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Are your lips feeling more dry and cracked than usual? You’re not the only one. Here’s how you can combat dry lips during the change of season.
With autumn drawing in, your lips can be the first to suffer. Cold weather combined with dry indoor heating can deplete moisture from the skin, stripping away the natural protective barrier and leaving skin exposed and susceptible to irritation. It’s not just the scalp and skin that suffers from the cooler climes, lips can also take a battering in the colder months, so it’s important to keep them hydrated to avoid them becoming chapped.
But sometimes lathering on your favourite lip balm doesn’t quite cut it. So what do you do when your lips are so dry, nothing seems to work?
When choosing the best lip balm for dry lips – you don’t always need the most-expensive, ingredient-packed formula. You just need one that works. Some popular ingredients like menthol, eucalyptus, peppermint oil and camphor are common in lip balms, as they can provide a cooling tingling sensation on the lips or a minty fragrance, but they can actually damage the skin barrier, leaving your lips drier and more irritated than before.
So what should you be looking out for? Fragrance-free and hypoallergenic formulas are best. Keep an eye out for ingredients like castor oil, hemp seed oil, shea and cocoa butter. Lanolin is also a popular ingredient that can help seal in moisture and protect the lips. As a general ingredients rule – when it comes to lip balm formulas: less is often more.
The best lip balms for dry, chapped lips
Lanolips 101 Ointment
Containing nothing but the signature hero ingredient, Australian medical-grade lanolin, Lanolips 101 Ointment helps to treat dry lips and other areas of skin. Also, it contains no artificial fragrances, parabens, petrolatum, PEG’s, mineral oil or sulphates. Win.
Shop Lanolips 101 Ointment at Boots, £10.99
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The Body Shop Hemp Heavy Duty Lip Care
Enriched with hemp seed oil, which is known for its seriously high levels of hydration, this nourishing lip balm soothes lips with its essential fatty acids content, like omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and vitamins A and E.
Shop The Body Shop Hemp Heavy Duty Lip Care at The Body Shop, £4.50
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Weleda Skin Food Lip Balm
Weleda’s cult Skin Food is now available in a lip formula, combining lanolin, beeswax and glycerine for an ultra-gentle, super soothing balm.
Shop Weleda Skin Food Lip Balm at Feelunique, £6.95
Buy now
Nuxe Reve de Miel Lip Balm
Packed full of lip loving ingredients like humectant honey, shea butter, vitamin E and beeswax this little jar of lip balm keeps lips protected and nourished all year round.
Shop Nuxe Reve de Miel Lip Balm at Cult Beauty, £11
Buy now
iS Clinical Youth Lip Elixir
If you’re looking for a luxurious lip balm then this is the one for you. It blends antioxidants, nourishing cocoa butter and hyaluronic acid to help improve the overall texture and appearance of lips plus extremozymes provides multi-level protection against environmental stressors like central heating.
Shop iS Clinical Youth Lip Elixir at Skin City, £52
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Eucerin Dry Skin Intensive Lip Balm
An oldie but a goodie, this hypoallergenic balm is great for those with sensitive skin or eczema-prone skin. Licorice extract helps to reduce redness and calm irritation, while evening primrose oil helps to regenerate the lips’ natural protective barrier.
Shop Eucerin Dry Skin Intensive Lip Balm at Boots, £6
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La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume Lips
This soothing cream-balm helps to reduce any irritation and itchiness caused by seriously dry lips, without further aggravating the skin. Enriched with anti-bacterial agents to protect the skin, it’s a great one to keep in your arsenal for if and when your lips need an extra soothing, moisturising treatment.
Shop La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume Lips at lookfantastic, £7
Buy now
Main image: Getty
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