BENGALURU: Winter is near, and it will bring along with it the cold, dry and harsh weather. Along with it, the presence of chapped lips will increase. The skin on our lips is thin and very sensitive. Our lips don’t have sweat or sebaceous glands, making them more vulnerable when exposed to extreme weather conditions. Exposure to sun, wind and cold, dry air can contribute to dry, chapped, flaky, cracked, painful, itchy or sore state of the lips.
Most people have chapped lips throughout the year, but it can get much worse during winter months. Indoor heat, wind and rough weather outside contribute to worsening conditions.
Our lips dry out about ten times faster than the rest of the skin on our face, so it is important to use extra protection. In such harsh weather, lip balms come to the rescue. Lip balms with herbal ingredients help get the desired soft lips and do not harm them. They help in relieving sore and chapped lips, especially in winters.
Emollients like castor oil, coconut oil, wheat germ oil, carrot seed oil and the extracts of Sweet Indrajao can help take care of the lips. They help in protecting the lips against the drying effects of the cold and dry weather during winters. We have listed down a few herbal ingredients to look for this winter in your lip balm. Try not to miss them:
■ Castor Oil is used externally to relieve various inflammatory skin conditions, when applied on chapped lips, it helps in soothing and conditioning chapped lips.
■ Carrot Seed Oil, a viscous essential oil, that conditions and moisturises the skin. It contains carotene and other antioxidants, which help in scavenging free radicals and thus prevents skin damage.
■ Wheat Germ Oil has poly unsaturated fatty acids and natural Vitamin E that helps nourish the skin and moisturise it. It tones and softens the lips and exhibits good antioxidant activity.
■ Sweet Indrajao has astringent, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties that makes it beneficial to be used in various skin conditions.
■ Coconut Oil and its derivatives can be used externally for softening lips as it has good emolliency. In addition, it is an effective moisturiser for all skin types, including dry skin.
The author is part of skin care and cleansing, Research & Development, The Himalaya Drug Company