News feed
Never in the history of beauty has the lip garnered so much attention. The ‘Kylie Effect’ has spawned a meteoric rise in injectables the world over, and a general preoccupation with the lip area like never before. Pout aside, the greater perioral area (the area around your lips) is also subject to some pretty serious sagging, which sees women and men turning to the needle for a little lift. But, there are ways around the needle, according to Emma Hobson, Education Manager for the International Dermal Institute and Dermalogica.
Here, Emma explains how best to avoid perioral ageing, and how to treat it, for your best lip service yet.
Why does the lip area sag?
The lips lack natural oils along with the protective pigment (melanin) found in our skin, hence sun damage is the number one cause of lip ageing. Saliva is the only source of moisture for the lips which has a tendency to cause constant dehydration as the moisture we ‘lick onto our lips’ evaporates, which also dries out the natural oils from the skin around the lips.
Over time lips tend to lose volume as our collagen levels deplete (so do the lobes of the ears!). As one of the most frequently-used areas on the face repetitive movements such as smoking, facial expressions like smiling, pursing, frowning, even frequent drinking through a straw, can all cause the lips and the perioral area to age. Add inadequate sun protection of the lips and lip area and the effect of damaging UV rays also increase collagen breakdown.
In Chinese facial diagnosis, the top lip represents female reproduction, therefore as they ‘read it’ as a woman enters peri menopause and menopause being the withering of the reproductive organs so does the area on the top lip ‘wither’ and age.
How can we help prevent this?
Daily facial exercise can certainly help, it’s a great workout for your facial muscles to keep them toned as does a few minutes of daily facial massage. Using massage movements has so many great benefits, it not only improves the penetration of your products it’s also very therapeutic, it feels great, it relaxes the tight facial muscles allowing the tension lines to fade away and it improves micro circulation so you have healthier functioning skin. There are several styles of massage movements; pressure point massage is akin to giving your skin a personal ‘yoga’ training session, by applying manipulations to points on the face it stimulates (the stomach meridian) energy pathways which are responsible for improving muscle tone and lifting the skin. Deep tissue movements help not only to boost the skin’s circulation improving the quality and vitality of the skin, it also manipulates the muscles releasing tension, therefore softening the lines and improving skin tone. By increasing local blood flow and reducing facial stress (held in the muscles). Facial massage helps improve muscle and skin tone, restore and rejuvenate the skin.
In addition, you can receive a course and regular treatments of microcurrent which lifts the facial muscles and prevents sagging.
Applying specialised lip products can certainly help, also. Before closing your eyes at night slather on your nightly protective lip treatment product which will provide ultimate conditioning while minimising fine dry lines around the lip line. To restore the lips, it helps to think of them as a sponge. When exposed to moisture, they increase in volume; when dehydrated, they decrease in volume. A nightly lip treatment can help maximise lip moisture at night, when our cells are in regeneration mode. This is when skin cell renewal, a critical aspect of the skin repair process, speeds up and the body’s natural cell regeneration rate nearly doubles. The body also experiences more Trans-Epidermal Water Loss (TEWL) at night due to increased body temperature. By supplementing necessary moisture and targeting the signs of lip ageing at night, using a moisture rich lip treatment it complements your body’s fluctuations for fuller, smoother lips by morning.
What products and Ingredients should we look for?
Look for products that contain active ingredients to support the health of the lip area:
- Shea Butter
Is rich in plant actives used to soothe and repair irritated, chapped lips. Shea Butter is excellent at reconstituting the thin epidermal barrier while improving lip hydration and smoothness. Shea Butter is used to increase hydration and improve skin elasticity while restoring barrier function against visible signs of aging. - Indian Gentian Extract
Is a traditional Ayurvedic herb which helps thicken the skin, reduces skin fragility and helps reduce the appearance of wrinkles around the lips. - Hydroxymethoxyphenyl Propylmethylmethoxybenzofuran
This active ingredient helps volumize lips and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles on and around the lip area. - Apple Fruit Extract and Glycerin
In addition to Hyaluronic Acid, which is often injected into lips as a filler, this moisturising Saccharide Complex extracted from dried apples helps to enhance skin hydration and smooth lips. - Sesame Seed Extract
Can help decrease the appearance of nasolabial fold lines, as well as wrinkles and skin roughness in the upper perioral region. This ingredient can also help increase lip hydration and volume, and the skin’s barrier integrity.
Shop The Look
Dermalogica Nightly Lip Treatment, $75. SHOP NOW
Freeze Frame Lip Injection, $41. SHOP NOW
