How Do I Prevent Wrinkled Lips?

There are several things you can do to prevent wrinkled lips. Minimizing sun exposure will greatly reduce your chances of getting wrinkled lips, as will wearing sunscreen on your lips. Keeping lips moisturized so they don't become dry and chapped will also help prevent wrinkles. Smoking can also cause wrinkles on the surface of the lips and deep wrinkles around the lips, so avoiding smoking is important.

Just as the sun burns the skin on the face and body, it also burns lip skin. Sun damage over time can cause lips to become permanently wrinkled. To help prevent sun-damaged lips try to avoid being in the sun, especially during the middle of the day when the sun's rays are strongest.

When in the sun, wear a hat that shields your face and most importantly apply a lip balm with sunscreen or a sunscreen lotion or gel to your lips. The balm, lotion or gel should have a sun protection factor, or SPF, of at least 15. For women who wear lipstick or lip gloss, choosing one with sunscreen can help to prevent lip wrinkles.

Keeping lips moisturized at all times will help keep your lips from becoming chapped and dry, which can eventually lead to wrinkles. Applying a lip balm or petroleum jelly as soon as your lips begin feeling dry is important. Putting a balm, jelly or moisturizer on prior to bed will help keep lips hydrated throughout the night and may help prevent wrinkled lips in the long term.

Using commercial anti-wrinkle products made especially to keep lips soft, moist and wrinkle-free might also help in preventing or reducing wrinkles. Using products that gently exfoliate dry skin from the lips, followed by a hydrating product to moisturize and smooth might help reduce or prevent wrinkles. When using commercial beauty products opt for simple ones that don't contain a lot of additives that might irritate and dry lips.

Smoking contributes to wrinkled skin and lips by causing skin to age faster. Nicotine narrows blood vessels, impeding blood flow to the skin, which reduces the amount of oxygen and nutrients the skin receives. Other chemicals in cigarettes can cause the skin's fibers to break down, contributing to wrinkling. The longer you have smoked the worse the effects can be, so quitting smoking right away is important in helping to prevent wrinkled lips and other signs of premature aging. Smoking not only contributes to wrinkling on the surface of the lips, but the repeated puckering motion made when inhaling can cause deep wrinkles in the skin around the lips.