Shereene IdrissBoard Certified Derm, Founder and Chief Nerd

Dry Chapped Lips: Chemical Exfoliation

7 Feb 2025 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

0:57

A short YouTube monologue (by Shereene Idriss) explaining causes of dry, chapped lips—lip licking, saliva enzymes, and the lack of hair follicles/sebaceous and sweat glands—and recommending treating lips with a gentle chemical exfoliant (not salicylic acid) that retains hydration (examples: mandelic acid, gluconolactone), followed by a rich, soothing hydrating treatment to seal in moisture.

Chapters

I wish I had a teacher who did this for me as a kid. And I wish I have an adult who does this for me as an adult. Because dry, chapped lips, they're the bane of my existence. Yes, we cause our own lips to get dry by licking them constantly. I'm a lip licker. Fun fact. The enzymes in your saliva that's meant to break down your food is also going to break down your lips. So if you're licking them, not only are you breaking down your lips, but that saliva is going to evaporate faster, causing your lips to get drier. Plus, our lips do not exfoliate like regular skin. We do not have hair follicles. We do not have sebaceous glands or sweat glands on our lips. And therefore, it is much harder for our lips to exfoliate themselves. So the best solution is to peel your lips using a chemical exfoliant and a lip peel. Not salicylic acid. You're looking for something that's going to hold on to hydration, like mandelic acid or even glucanolactone, which is better for sensitive areas and sensitive skin. Followed by a soothing, rich treatment that is going to help seal it all in and baste your lips.