Causes of Dark Lips   

Dark lips or dark corners of the mouth can be a sign of an underlying health problem. In some cases, it is actually a symptom of a serious health problem.

This happens when the oxygen supply to the tissues in the lips becomes severely limited due to various reasons such as blood clotting, improper blood circulation and even some skin diseases.

Well, it turns out that there are a multitude of reasons behind the dark lips. Mostly, it happens due to the genes, the change in the weather or because of common skincare mistakes. 

Besides, dark lips are also caused by smoking or drinking. To find out the common causes of dark lips, first of all, we need to know the reasons why the lips turn dark. There are various reasons why people have dark lips. Some of them are:

1. The main reason is genetic. There are some people who have this type of problem and this is because it is passed down from the parents.

2. Tobacco use causes the lips to become darker because the nicotine present in tobacco makes the lips darker.

3. Smoking will also cause the lips to become darker because it leads to suntan and once you tan, your lips will get darker.

4. The sun's UV rays that come in contact with the skin make your lips darker.

5. Using lipstick or lip gloss which can make your lips darker if you don't apply correctly.

6. Other causes include:

a) Pregnancy

b) Hormonal changes

c) Medications

d) Stress

e) Too much sun exposure

f) Drinking alcohol, as it contains tannin which makes your lips darker and drier.

How to Get Rid of Dark Lips?

Lip colour has always been an important aspect of a woman's image. It has the ability to instantly change your look and make you appear more attractive.

Most of us don't like to go out with dark lips as it ruins the natural beauty of our face. The reason behind dark lips can be many, the most common being low levels of vitamin B-12, low levels of lipase and poor circulation. 

Vitamin B-12 is an important vitamin that helps in giving strength to our bones and skin, repairing damaged cells and making blood cells. Vitamin B-12 deficiency leads to anaemia which causes weakness, fatigue and pale skin. In such cases, a person will have pale coloured lips.

Dark lips are not only unattractive but also a sign of poor nutrition. If you do not wish to use chemical bleaching agents but still want to lighten your lips, then some easy home remedies will help you get back a lighter shade of lips. We have compiled some of the best remedies to get rid of dark lips.

The various home remedies for dark lips include honey, cinnamon powder, gram flour, lemon juice, sandalwood powder, pomegranate juice, orange juice etc. Let us have a look at them.

1. Lemon: Lemon is rich in vitamin C which helps to heal damaged skin cells and reduces skin pigmentation. To lighten the pigmentation on your lips, all you have to do is take some lemon juice in a bowl and dip a cotton ball in it. Use this cotton ball on your lips and leave it for about 15 minutes. Wash off with plain water afterwards. You may use lemon juice daily with this treatment to see the best results.
   
   
2. Tomato: Tomato is another wonder fruit that can help you get rid of the dark pigmentation on your lips.

You can use any one of these remedies to lighten your lip colour. All you need to do is apply the remedy on your lips directly with the help of a cotton swab and leave it for 10 minutes. Follow up with a scrub and you’re done.

How to Prevent Your Lips from Getting Darker?

Those who have dark lips are no stranger to having a darker tone of the skin on the same regions of the body. This is usually attributed to hyperpigmentation or in other terms, discolouration of the skin. The skin on the lips is made up of two layers, which include; a thin top layer called the epidermis, which is comprised of dead skin cells and a thicker layer beneath is known as the dermis. 

While it is relatively easy to get rid of hyperpigmented skin on most parts of the body like the face, neck and arms, getting rid of hyperpigmentation on the lips can be a little tricky.

This guide will help you learn how to prevent your lips from becoming dark and reveal those pouty lips you've always wanted!

Dark lips are usually very natural, so do not worry about that. However, if you want to prevent them from getting darker, below are some ways that you can try.

1) We suggest that you use a lip balm with SPF in it. We also recommend that you apply lipstick with SPF on top of the lip balm so that the protection is doubled. Apply a good lip balm that will act as a shield in protecting your lips from the harshness of the environment. Lip balm should contain SPF as well as should have natural ingredients that nourish your skin.

2) The lipstick and the lip balm are not only to prevent your lips from darkening but also help reduce the loss of moisture of the lips.

3) Drink lots of water while you can. Water hydrates and nourishes your lips. 

4) Apply a good moisturizer on your lips regularly. Choose a lip balm that contains ingredients such as shea butter, jojoba oil, olive oil, vitamin E and sunflower oil. 

5) Avoid using lipsticks and lip glosses that contain colouring agents.

Take Away

Dark lips are caused by several factors like excessive exposure to the sun, nutritional deficiencies and some health conditions, which cause uneven pigmentation.

The main reason behind dark lips is related to genes and this is a fact that this is one of the main causes of dark lips. It has been seen that most of the people whose parents have dark lips suffer from it as well. The gene that is responsible for this condition is called the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) gene. It has been studied that nearly 50% of people who carry this gene have dark lips.