Color of lips varies from one individual to another. Some people are actually born with somewhat dark lips while some are born with pink lips naturally. But then there are situations that cause the lips to be darker than normal. “Medical News Today” says “less melaning is associated with lighter skin while more melanin is associated with darker skin”. In essence, dark lips signifies the presence of the color-producing pigmenr, melanin, in larger quantity compared to lighter and pink lips. Having dark lips is usually no cause for concern.

However, in a case where the lips are darker than the skin surrounding, that might signal hyperpigmentation. This is usually the case when melanin is produced in excess. It is characterized by the patches of skin that are much darker than the skin surrounding them. This isn’t natural and can be caused by too much exposure to the sun, cold, certain medications, some medical conditions, smoking, and pregnancy. Let’s discuss them one after the other. 

1. Too Much Exposure to the Sun

When the skin is exposed to the sun, especially very hot sun, the skin is forced to produce more melanin to help absorb the UV rays and protect it from damage. And that causes the skin to get darker and tanned. It is best that you put some lip balm with at least SPF (sun protecting factor) of 30 on your lips before going out.

2. Cold

Severe cold can cause the lips to become very darkened and, sometimes, blue. Usually, the discoloration will disappear once the cold has been treated.

3. Certain Medications

Hyperpigmentation is a side effect of certain medications like antimalarial drugs and antibiotic minocycline. Typically, the lips return back to their natural color once the medication stops. In rare cases, however, it may persist.

4. Medical Conditions

Medical conditions such as Addison’s disease can cause lips darkening. How? These conditions attack the immune system making it weak and affects the rate at which the adrenalin gland secretes essential hormones. In this case, dark lips is just one of the symptoms. Others include weakness, dark gums, sunken mood, and low energy. When the condition is treated, if it is treatable, the symptoms will recede.

5. Smoking

The effect of smoking on the lips and on the body generally usually takes time to manifest; but it does manifest eventually. Hyperpigmentation, as well as other more serious health problems, has been linked with constant smoking of tobacco. Tobacco contains nicotine and benzpyrene, both of which cause an over-the-top production of melanin and, hence, darkened skin. The simple solution to this is to quit smoking.

6. Pregnancy

Due to hormonal fluctuations during pregnancy, the skin can experience darkening around the lips, forehead, cheeks, nipples, and nose. This is no cause for concern because the colors return after childbirth.

Natural or not, your lips can be lightened. You can either go the cosmetic way (check out “Cocci Beauty” for quality skin lightening products and balms) or you can go the natural way (check out our article “10 Natural Ways to Lighten Dark Lips).

Check out great-quality lip-care products at “Cocci Beauty”.

Thanks for reading. 💃💃💃💃

Article credit : Cocci Beauty