What is a Lip Balm?

Lip balm or lip salve is a wax-like substance applied topically to the lips to moisturize and relieve chapped or dry lips, stomatitis, or cold sores. Lip balm often contains beeswax or carnauba wax, camphor, lanolin, paraffin, and petrolatum, among other ingredients. Some varieties contain dyes, flavor, fragrance, phenol, salicylic acid, and sunscreen.

 

What are the Benefits of Applying the Lip Balm?

The purpose of all lip balms is to protect the lips. Lip balms contain a moisturizing ingredient including petroleum jelly, Shea butter, or lanolin which prevents water loss. To help lip balm stick to lips, wax is added. The wax keeps even tinted lip balms from having the shine of a lip gloss. Camphor and menthol in medicated lip balms give lip balm its cool tingle.

 

Disadvantages of Using the Lip Balm

Like many other products, lip balm has a few significant drawbacks. If a brand contains an allergen, it will cause a lip rash that mimics chapped lips. Some lip balms contain ingredients including phenol, menthol, and salicylic acid which actually make lips drier. Additionally some lip balm products contain potentially dangerous chemicals and ingredients including paraffin, petrolatum, dyes, and phenol. Finally, Continuous use of a product may lead to contamination and therefore there is a risk of possible infection.

 

Natural Lip Balm Scents

Peppermint: Peppermint and cocoa is a wonderful and popular scent and flavor.

Vanilla: Vanilla oil can be added to the lip balm to create a decadent chocolate truffle scent.

Cinnamon and Clove: Some people are sensitive to cinnamon and clove so make sure to use cinnamon leaf, not cinnamon bark.

Orange: Orange can be combined with any of the scents including cinnamon, mint, or on its own.

Lavender: Lavender is soothing to the skin; gentle, and healing.

Cypress and Lime: Cypress, like peppermint, increases blood flow and it is a natural lip plumper.

 

History of Lip Balm

Popular culture was first introduced to lip balm by pharmacist Charles Browne Fleet in Lynchburg, Virginia. He began selling and marketing it in the 1880’s. It looked very different from the efficient plastic tube we know today. In fact, the first lip balms that Fleet made looked like small wick-free candles wrapped in tinfoil. Sales were initially slow, and Fleet ended up selling the recipe to John Morton, another Lynchburg resident. His was paid a mere five dollars. Morton and his wife began manufacturing Chapstick, first in their home, and then in a factory before the business took off. The ingredients were mixed and melted, and then brass tubes were used to mold the sticks.

Difference between lip balm and lipstick

A lip balm is a medicated ointment of variable consistency which is used to soothe the lips or resolve any issues pertaining to them. However, a lipstick is basically on of the cosmetic products that women apply or use as a protection on lips.

A lipstick offers sheer coverage and a hint of color on the lips. Tinted lip balm is a combination of a flavored lip balm and lipstick. On the other hand lip balm is usually applied by people to get a relief from dry or chapped lips or cold sores.

Lip balm and lipstick are two separate products that are used for lips and in general it can be stated that lip balm is applied on the lips to get relief from the dryness and cold sores and chapped lips. Lip balm often contains beeswax or carnauba wax camphor cetyl alcohol lanolin paraffin and petrolatum among other ingredients. These lip balm containers usually have extra moisturizing ingredients to soften your lips as well as provide sun protection in order to avoid the development of skin cancer.

 

What is a Lipstick Base?

The term lipstick base is usually used to describe two different products. The first type of base is also known as lip primer, something like foundation primer. it is a neutral-colored cosmetic that is applied to the lips before lipstick, lip liner, or lip gloss. The other type of lipstick base is a substance that is used to make lipsticks, balms, or lip glosses.

 

The reason why we use lipstick base

Both makeup artists and individuals who wear color lip cosmetics use lipstick base for several different purposes. The first is to provide a matte surface for a gloss or lipstick to cling to, as this can make the lip color last longer, resulting in less need for reapplication during the day or evening. It can also discourage lipstick from smearing or feathering into the tiny lines around the mouth, which can greatly detract from its wearer’s appearance.

 

Tips to protect your lips

Here are some tips you can follow to keep your lips smooth and healthy:

• Don’t lick your lips because licking your lips actually has the opposite effect. In other words licking the lips make them even drier overall.
• Use a lip balm that’s ointment-based. Always look for a healing ointment which contains petrolatum, essential oils or glycerin
• Avoid lip balms containing camphor, eucalyptus and menthol. These ingredients actually dry out your lips and make the problem worse.
• Don’t bite, brush or rub your lips when they are peeling because it just creates cracks and sores on your lips and can make things worse.
• Treat severe peeling and cracks immediately because if you let them go, they can become worse, possibly infected or may even lead to a cold sore.
• Apply lip balm before you go to bed because seven to eight hours of breathing in and out through your mouth can seriously dry out your lips.

Source: https://www.safirstores.com/