• Combat sunburned lips

    There's nothing worse than bad sunburn except bad sunburn on your lips. Ouch! Time for a mini science lesson on why lips burn: Lip skin is very thin and has fewer melanin producing melanocytes (helps to absorb UV rays), particularly on very fair people. They also lack oil glands, meaning once lips get burned, it's way harder to keep them healing and hydrated. And cracking, red lips are not only unattractive they can be painful too. Prevent an unsightly-sunburned pout and dry, chapped lips with these top tips:

Wear sunscreen

Choose lip balm and cosmetics that contain sun protection. Physical acting sunblock like titanium dioxide deflect damaging UV rays from the skin, while chemical acting sunscreens like Ethylhexyl Triazone absorb damaging UV rays.

Give up the gloss

Unless it has SPF! Many didn't traditionally include SPF, but it's easier to find ones that do now. Opt for a lip balm, tinted lipcare with sunscreen or gloss with SPF like Labello Natural Volume with SPF 15 when you're in the sun for long stretches.

Stay in the shade

Avoid the sun altogether for your best defense against sunburned lips. Stay indoors or in the shade from 10am to 2pm – the hours of the day when the sun's rays are strongest. This way you can still soak up necessary vitamin D during less intense sunlight hours while saving your lips and skin from burns when the sun's at its hottest and most damaging.

Add antioxidants

Antioxidants are amazing! They fight aging triggered by UV damage. Eat antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables and, if needed, use vitamin, mineral and spirulina supplements. Stock up on antioxidant-rich beauty lip balms loaded with vitamins E, C, B5 too.

Use makeup

Makeup is a great sunscreen. Many cosmetics physically block UV rays from reaching skin because of their heavy pigments. Get a triple dose of sun protection on lips by applying a base of pigmented foundation on them with added sunscreen and antioxidants.

You lips are now ready for some fun in the sun!