Surprise! The Best Lip Balm is Actually Made for Nipples

Lip skin is unique!  It is the thinnest skin on the body and does not have any sweat or oil glands. Your lips are always exposed to the elements. From heat, cold, sun, dry air, wind and UV rays outside, to heat, air conditioners, and dryness inside. From ice cold double chocolate chunk ice cream to hot cafe lattes. From kissing the dog, to singing happy birthday then eating the 5 alarm chicken wings to blowing 1000 good-bye kisses to your favorite 2-year-old niece, to multiple sighs of relief, to 8 hours of “sleep drool” then waking up the next day to do it all over again. . .  our lips do a lot for us. Keeping the “beaming smile”, “cheeky smirk”, LOL or “knowing grin” healthy and kissable is sometimes not an easy task. 

The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) recommends applying a lip balm throughout the day and before you go to bed. The usual go-to products to keep lips in good condition often contain menthol, salicylic acid, camphor, alcohols, fragrances, flavors and phenols. They may make your lips feel initially better but actually make your lips drier. YIKES! Once your lips feel dry you then use more of the product which then makes your lips even drier. This vicious cycle often goes unrecognized. Behavioral addiction to lip balm is actually a real thing that may be fueled by the resulting dryness of the products used.  

The ingredients in some lip balm products may also irritate dry or cracked lips. A rule of thumb from the AAD is, “if your lips burn, sting or tingle after using a lip product, stop using that product."  Nipple products, however, are designed to be gentle on nipples and the lips and mouths of newborns.

Top 7 Reasons why Nipple Creams and Balms make the Best Lip Balms

1. Organic Nipple products are safe for babies to repetitively ingest which makes them safe to use on your lips.
2. Nipples and lips have the highest density of nerve endings of any area on the body. Nipple creams and balms are produced to be non-irritating to nipples and baby’s lips. Because of this, they are unlikely to irritate your lips.
3. Nursing breasts are traumatized multiple times a day. Nipple balms not only soothe and moisturize lips, but they are also absorbed slowly and provide a lasting layer of nourishing protection.
4. Nipple creams and balms are designed to be flavorless. Flavoring not only can be very drying to delicate tissue, they may also be one of the factors that cause people to lick their lips, which causes their lips to further dry out, or may contribute to “lip balm addiction” as people like the flavor of the lip balm and frequent licking causes a “pleasure bump”.
5. Nipple balms are designed so that a very thin layer performs the function. A very small dab will spread over the entire lip area. 
6. Many nipple balms do not have any ingredients that would be drying to the delicate and sensitive nipple area. Our nipple balm contains only organic Olive Oil, Cocoa Seed Butter, Calendula Flowers, Marshmallow Root, Beeswax 
7. Nipple Balms are usually clear or colorless making them perfect for men or to use under lip color.

See this article on the difference between creams, balms, ointments and butters. 

What should I avoid in a lip balm?

• Flavorings
• Colors
• Alcohols
• Non-Organic ingredients
• Menthol
• Salicylic acid
• Camphor
• Fragrances
• Phenols

Lip Balm Tip:

Cover the entire upper and lower lips with lip balm to the edges where your normal skin starts. Don’t forget the mouth corners as they often can become dry and are the first to start cracking. If you have any extra lip balm left on your finger it can be used on the web skin in between your fingers as this is another area that often dries out.