“For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.”
— Audrey Hepburn
“Give me some flaky, chapped lips,” said no person ever. Your lips are more than just something to decorate. They talk, smile, and take in nourishment, which means they deserve pampering just like any other part of your body. But when was the last time you thought about your lip routine? We’re guessing not very often. Many of us ignore them until they’re so uncomfortable that we have no other choice, but we’re about to help you change that attitude. If anti-aging is more than a passing fad for you, then take note of these great ways to help your lips stay younger looking longer.
Boost Your Waning Hyaluronic Acid
If you’ve been following our posts for a while, you know that hyaluronic acid is one of those ingredients that we love in skin care. Your body produces it consistently when you’re young, but its production decreases with age. “One of its most important properties is that it can attach and hold large amounts of moisture.” Supplementing your lip routine with a product like SkinMedica HA5 Lip Plump, which contains hyaluronic acid, means your lips will be more hydrated and visibly plump. It can also improve your lip color naturally, and since our lips lose some of their rosy color as we age, this can make a big difference.
Amp Up the Renewal Process
Your skin’s renewal cycle changes over time, and everything from sun exposure to pollution can interfere with that process. To keep your lips hydrated, protected, and plump, you need products that address all of those issues. While a waxy lip balm may seal in existing moisture, it doesn’t do a lot for hydrating deep down. If you’ve already added heart-healthy olive or flaxseed oil and avocados to your diet, those same ingredients can enrich your lips with fatty acids and linoleic acid when included in skin care. These elements support your skin’s structure and provide antioxidants to fight off free radical damage. Together, they make the perfect cocktail for keeping your lips looking young and healthy. Epionce Anti-Aging Lip Renewal contains all of the above plus meadowfoam extract, an ingredient that research shows has photoprotective properties.
Stimulate Collagen Production
Like facial skin, your lips produce collagen at a slower rate as you age. The result? Thin lips with fine lines that lack fullness and volume. Just like hyaluronic acid, human growth factors plump up your lips by signaling that more collagen is needed. These growth factors can also be found in the SkinMedica HA5 product we mentioned above.
Don’t Purse Your Pout
You probably already know that smoking is bad for your lungs, but it also leads to wrinkles around the mouth. If you’ve avoided this nasty habit, then you’re in good shape. There’s another thing people do habitually that can create these same wrinkles … drinking with a straw. If you regularly use a straw, then you’re simulating the same movements made while smoking. That straw may be convenient, but the habitual motion of drawing up liquid can leave you looking older than your peers.
Block Those UV Rays
As long as we’re still drawing breath, we’ll continue to sing the praises of sunscreen. When you’re out and about, protect your pout from sun damage with a UV blocking lip balm. Sun exposure can induce cold sores, but it can also lead to skin cancer. Thankfully, many lip products contain sunscreen, including EltaMD UV Lip Balm Broad-Spectrum SPF 31. It blocks both UVA and UVB rays and contains Hydromanil to keep your lips moisturized and healthy.
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With so many high quality products on the market, it would be a shame to leave your lips unprotected. Treating them takes just a few seconds each day. Pamper your pout. It’ll thank you.
Wishing you a plump and protected pout,
Team Reflect
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