Gloria Lu, a skincare chemist and the other half of Chemist Confessions recommends looking for occlusives, including petrolatum, lanolin, shea butter, and polyisobutene (a synthetic polymer). Ceramides are also a useful addition. “These oily, waxy substances help seal moisture in and make up for the lack of natural oils of the lips,” Lu said.
And if you’ll be wearing your lip balm outside, adding SPF is key. “Our lips don’t contain melanin that helps to protect our lip area from UV damage like the rest of our skin,” Fu explained. Skipping out on SPF means exposing lips to damaging rays, which can cause peeling, burned lips, and prolong the healing time of already chapped lips.
“For SPF lip balms, it can take some trial and error. Mineral filters like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide can leave an undesirable white film over lip skin,” Fu said. “On the other hand, lip balms that use chemical filters can sometimes leave an unpleasant aftertaste. Finding the right SPF lip balm that you use during the day can help prevent lip area aging in the long run!” she said.
Lip balm ingredients to avoid
You don’t just need to look for certain ingredients — there are a few you need to avoid, too. To make matters more complicated, not everyone will have a negative reaction to every “avoid” ingredient.
“It really depends on your particular skin type,” Lu said. “Lanolin is an occlusive ingredient derived from sheep’s wool. It’s a great ingredient that works well. However, there is a subset of people who find this ingredient to be very irritating,” said explained.
“Lanolin is a common ingredient found in lip balms that can be associated with allergy, irritation and ‘drier’-appearing lips over time,” Prather added.
Balms that are minty feeling may also cause irritation, despite how cooling they might feel in the moment. “Avoid older formulations that include chemicals such as phenol, camphor and menthol, which provide a cooling, soothing sensation upon application, but can lead to potential drying and irritation,” Cheung said. Menthol is a commonly added ingredient, and while it can feel soothing, explained Lu, it can also be drying for some, especially those already prone to dry lips. Salicylic acid, sometimes added for exfoliation, should be avoided for the same reason.
