Oral Care

Taking Care of Your Lips in Winter

When you first hear the words “oral health”, you probably only think of your teeth and gums. These are, after all, the two main things dentists focus on when you’re in the chair in their office. This is because your teeth and gums are intrinsically linked, and the health of one directly impacts the health of the other.

But there are a lot more things going on in your mouth than just your teeth and gums. The health of your tongue, cheeks, and roof of your mouth all matter too, as each of those areas can be affected by sores, diseases, or trauma just as much as your teeth or gums.

But branching out on the idea of oral health even further brings us to the lips. Lips are external, and so most don’t think of them as a part of your oral health. But oral health simply refers to the health of your mouth, and your lips are a majorly important functioning “organ” in your oral area.

So when winter comes around, it’s important to take care of your lips. You’ve probably already guessed what I’m talking about, and that’s chapped lips. There was a time when my skin was dry because of a medication I was on, and I grew to be addicted to chapstick since I thought I needed it all the time. It turns out that chapstick can be quite addicting if you use it too much, because your lips then learn that they don’t need to lubricate themselves to protect from the wind or dry air.

My advice for anyone during the winter? Use chapstick sparingly. Obviously there are times when it feels unbearable outside and you NEED chapstick right then and there. Those are the times you definitely should use it. However, there’s no need to use it an hour later when chapstick sticks to your lips for much longer than that. You may feel the urge to apply more, but in reality your lips are tricking you into thinking you need more when they already have quite enough.

It took me quite a long time to get over my chapstick addiction (it sounds kinda funny and “serious” when put like this, though I’ll have to say it’s really not all that serious). You want your lips to be able to function properly, and that’s why we need chapstick from time to time. But if you get to using it too much, they’ll always feel dry and chapped simply because they’ve forgotten how to moisten themselves enough to function normally.