Check Your Lip Balm! 4 Ingredients to Avoid

Lip balm is a great way to keep your lips moisturized and healthy-looking.

In dry or cold weather, our lips can become chapped or cracked, and lip balm can help protect them from the elements. It forms a barrier between your lips and the air, preventing moisture from escaping.

Lip balm can also help to heal chapped lips, providing relief from any discomfort.

However, not all lip balms are created equal.

In fact, some lip balms contain ingredients that are not great for your lips and your health.

Here are four ingredients to avoid in a lip balm.

Parabens

Parabens are a type of preservative used in cosmetics and skincare products to extend their shelf life.

The less exposure to parabens you have the better and a lip balm is certainly a product where parabens are completely unnecessary.

Natural lip balms are made from a combination of waxes, plant butters, and botanical oils and do not require parabens, or any other preservatives, for that matter.

Petroleum Jelly

Petroleum jelly is often used in lip balms because it is thick and occlusive.

However, petroleum jelly is a byproduct of the oil refining process and may be contaminated with carcinogens (substances that can cause cancer).

Rather than using lip balms with petroleum jelly, try natural lip balms that contain natural occlusive ingredients like beeswax or plant-based waxes.

Phenol, Menthol, and Salicylic Acid

These ingredients will actually make your lips dryer and less protected.

They can cause tingling and temporary numbing of the lips.

Because these ingredients are used to mostly exfoliate the skin, they have no place in a lip balm whose function is to soothe and protect your lips.

Fragrance

Fragrance is often added to products like a lip balm to make them smell good.

However, fragrance is a catch-all term that can refer to any number of different chemicals, many of which are synthetic and potentially harmful.

Some natural lip balms have small amounts of essential oils added to them and those compounds give the lip balm a nice scent but also have therapeutic benefits.

However, some people prefer to use unscented or fragrance-free lip balms.

The next time you go to buy a lip balm, make sure you go for a natural one that will be better for both your health and the environment.

For a list of best zero-waste natural lip balms check out Best Zero-Waste Lip Balm For Your Lips And The Planet.

Or if you are feeling crafty, you can try to make one yourself - How To Make A Homemade Lip Balm With 5 Simple Ingredients.