5 Tips for Healthy Lips

healthy lip tipsLips are having a major moment in pop culture. Not long ago, a lip kit was a vague, rarely used term. But now it's the hot beauty product selling out instantly, or faster. Before any kits, sticks, or glosses are used, it's important to start with healthy hydrated lips as a foundation. We wanted to know more about what ingredients are in lip products and how to care for pouts through the winter months, so we chatted with Karen Asquith, lead esthetician at G.M. Collin Skincare, and Suki Kramer, founder and formulater of Suki Skincare. Here's what they recommend for proper lipcare.

What should clients do in the winter to ensure healthy lips?

  1. Exfoliate for sure. You can use a great, pure, non-toxic exfoliant. I make a pure sugar scrub for just this purpose.
  2. You can also use a toothbrush for a quick daily brushing of your lips, when they aren't too dry.
  3. Cover lips with a really hydrating, long-wear lip balm that provides a lot of coverage and that isn't super greasy so you aren't finding you have to reapply it constantly.
  4. Always apply your lip balm before any color product, which can often dry out lips.
  5. Always drink lots of water and make sure you are balancing your electrolytes, especially if you get a lot of exercise."—Kramer

 

Why do you think lip products are important in a skincare regimen?

"Using specific products designed to treat the unique concerns of the lip area are essential for everyone concerned with maintaining a youthful appearance. The repetitive movement of the lips causes the development of fine lines to appear around the mouth. Couple this with the decreased volume of the lips due to the degradation of collagen and hyaluronic acid as a result of physiological aging and the importance of lip products is abundantly clear. Ingredients to look for should replace what is lacking and also re-establish the production of components in the skin that have diminished. G.M.Collin’s Lip Plumping Complex, available in both clear and rose color, contain dehydrated micro-spheres of collagen and hyaluronic acid that absorb moisture and swell up thereby increasing the volume of the lips. Matrixyl 3000 is a peptide that stimulates collagen to combat the physiological aging of the lips and to maintain and enhance lip volume."—Asquith

What are your favorite ingredients for exfoliating lips? 

Isodecyl Salicylate (mild micro-exfoliating agent in G.M.Collin’s Lip Plumping Complex), Rice Powder (in Active Exoliant Powder)—Asquith

What are your favorite ingredients for hydrating lips?

Hyaluronic Acid, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Ceramide-3 (anti-dehydrant)—Asquith

 

What are natural, safer alternatives to ingredients like petroleum?

"Petrochemicals and mineral oil products like Chapstick provide a coating without any nourishment whatsoever. As well, they create an "addictive" reaction so that skin remains dry and continues to need the product. Weird huh? I used to have chapped lips in both the depths of summer and winter, with deep, painful cuts in the middle of my lips. Now that I do this simple exfoliation and dense, heavier lip balm routine, I never have the problems I used to! But a key part is definitely watching my electrolite levels because no matter how much water I drank, I always felt dehydrated! Recently I found these gel caps called: endurolytes. I can't drink those acidic, sweet drinks, but the tablets are fantastic! Check them out!"—Kramer

 

Why do you think healthy lip products are so popular?

"Full, luscious lips are considered to be a sign of youthfulness and are so desired that many will try anything to achieve the “perfect pout”. Lip enhancement via injections used to be something reserved for patients over 50 however the average age has been declining in Canada and the US. Trending among teens on social media this year was a DIY approach to lip enhancement that involved aggressively sucking the air out of shot glasses resulting in thousands of images of young women with severely bruised and swollen lips, not exactly the look they were aspiring to achieve. The quest for full lips is on the rise among youth in North America with the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reporting an increase in patients aged 20-29 with requests for hyaluronic acid fillers, this figure is up almost 10 percent over the past 2 years.  The new status symbol is not the latest designer handbag for these 20 somethings, it is having procedures done and wanting the work to be noticeable. Conversely the 50 somethings receiving enhancements prefer a more natural looking approach and do not want the work to be evident, they simply want to appear refreshed.  Lip products that have clinically proven results offer an alternative to those not willing to undergo injections and also assist in maintaining the results of those that have."—Asquith

Does your spa have lip products available in your retail area or lip treatments ready for Valentine's Day?