Black lips are caused by many things, including sun exposure, excessive coffee or tea drinking, allergies, and most commonly, smoking. Black lips from smoking are caused by the chemicals in the cigarette lingering behind. If you quit smoking, your lips will return to their natural color within a few weeks, but what to do until then? This annoying problem can be fixed by implementing a few changes to your daily routine.
Drink a large amount of water daily to flush toxins from your body. You need eight 8-oz. glasses of water a day to keep your body from becoming dehydrated, which encourages the black lips.
Gently brush your lips with a toothbrush coated in petroleum jelly. The brush will remove dead skin cells, including the blackened ones, while the petroleum jelly will add moisture to your lips to help prevent them from turning black again.
Massage a quality lip balm into your lips throughout the day. Don't allow your lips to get dry and chapped.
Make a lip scrub by mixing equal amounts of lemon juice, milk and almond oil. Add sugar until the consistency is thick and grainy. Gently rub the scrub into your lips. The lemon juice has a natural bleaching property that can help lighten your lips, and the milk, almond oil and sugar will help remove even more dead skin cells.
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Writer Bio
Amy Lukavics is an Arizona resident who has been a professional writer since 2009. She contributes to the blog Hello, Moon and her writing interests include cooking, crafts, pregnancy, health and beauty.