Chapstick: Friend or Foe

chapLip balms work by sealing moisture into the lip tissue and preventing evaporation into the dry winter air, allowing for healing of chapped lips, but also preventing chapped lips .Many people believe that Chapstick heals and protects their lips however, it is know that the more you apply, the more you need it. Said by Dr. Oz, “people can actually become addicted to Chapstick” in the sense that they use a lip balm and eventually develop a sensitivity to its components, thus the sensitivity leads to a reaction that causes the chapped feeling, making people apply more lip balm. America News Now spoke to dermatologist, Gary Slaughter, who found camphor, phenol and menthol were the ingredients in bad lip balm. Also, OL,which indicates alcohol, and salicylic acid are two more ingredients that may cause some people irritation. Look for these ingredients before buying. If you don’t see them, your lip balm should work as it is intended to. Dermatitis, cracking and soreness and irritation of the skin around the lips may occur when lips are not protected on the other hand. If the lip balm seems to fix your problem initially but after continued use you find you have to keep using more and more, there is a problem and you are using too much. The best options are to stick to plain petroleum, such as Vaseline, or more natural homemade ingredients. Sun blocks is a positive ingredient that is added to lip balms, which is great if you are going to be skiing, playing golf or tennis or hanging out at the beach. ring around mouthHowever, even this is not recommend for daily use to avoid getting sensitized to the chemicals when you do not need the block, unless you have a history of significant lip sun. Overusing can lead to clogged pores along the lip line, which is why moderation is key. Some of the topped ranked lip balms are:

  1. Burts Bees
  2. Nivea
  3. Eos
  4. Chapstick
  5. Carmax

Here’s also a link to a YouTube video, to make your own all natural homemade lip balm.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/can-you-actually-become-addicted-to-chapstick#.tczjoR5Ld

5 thoughts on “Chapstick: Friend or Foe

  1. Isabel Linares-Martin

    I loved this post! I myself am a chapstick addict, so I am constantly applying lip balm. I had a feeling that this only made my lips more chapped and that I was sort of becoming immune to it. I didn’t know that some of these ingredients such as salicylic acid could cause irritation. I will definitely look out for them when I buy chapstick. Here are 10 signs that you’re addicted to lip balm!

  2. Desiree Nicole Enriquez

    I was surprised to hear that lip balms can be bad for you. This was a very insightful read and i will definitely be laying off the chapstick for a while. I would, however, be careful with who you quote in your blogs. Though Dr.Oz is very famous, many of his claims have been discredited over and over again.

  3. Tiffany Fu

    This post was a good read because I myself struggle with chapped lips and I constantly do that thing where you lick them a little to “make it better” but you end up making it worse. I didn’t know that chapsticks could be addicting, and now that you made that point, I feel like you’re right because whenever I use it I find myself going back to using it once my lips start feeling dry again. This is an article that I found is interesting and expands on the benefits of chapsticks.

    http://www.sheknows.com/beauty-and-style/articles/1013495/benefits-of-hydrated-lips

  4. Nicolas Lau

    I find this to be a very interesting read! I can attest to the fact that chapstick is very addicting, for I seen people reapply minutes after they had applied chapstick. My question is, do you think that corporations are making products that get you addicted? Financially, there is every reason to believe so. Some products I can think of on the top of my head are cough drops and how they are triggered so you need more after you had a drop. Here is the article. Also, chapstick reminds me of caffeine. The more we consume caffeine, the more we need it to wake up in the future to block the receptors in our brain. Though I doubt it, from your study, how many subjects were there? The more the better, for they eliminate confounding variables! Also, what if reverse casualty caused the need for lip balm? What if our physical conditions just simply need more chapstick? Overall, good read. Thank you.

  5. Kristen

    This blog brought up some very interesting considerations since it’s turning to winter which is when I know for most people chapstick use becomes necessary. I’ve always heard that chapstick wasn’t as good for you as you thought which always confused me because to me chapstick is only something to protect you and make your lips less irritating. You made very interesting points regarding the fact that chapstick can be addictive in nature since people think that without it their lips will automatically chap up. Another idea that I’ve always wondered- and why I mainly use chapstick is whether or not chapstick actually moisturizes your lips. According to dermatologist Jessica Krant, “The wax or petrolatum in lip balm essentially creates a watertight barrier that prevents your internal skin moisture—which normally evaporates through the surface, especially on dry, cold, windy days—from escaping, softening your lips and keeping them feeling moist,” The link to the article which continues this concept is here check it out! http://www.shape.com/lifestyle/beauty-style/5-things-you-never-knew-about-chapstick

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