Stack for nourishment. 

    Our ultra-sheer and silky Lip Balm enhances the natural color of your lips, while also providing intense hydration with a blend of shea butter, coconut oil, and vitamin E. The Subtl Beauty Lip Balm comes in three options: unflavored, peach, and cake pop (sounds decadent, right?)

    To grab a Subtl Beauty Lip Balm for your Stack, click here. Or if you’re new around these parts and want to fully customize one of our innovative Subtl Beauty Stacks before you hit the road this summer, try taking this quiz

    Subtl Stak on palm

    Tell us – when will you start trying out these lip tips? And as for how to care for your lips – which Subtl Beauty Lip Balm flavor will you be grabbing for your next vacay?

    References:

    1. Medikaur Skin & Aesthetics   |   Fascinating Lip Facts
    2. Cleveland Clinic   |   Chapped Lips
    3. NHS   |   Sore or Dry Lips
    4. Cleveland Clinic   |   Cold Sores
    5. Nivea   |   Great Ways to Get Healthy Lips
    6. Hydrant   |   Chapped Lips and Dehydration
    7. Harvard Health   |   Vitamin C
    8. Abreva   |   Eating for Your Lips
    9. Healthline   |   Licking Lips: How to Stop
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