A natural lip scrub can keep your lips looking beautiful and healthy as they enhance your mood and promote self-confidence. The best part of making a lip scrub is that it is exfoliating. Removing dead skin leaves your lips feeling smooth and luscious.
Chapped, dry, damaged lips can happen any time of year. Typically, chapped lips occur when your lips are not producing enough natural oils to keep them moisturized. When this happens, you need to help your lips retain their natural moisture.
There are several reasons why chapped lips may occur including:
When your lips are chapped, they might be dry or cracked, bleeding, flaking, sore, or even swollen. To heal, you need to bring back the right level of natural oil.
A store-bought product can do this, or, even better, you can make a natural lip scrub at home to exfoliate and return your lips to their natural softness. Be careful what you buy because some store bought products actually prevent your lips from creating their own natural oils. This is why a natural homemade lip scrub can be much more beneficial.
This homemade, natural lip scrub is easy to make and uses ingredients many of us have right in our homes.
Coconut oil and honey are used for the base. The nice thing about using coconut oil is that it contains antioxidants and fatty acids that will nourish your lips, and the honey is a natural healer for your skin. In a bowl, combine the honey and coconut oil. Be sure to mix the honey and oil until it is a thick and smooth consistency.
Keep in mind that coconut oil changes in consistency with temperature. You want your coconut oil a little more solid when making this natural scrub for your lips. If needed, you could warm it up to mix with the honey, and then let it cool before mixing in the sugar to keep the grainy consistency of the sugar.
Next, add two packed spoonfuls of brown sugar to the base and mix well. The brown sugar is a nice exfoliant that is gentler on your skin than other natural ingredients. It is not as harsh as salt or other exfoliants.
After mixing in the sugar, be sure to adjust the ratio to achieve a good scrub consistency. The ratio depends on how smooth or exfoliating you want your scrub. For instance, if you want a smoother scrub, add a one tsp of coconut oil. This will add more moisturizing power and smooth it out. If you want it to be dryer to exfoliate more, add a bit more brown sugar.
Once you have the right consistency, put the newly made scrub into your jar, and be sure to put a date on the jar. This natural lip scrub does not contain preservatives, and it only lasts about two weeks. This is why it’s best to make only a small batch at a time. Store it in the refrigerator so that it will keep better.
You should always let your lip scrub sit out and reach room temperature before applying it to your lips. This will help soften the scrub before use so that it is gentler and easier to apply. Take a generous amount on your finger and apply in a circular motion onto your lips. Let the scrub sit on your lips for about two minutes. Afterward, remove the scrub with a warm wash cloth. You can then add a natural moisturizer to your lips if desired.
If you do not have the time to make the lip scrub one day, that’s okay. You can also exfoliate by using a soft-bristle toothbrush on your lips. First wet the brush, then gently rub on your lips in a circular motion to exfoliate and remove dead skin.
Your lips will be soft and healthy if you use a natural exfoliant on them. A good healthy lip scrub can also relax you and enhance your mood, as well as give you beautiful lips. It is a natural way to relax and reduce stress.
Another little-known cause of chronically chapped lips is adrenal fatigue. Although this lip scrub can help in the short-term, if you have been under too much stress for too long, your chapped lips might be a sign of a deeper issue.
Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS) occurs when your body is overly stressed for too long, and your adrenal glands cannot keep up. This causes a wide array of symptoms including:
For those with adrenal fatigue, the body's ability to handle stress is not working well. The adrenal glands are the main organ for managing stress. When you are stressed, your adrenals produce cortisol to combat it. If this goes on for too long though, your adrenal glands cannot keep up. This leads to adrenal fatigue, and if not dealt with, it can cause an adrenal crash.
This natural lip scrub can help with the dryness your lips may experience from AFS. Taking some time out for a beauty treatment is also a natural stress-reliever, which can help take some of the pressure off your system. The best way to deal with AFS is by stress reduction.
However, since dry skin is a symptom of AFS, there may be more care your body needs to prevent dry skin. It’s important that, if you suspect you have adrenal fatigue, you talk to a specialist well versed in natural medicine to create a plan to clear up your dry skin. A lip scrub won’t cause any adverse actions, but it also won’t clear up the problem if you don’t deal with the underlying issue.
The NeuroEndoMetabolic (NEM) Stress Response is a model explaining how the body reacts to various stressors, both physical and mental, and how one part of the body correlates to another. The NEM explains how, when one body system is affected by stress, it can have an impact another.
One main part of the NeuroEndoMetabolic Stress Response is the neuroendocrine system, including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) hormonal axis. The HPA axis is the body’s main stress relief highway, so to speak. This neuroendocrine highway sends and receives messages through chemical messengers, hormones, sensory organs, and neurotransmitters.
The body interprets these messages to reduce the stress on the area that is being affected. The adrenal glands are an important part in stress reduction since they produce the hormone cortisol. The NEM Stress Response system shows how these things affect each other.
Take dry skin for example. When the adrenals are overworked, they can’t keep up with stress, and this, in turn, gives you symptoms of adrenal fatigue syndrome. One of these symptoms is dry skin (chapped lips included). The best way to relieve most of these symptoms is stress reduction. However, it wouldn’t hurt to have a good exfoliating lip scrub handy.
Keep in mind that an exfoliant should not be your only way to combat dry skin because issues caused by AFS can get worse over time. That is why it is so important to consult a specialist who understands AFS and can help you come up with a better plan of action. However, a lip scrub is a good start for moisturizing your lips and calming your body.
Making your own natural lip scrub is an easy, cost-effective way to heal your lips and boost your mood. Exfoliating is an effective way to create moist and beautiful lips. For those with AFS, it can be especially beneficial for dry skin and reducing stress. Be sure to talk to a specialist if you have any other concerns or health issues.
© Copyright 2017 Michael Lam, M.D. All Rights Reserved.
In contrast to common belief, your lips can become chapped at any time. Chapped lips can be caused by anything from sun exposure and dry air to diet or underlying health issues. Chapped lips are caused by your lips not creating enough natural oil to stay moist.
