What causes blackening of lips?

02 Apr.,2024

 

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Black doesn’t always mean the literal color “black”, It is also synonymous with something that has turned cold and become lifeless! Anything if not taken care of, becomes dull, pale, and dark! Lips are one such delicate parts of our body that cannot moisturize itself, and a generic lip balm does not suffice to provide it with the ultimate care.


While there are many options available like lip surgeries and treatments, one cannot completely rely on them plus there are heavy chances of mishaps and side effects! 

So what can you do to prevent your lips from turning black? Laser treatments? Fairness creams? NO! You can start identifying the root cause behind it and begin taking care of them with natural and organic lip essentials!


Reasons and Remedies for Dark Lips :

Heredity passes on more than half of your traits and features! People of color may have genetically dark lips! They just have to focus on making their lips naturally beautiful by taking care of them! 

Here is the key difference between Hyperpigmentation and Skin of color:

 Apart from that, these reasons are majorly responsible for dark lips:

 

1. Sun Exposure


UV rays are one of the biggest factors responsible for making lips pigmented and dark! Sun sucks the life out of our lips and makes them lose their natural texture and shine! 

 

Remedies/ Suggestions- You can start wearing a Lip SPF along with your daily sunscreen. You will be able to witness a huge change in your lip texture and color!

 

2. Lip Licking and Biting 


When you lick your lips, Saliva touches the skin of your lips and makes their condition worse! It contains enzymes that are harmful to your lip skin! When you peel out your lip skin, your lips get exposed to sensitivity and dryness! The more you bite, the more chaps will appear, and the more will be the urge to bite them again, and there it will begin a vicious cycle!


Remedies/ Suggestions- Start resisting the urge to lick, and find distractions, if you are addicted to lip licking and biting try out meditation and therapy! You can also start by keeping yourself busy and occupied! You may also try chewing a pack of gum instead of your lips!

3. Diet and Dehydration


Your body needs to be internally hydrated then only it will feel moisturized from the outside! 

Extremely Salty and Spicy edibles can make lips dry and prone to pigmentation! What you intake can make a lot of difference in your lip and skin care journey! 


Remedies/ Suggestions- Make Healthy Food your Best Friend, Cut off on extremely salty and spicy munchies, and Have a Balanced diet with all the vitamins and minerals!  

Make sure you drink plenty of water every day! 

 

4. Allergies 


Allergies are the most common reason for dark lips! Lip lick dermatitis, Atopic dermatitis, Melasma, and Allergies to a specific product or ingredient might cause black lips!


Remedies/ Suggestions-

Always do a patch test! With lips, it becomes difficult to do a patch test but you can do it by applying a thin layer of the product once and leaving it to see if there are any reactions or not! Check ingredients and consult a doctor if you encounter any serious lip irritation or bleeding! 

 

5. Health Issues and Side effects 

Several health issues cause dark lips directly or indirectly as a side effect of that health issue’s medication! Mouth Cancer, Lip Cancer, etc, not to scare you off, but these might also be the cause of lips getting black! 


Remedies/ Suggestions-

Always consult a dermatologist if the dryness, bleeding, or itching continues for a prolonged period! Never lick or bite your lips if they are suffering from health issues or any serious allergies! Use hypoallergenic balms and products recommended by your doctor!

Check if you take any medications which cause dark, dry, and chapped lips as a side effect! 

 

6. Expired or Unsuitable Products

Applying Expired products can lead to reactions on your lips because they contain chemicals and preservatives that might change their composition after a certain time!


Remedies/ Suggestions-

Always use products that have a shelf life left of at least a year or two! Check your vanity and throw away expired products even if they look and smell just fine! Fragrance and appearance are not a judge of efficacy! 

 

7. Unsuitable Products and Makeup

Using products that are meant for your face on your lips can dry them out and make their condition much worse!

Lip skin is far more delicate and thinner than the rest of your body! If body care products are not recommended on your face, the face being more sensitive than the body, the degree of damage caused to the lip barrier by using face washes or body washes can be drastic, in turn causing dark, dry, and chapped lips!

Matte Lipsticks are responsible for dryness and pigmented lips! Not washing lipstick can also add to the list of black sheep!


Remedies/ Suggestions-

There are plenty of lip care products available in the market, there are brands that are specialized in the lip care genre and make lip care essentials catering to any and every lip care need! Try them out and start following a regime for effective results! 

 

8. Smoking 

Smoking and Vaping make lips dark, dry, and wrinkle-ridden! When you hold a cigarette and purse your lips, the wrinkles start to form, and the tobacco and the nicotine cause darkness and flakiness! 


How to treat Smoker’s Lips?

While there are many laser treatments and creams available that claim making dark lips pinker, We have a simple and easy guideline made for you-


Step-1- Stop Smoking! Even if you try out the best lip care essentials with every possible care, They won't be of any use if you keep on smoking along with them! Try out other options like a nicotine patch if you find quitting smoking difficult!

There are many therapies and treatments also available for the same! We understand quitting smoking is a tough habit which is why you can start quitting one, one day at a time!


Step 2- Look for lip care products that contain powerful lip-care actives that are proven to fight smokers’ lips like Ferulic Acid and Lactobionic Acid! 


Step-3- Follow a Regime- Lips damaged by smoking are wrinkled, pigmented, dry, and have lost all their texture! To fix all of it, You will have to follow a proper lip care routine by CLEANSING, MILDLY EXFOLIATING, MOISTURIZING, TREATING, AND HEALING LIPS!


Though it will take a certain amount of time to regain the original color, It is possible to heal them! Eat well along with your lip care essentials so you get the nutrients and minerals your body needs and heal your body from the inside out! This will help you flush out the toxins! 


Why is the upper lip darker than the lower?

It is natural for the upper lip, to be darker than the lower! There are numerous reasons responsible for two-toned lips! Other than the genetic one, these might be responsible:

  • Hair Removal Methods: Waxing the upper lip area may result in the appearance of dark patches. Repeated use of razors for shaving upper lips darkens them due to friction.

          

  • Skin Disorders: Melasma causes dark spots, especially on the cheeks, nose, and upper lip area. Eczemas and conditions like atopic dermatitis. Lip lick dermatitis may cause hyperpigmentation due to repeated lip-licking. Allergy to lipsticks and lip balms may extend to the upper lip area. 

  • Growth of unwanted thickened hairs like hirsutism can leave the impression of a darker upper lip.

How to Treat Black Lips :

 1. Find your perfect match-

Picking the most suitable lip product for your lips is a big deal! Especially when there are thousands of products available in the market, the fear of allergies, and barrier damage, and what if you invest so much in a product and never get that kind of return? Begin a concern-based study and find out the products that are best in line for a specific concern! Try

Regimen-based products- One product boosts the efficacy of the other! Check for genuine reviews, speak with the company’s lip specialists, or get a lip care consultation if they provide one! 

 

2. Look for skin-safe ingredients-

Before calling a product home, Check on the ingredients list and see if it contains lip-friendly ingredients and does not have any toxins!


Some ingredients do more harm than good like Camphor, Eucalyptus, Lanolin, Menthol, Fragrance-based products, Artificial flavors, Octinoxate or oxybenzone, Phenol (or phenyl), Propyl gallate, Parabens, etc. If a product contains any of these, it might as well add a label that adds up to your lip concern instead of battling it! Always see if you have any allergies to the ingredients mentioned in the product description!


THE GOODIES- Look for actives like Alpha Arbutin, Pracaxi Seed Oil, Ferulic Acid, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38, and PHA Lactobionic Acid! They are proven to fight lip pigmentation, hyperpigmentation, lip aging, and lip lines, providing 10x hydration and intense nourishment!

 

3. Follow a Lip care Regimen- 


You should follow a lip care regimen by cleansing, exfoliating, moisturizing, and treating your lips! Each step is exclusive of its benefits and supports the other steps in their efficacy to treat dark, chapped, and dry lips! 


Every Single Step has its Relevance-


Cleansing- Ensures Lips are fresh, cleansed, and unpigmented! 

Exfoliating- Removes dead lip cells, and makes lips smooth and plump!

Moisturising- Hydrates and Nourishes Lips!

Healing and Treating- Treat Lip Concerns and provides 10x hydration! 

 

4. Eat Healthy and Drink Water Adequately- 


Vitamins can also be called Lip Care Food. You can include them in your daily diet and start being consistent with proper nutrition for effective results. Foods rich in vitamins A, C, E, and Zinc are majorly recommended for Lip Health. Drink at least 8-9 glasses of water every day to make your body hydrated! 

 

5. Limit your sun exposure and Apply Lip SPF-


This helps you protect your lips from sun damage and pigmentation! Apply a good SPF instead of burying your lips under makeup and damaging them! Not every lipstick contains an SPF! It is always advised to apply lip sunscreen under lipstick too!


Conclusion:

It is indeed, a very tough process to identify the root cause of dark lips! 


From looking for the best options suitable for your lip type and concern to cut off on your daily rituals, eating habits, and things that you might love to achieve healthy lips but trust us, It will all be worth your while! 


Begin one step at a time! Gradually everything will fall into place!

When you see your lips improving and getting plumper and pinker in health, Your efforts will feel paid off! No hard work goes in vain if you give your heart and soul to it! And if you need a helping hand in your lip care journey, You can always reach out to us for any and every lip care concern! 

There are a variety of reasons why you may be experiencing hyperpigmentation on your lips. It could be hormonal, related to a vitamin deficiency or even exposure to the sun.

While the rest of your skin is made up of multiple layers of cells, your lips are only made of five. So, what does this mean? Well, it basically means that because there are fewer cellular layers, your lip tissue is more visible and delicate, and shows the colorations of the blood vessels below.

What Causes Lip Discoloration?

The outline of your lips is known as the vermillion border. No one knows why this feature is unique only to humans, but it is fun to assume we were given this lip border for lipstick - wearing and smooching.

The vermillion of your lips usually appears as a light pink to brown. It varies from person to person and depends on your skin tone, but generally speaking, your lips will appear a darker or more red shade than the rest of your face. If you are paler, your lips will be lighter and the blood vessels underneath will appear more striking.

What Is Hyperpigmentation?

Hyperpigmentation is a common and typically harmless condition that occurs when areas of your skin become darker than the rest of your skin. This happens due to increased production of melanin, the pigment that produces color in your skin.

Hyperpigmentation is usually harmless and can be due to a number of factors such as sun exposure or a medical condition. It can occur in anyone of any age, race or gender.

Hyperpigmentation in Lips

There are many reasons you may be experiencing hyperpigmentation or discoloration in your lips. When this discoloration occurs, it is due to excess production of melanin.

Skin discoloration around the mouth is caused by excess melanin production in your skin. Hormonal changes, medications and sun exposure are related to hyperpigmentation. Nutritional deficiencies, skin trauma and other medical conditions may also cause skin discoloration.

Causes of Lip Discoloration

First off, there are some harmless reasons for lip discoloration, like from food or drink that stains the color of your lips giving them a new tint. This could be from a soda, berries, beets or likely any food or beverage with a darkened or strong pigment.

Before jumping to the worst of conclusions, maybe try tracking what foods or drinks you’ve consumed that might be contributing to the discoloration! However, if this isn’t the cause of your lip discoloration, there are some other reasons to take into account.

Hormonal Changes

As we know, your skin gets its color from the pigment known as melanin. There are many factors that create changes in melanin production, sun exposure, hormone fluctuation, medications and medical conditions being the most common.

Right now though, let’s focus on how hormonal changes may directly affect spots of hyperpigmentation on your lips and around your mouth.

Melasma is made up of dark brown and gray patches on your face, cheeks and upper lip. The patches usually occur when a woman has undergone some type of hormonal shift, such as becoming pregnant or taking an oral contraceptive. It will occur most frequently on the face, and prolonged exposure to the sun will make these patches more visible.

Medication

While birth control may be the first thing to come to mind with medications that enhance or cause hyperpigmentation on your mouth, there are some others that may increase your risk, including hormone replacements that are high in estrogen, the antibiotic known as doxycycline or medications used to treat chemotherapy.

Overexposure to Sun

Being in direct contact with ultraviolet rays from sun exposure may increase your risk for hyperpigmentation and dark spotting on your face. Remember when applying sunscreen to not skip the mouth area and to look for a lip balm or chapstick that contains an SPF as well.

Skin Trauma

After experiencing a severe acne breakout, burn or infection on your face or in the surrounding areas of your mouth, you may be at risk of developing hyperpigmentation in the same areas after the skin heals. This type of hyperpigmentation occurs after inflammation in the skin and usually fades within a few months.

If you are still experiencing this type of hyperpigmentation after a few months, it could also be due to irritation from a lip balm or toothpaste. Consider swapping out these products and seeing if that improves your pigmentation.

Vitamin and Nutrition Deficiency

There are many vitamin deficiencies that may be associated with hyperpigmentation in your lips, but the most common are those associated with Vitamin B12 and Vitamin D.

Lip Discoloration: Blue Lips, Dark Lips, and Light Lips

Blue Lips

If you are suffering from a blue coloring in your lips, this is likely a sign that you aren’t receiving enough oxygen. Poor oxygen circulation in the bloodstream may cause discoloration in your skin, known as cyanosis. Blue lips may indicate a decreased oxygen level in your blood which can be caused by several types of medical conditions.

In addition to your lips, you would also notice this in the tips of your fingers and toes. If this sounds familiar to you, or if you notice this occurring in your skin, you should consult a doctor immediately.

Blood that is rich in oxygen will be bright red, while oxygen with a low oxygen level will appear as a darker red or even purple. Other causes of blue lips may be serious medical conditions, ranging from ones affecting the heart, circulatory system or lungs.

Dark Lips

Hyperpigmentation in your lips will cause darkness in your lips. This can be brought on by a multitude of factors.

  • Smoking. Smoking can lead to the darkening of both your lips and gums, and enhance the pigmentation in both.
  • Injury. If you are experiencing dry or cracked lips, your lips will also turn dark. In the same way, a bruise can form on your lips after experiencing an injury. They may turn purple or black.
  • Spotting. Spotting may occur from sun exposure or be a symptom of a medical condition. Either way, spotted lips may be the cause of your discolored lips.

Light Lips

Lightness in our lips may often go hand in hand with an all-around pale complexion in your face. If you are pale in your face, around your eyes, and even in your nails, it’s more likely that you will have lighter lips.

While being pale is natural, it can also stem from certain medical conditions such as anemia. Things leading to anemia may include:

  • Iron deficiency
  • B-12 deficiency
  • Heavy Menstruation which leads to blood loss
  • Intestinal tract bleeding
  • Oral thrush
  • Low blood sugar
  • Circulation problems
  • Frostbite
  • Certain medications or vitamin deficiencies

Treatments for Dark Lips

Hyperpigmentation around the mouth may be a little more tricky to deal with than other areas of your face, because, as mentioned before, the skin on your lips is dedicated and not made of the cellular layers of the rest of your face. There are, however, some effective at-home remedies to help reduce lip hyperpigmentation, depending on the severity of the case.

Home Remedies

The most important habit to adopt in your skincare regimen is to wear sunscreen every day. Oftentimes, the mouth and areas surrounding it get overlooked during application. So, while we may apply sunscreen on a regular basis, there are some simple ways to help keep the lips looking and feeling healthy.

Use Lemon, With Care

Lemon is commonly used as a home remedy for skin lightening due to its citric acid properties that helps remove dead cells and exfoliate the skin. Simply cut a slice of lemon and hold it to the lips for no longer than one minute. Then, rinse with warm water. However, it is important to keep in mind that lemon can irritate the skin due to its acidity. Make sure that your lips have no cuts or irritation prior to using lemon.

Stay Hydrated

Drinking enough fluids is one of the best ways to look after the lips. Simply add a slice of cucumber and lemon to a glass of water for a refreshing drink.

Apply Almond or Coconut Oil

Massages can help moisturize the lips and boost circulation. As blood vessels help give them color, this can help boost a healthy blood flow. Use a high-quality oil as a natural remedy by gently rubbing the oil into the lips at least twice per day.

Who Is Prone to Lip Discoloration?

While anyone may be affected by lip hyperpigmentation, those with dark skin are typically more prone to it all in all. This is because dark skin produces a higher amount of melanin compared to lighter skin tones.

Age also affects your skin, and you may notice more spotting around areas of your skin that are exposed to the sun such as your face and chest as you get older.

If you notice discoloration on your mouth, you might notice that it’s worse during the summer months due to increased sun exposure. Exposure to the sun increases melanin production and makes pigmentation darker, and hyperpigmentation more pronounced.

So, grab that wide-brimmed hat, load up on some sunscreen and remember to enjoy those UV rays while also being mindful of its potential effects on your skin.

When To See a Doctor

You will likely notice when discoloration around your mouth fades, perhaps when you stop taking medication or introduce an exfoliant or brightening serum into your skincare routine. However, if your symptoms don’t improve, it may be time to consult a dermatologist.

What causes blackening of lips?

Dark Lips: Is Hyperpigmentation the Cause?

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