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Our lips are quite sensitive, as compared to the majority of our skin. This calls for different care for the lips from the ones that we use on the rest of our skin and face. One of the lips related problems is darkening of the lips with time. Unusually dark lips are a signal that your lips need a little bit of care. If you are worried about how to lighten the dark lips, then your worries are over. It is very easy to get rid of their darkness naturally, by using a few ingredients from your kitchen itself.
What Causes Dark Lips?
Dark lips are a sign of damaged lips, and with the daily pollution, stress and lifestyle changes we face in our lives, it has become a common phenomenon. Here are a few causes of dark lips.
Intake Of Caffeine
Too much intake of caffeine in the form of coffee or chocolates may take out moisture from the inside of your body, and render your lips dry. This darkens the lips. The idea is to moderate our consumption.
UV Rays
UV rays are damaging to the skin cells. Our lips are not exempted from this. Hence, protecting your lips against the sunrays are essential to their health.
Dead Skin Cells
Dead skin cells start building up in your lips if they are not taken proper care of. This requires one to exfoliate and moisturize the lips regularly.Discover more about the home remedies of dead skin.
Use Of Harmful Chemicals
If you use harmful chemical-based cosmetics like lipsticks on a regular basis, chances are, your lips will get darker by the day. Opt for natural cosmetics as much as possible, and at least do away with the frequent use of such chemical-based products.
Hormonal Imbalance
Sometimes, the reason for dark lips is more biological; like hormonal imbalance or ageing. It can occur during pregnancy, or if you are a woman who regularly takes birth-control pills. It is best to consult a doctor for appropriate treatments, and for knowing alternatives.
Smoking
Smoking tobacco damages your lips to no bounds, and quite rapidly so. The nicotine and tar only add on to the woe. It dehydrates your skin and leads to chapped lips. Although easier said than done, it is best to try and avoid smoking altogether.
Easy Home Remedies To Get Rid Of Dark Lips
1. Almond Oil
Ingredients
Almond oil - 2-3 drops
What To Do
- Rub the almond oil gently on your lips.
- Take care to be gentle and not to bruise your lips when rubbing anything on your lips, as rubbing too much or too hard can do so.
How Often To Do This
Apply this every night before bedtime and leave it on.
Benefits
Almond oil has emollient properties that help in lightening the skin on the lips. It also moisturizes it, keeping it hydrated. We recommend adding Almond Oil from Anveya.
Also Read : Almond Oil for Lips - Benefits and How to Use
ANVEYA SWEET ALMOND OIL, COLD PRESSED ORGANIC, 100ML
- Antioxidant properties fight WRINKLES & SAGGING SKIN
- One of the best oils for MASSAGE
- Rejuvenates dead cells, moisturizes CHAPPED LIPS
2. Lemon And Honey
Ingredients
- Lemon juice - 1 teaspoon
- Honey - 1 teaspoon
What To Do
- Combine the ingredients and dab it on your lips covering all parts.
- Leave it on for an hour.
- Wipe it off with a wet cloth gently.
How Often To Do This
Follow this once daily. You may do this more than once in a day as well.
Benefits
The citric acid in lemon helps prevent pigmentation and lightens the lips. The honey keeps the lips moisturized.
3. Aloe Vera Gel
Ingredients
Aloe vera leaf - as needed
What To Do
- Take out some aloe vera gel from a leaf.
- Apply it on your lips.
- Let it dry, before washing it off with lukewarm water.
How Often To Do This
Follow this regime once a day.
Benefits
Aloe vera contains aloesin that helps prevent pigmentation, as well as rejuvenates the skin cells. This could be used as a solution on how to lighten dark lips from smoking.
Also Read : 10 Amazing Beauty Benefits Of Aloe Vera For Skin
4. Coconut Oil
Ingredients
Virgin Coconut oil - 2-3 drops
What To Do
- Gently apply it on your lips.
- Leave it on for the rest of the day.
- Re-apply if needed.
How Often To Do This
Use this as a natural alternative to lip balm. Apply it whenever your lips feel dry, throughout the day.
Also Read : Homemade Lip Balm Recipes (Infographic)
Benefits
Coconut oil contains fatty acids that keep the lips moisturized. It also helps rejuvenate the skin cells.
5. Rose Petals And Milk
Ingredients
- Rose petal - 4-5
- Milk - 1-2 teaspoon (as needed)
What To Do
- Grind the rose petals into a paste, adding in some milk to get adequate consistency.
- Keep rubbing this on your lips for 4-5 minutes.
- With a tissue, gently remove the paste.
How Often To Do This
Do this every day before leaving home. It leaves behind a pinkish tinge, which will add on to your lip colour.
Benefits
The rose petals have cooling, lightening and soothing properties. It brightens up the lips and leaves you with naturally pink lips.
6. Apple Cider Vinegar
Ingredients
- Apple Cider Vinegar - 1 teaspoon
- Water - 1 teaspoon
- Cotton Balls
What To Do
- Mix in the water and the apple cider vinegar.
- Soak the cotton balls in it, and dab it gently on your lips.
- Let it sit for 10 minutes and wash it off with water.
How Often To Do This
To get rid of dark lips permanently, do this once every day.
Benefits
Apple cider vinegar is acidic in nature. It helps to lighten the skin on your lips, and can also prevent pigmentation.
7. Beetroot
Ingredients
Red Beetroot - 1 slice
What To Do
- Cut the beetroot into slices and keep it in the fridge to cool.
- Rub the slice on your lips.
- Keep it on for 20 minutes before rinsing it off with water.
How Often To Do This
If you're wondering about how to remove dark lips, follow this regime once every day.
Benefits
Beetroot is filled with anti-oxidants that hydrate your skin. It cleanses your lips, removes tan and adds on its own colour to your lips.
8. Baking Soda Followed By Olive Oil
Ingredients
- Baking soda - 1 tablespoon
- Water - few drops
- Olive Oil - 2-3 drops.
What To Do
- Combine the baking soda and the water into a paste.
- Apply it on your lips using your fingertips. Gently massage it on in a circular motion for 2-3 minutes.
- Wash it off.
- Apply olive oil on your lips.
How Often To Do This
Repeat the process every alternative day.
Benefits
Baking soda acts as an exfoliator for the dead skin cells on your lips. After scrubbing the lips can become extremely dry. Applying olive oil keeps it hydrated.
9. Potato Slice
Ingredients
Potato - 1 slice
What To Do
- Cut the potato into slices.
- Take one slice and rub it on your lips.
How Often To Do This
Do this every day before bedtime.
Benefits
Potatoes have catecholase. It is an enzyme that helps to lighten dark lips, and remove scars.
10. Cucumber
Ingredients
- Cucumber - half
- Cotton balls
What to Do
- Take half a cucumber in a blender and process until it turns into a juice.
- Refrigerate it till it cools down.
- Soak the cotton ball in the blend and dab it on your lips.
How Often To Do This
If you wonder how to lighten dark lips with this, use this regularly, for about 3 weeks.
Benefits
Cucumber is an excellent cooling-off agent that also nourishes your skin, hydrating it.
How To Prevent Darkening Of Lips?
Apart from trying on the above-mentioned remedies on how to remove dark lips, it is also essential to know ways to prevent it from re-occurring. Here are few tips.
1. Moisturizing The Lips
Dry and damaged lips are one of the most common contributing factors when it comes to dark lips.
- It should be a vital part of your skin-care regime that you also moisturize your lips, along with the rest of your skin.
- Look for ingredients like shea butter, cocoa butter, almond oil and beeswax in your lip balm.
2. Using Sunblock
Much like moisturizing, leaving your lips out to suffer the sun is not a good idea.
- Lips do not get tanned as such, but they do get burnt, and turn dry.
- To protect your lips against the UV rays, look for a lip balm with an SPF of 20 or more.
- In case you use lipsticks regularly, try to buy one that has an SPF value of 20 or more.
3. Quitting Smoking
For many people, smoking has become a lifestyle choice, owing to stress and hassles of daily life. However, it does a great deal of damage to the lips.
- While smoking, your lips can get dry, chapped and darkened by the nicotine, tobacco, tar and so on.
- Try quitting it not only for your lips but for your overall health.
- It may be difficult. You may need professional help.
4. Massaging
Just like massaging is essential for your face, your lips too need the same care, with different products.
- Massaging enhances the flow of blood to your lips, brightening it up.
- Use almond or coconut oil to massage your lips every night before going off to sleep.
- Another way of doing this is to use ice-cubes to massage your lips.
5. Using A Pomegranate Lip Scrub
Apart from the recipes on how to get rid of dark lips permanently, this one deals with preventive measures.
- Grind some pomegranate seeds into powder.
- Add in a few drops of milk to turn into a paste.
- Apply this on your lips, and scrub for 2-3 minutes.
- Wash it off with lukewarm water.
6. Using Exfoliating Scrub
As mentioned above, one of the reasons of dark lips may also be due to an accumulation of dead skin cells. Hence, to prevent dark lips, scrubbing is vital. How to:-
- Mix in a little bit of sugar and honey in quantities that turn into a paste.
- Use this as an exfoliator for about 3-4 minutes, before rinsing it off.
- Alternatively, you may use a soft-bristled toothbrush. But be very gentle while using this, as you may bruise your lips.
- Exfoliate 2 times a week. However, if there is some irritation, reduce the number of times you do it, the time you take to exfoliate or consult a professional.
Following these steps, you will see definite results fast. Make sure that you are not allergic to any of the ingredients of a particular recipe, before going ahead with it. Do a patch test on a small part of your skin to see if it causes any irritation or allergy. Go ahead with it if there is no irritation. A little care, and you can continue to bless the world with that awesome smile!
Disclaimer: All the content on anveya.com/blogs is solely for information. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or a qualified health care provider. The information, suggestion or remedies mentioned on this site are provided without warranty of any kind, whether express or implied.
