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If you’re someone who can’t leave your home without a lip balm because of your lips that are always dry and chapped – we feel you!

We also know that while lip balms can help to temporary soothe your lips, they aren’t a long-term solution. Rather than accept defeat and live with it, we’ve come out with a list of tips and remedies that are going to work.

Cheers to smooth, beautiful lips!

1. Fix these habits

Instead of blaming it on your genes, take a moment to observe yourself. The real issue might just be hidden within one of these habits.

Lip-licking: Licking your lips adds temporary moisture to them – but, the thing is, once the saliva evaporates, all the moisture from your lips goes along with it. So, licking your lips actually makes them even drier rather than helping to moisturize them.

Breathing through the mouth: This causes air to constantly pass over your lips which dries them, so try breathing through your nose instead.

Try amending these two habits for a week or two to feel the changes!

2. Exfoliate your lips

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We know how annoying flaky lips are. But for soft, healthy lips, you must resist the temptation to pick at them. Instead, soften them up with lip balm and then exfoliate the flakes off with a lip scrub.

If you don’t want to invest in lip scrubs, there are a few other ways you can exfoliate your lips: brush your lips really, really gently with a toothbrush after putting on a gentle exfoliator. But remember to do it with a light hand. Alternatively, you can also create your own scrub with a mixture of honey and sugar.

3. Moisturise your lips religiously

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Use a moisturiser to keep your lips from drying out. Slather on more at night before you go to sleep because air-conditioning can be super drying for your skin. Ointments like coconut oil, cocoa butter and petroleum jelly are some of the best options.

When paired with the prevention methods above, these two treatments alone can speed the healing of chapped lips.

4. Avoid sour foods

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Until your dry, chapped lips are healed, don’t eat citrus fruits; the juice can sting and lead to more flaking. Citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons and grapefruits contain acid that strips the lips of moisture. For your daily fix of vitamin C, opt for a supplement instead.

5. See a dermatologist

 

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If you find that your lips simply won’t heal, there may be an underlying condition to blame and you should see a dermatologist. The skin doctor should be able to diagnose the cause of the dryness and prescribe the right solutions to help you.

Chapped lips can get infected, as bacteria can enter through cracks and abrasions. This is known as cheilitis and must be treated by a doctor. But don’t worry – cases of these are super rare, and you’re probably just suffering from the bout of dry lips.