Dry lips despite lots of water??

mrsbarnett1012
mrsbarnett1012 Posts: 63 Member
edited November 21 in Food and Nutrition
So I know this is somewhat of an odd question but want to see if anyone else has expirenced it too.

I average drinking a gallon of water per day, plus usually a cup (sometimes two) of tea as well too. I feel like this is plenty of liquid but my lips, and sometimes my skin, I feel have been very dry lately.

Any thoughts on this? I'd be interested to hear. Thanks!
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Replies

  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    You're probably licking your lips or moisturizing them in a way, which makes them dry when exposed to cold air/wind etc.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,419 Member
    How is your fat intake? When I tried to go lower fat, my skin was really dry. Also, how many calories in general are you eating? Being malnourished will show up first with skin and nails.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,989 Member
    Or you could be like me and have eczema and lips are always pretty dry. Chapstick is my friend.

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  • ashleyconleche
    ashleyconleche Posts: 78 Member
    My lips are always dry as well, and I drink loads of water. I am trying to find the right way to moisturize them, but nothing has really worked for me.
  • mrsbarnett1012
    mrsbarnett1012 Posts: 63 Member
    I'm definitely not malnourished. I'm eating 1480 calories a day. However, perhaps it is my fat intake. I around eat 30-40g of fat per day.
  • deputy_randolph
    deputy_randolph Posts: 940 Member
    You're probably licking them without even realizing it...my son does this. His lips are so bad in the winter that they crack/bleed.

    What works AMAZINGLY well is lanosil. I put a thin layer on his lips overnight; will heal couple in a day or 2.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,419 Member
    mrsbarnett1012 wrote: »
    I'm definitely not malnourished. I'm eating 1480 calories a day. However, perhaps it is my fat intake. I around eat 30-40g of fat per day.

    Oh, that would definitely do it for me! My fat goal (at 1700 cals) is 60g, and I am almost always over that. Why do you have your fat set so low? Are you really tiny?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I drink tons of water...my skin and lips are always dry...I live in the desert, everything is dry. This is where lotion and lip balm come in handy...
  • pennygm72
    pennygm72 Posts: 179 Member
    Just to balance the fat question, I eat less than 15g fat a day for medical reasons and don't have dry lips, we're all different though. Vitamin E can help with dry skin and when mine do get dry due to wind/ cold in winter I find a thick coating of petroleum jelly before bed and a good quality lip balm helps hugely.
  • CMNVA
    CMNVA Posts: 733 Member
    I just have dry skin. My lips have been dry for YEARS. I carry a little tub of vaseline around with me. I find some of the stick formulations make my lips feel weird.
  • mrsbarnett1012
    mrsbarnett1012 Posts: 63 Member
    Thanks for everyone's input and feedback! I think I'll get some lip balm and go from there! :smile:
  • Cbean08
    Cbean08 Posts: 1,092 Member
    Depending on where you are located, it could just be a seasonal thing. I'm in Illinois and the weather just started cooling down. My skin has been a little more dry too. I put chapstick on first thing in the morning, right after I workout and again at night. When my nose starts getting dry, I rub a little coconut oil on the sore spots and it helps a lot.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    mrsbarnett1012 wrote: »
    Thanks for everyone's input and feedback! I think I'll get some lip balm and go from there! :smile:

    Best on the market (IMHO): Carmex.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    mrsbarnett1012 wrote: »
    So I know this is somewhat of an odd question but want to see if anyone else has expirenced it too.

    I average drinking a gallon of water per day, plus usually a cup (sometimes two) of tea as well too. I feel like this is plenty of liquid but my lips, and sometimes my skin, I feel have been very dry lately.

    Any thoughts on this? I'd be interested to hear. Thanks!

    How are you breathing? Do you breathe through your nose most of the time or frequently through your mouth? Mouth breathing can cause dry lips. I developed that habit 2 years ago when I had a severe abdominal issue (needed to take short breaths through the mouth because filling my lungs caused pain in my diaphragm). I still have that annoying habit even though surgery took care of the cause. My lips have been drier than normal because of it.
  • jayemes
    jayemes Posts: 865 Member
    Occasionally dryness and cracking in the lips could mean you're low on B vitamins
  • WilmaValley
    WilmaValley Posts: 1,092 Member
    I never leave the house without my stick of Burt's Bees lip balm. Weather, food, who knows what, causes dry lips.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    Drinking a ton of water doesn't mean you cant be dehydrated. Dehydration is can be caused by an electrolyte imbalance. So if you restrict sodium a lot, and drink a ton of water, you can be flushing too meaning electrolytes.

    So how does your sodium, potsssium and magnesium look like? Do you get cramping?
  • mrsbarnett1012
    mrsbarnett1012 Posts: 63 Member
    psuLemon wrote: »
    Drinking a ton of water doesn't mean you cant be dehydrated. Dehydration is can be caused by an electrolyte imbalance. So if you restrict sodium a lot, and drink a ton of water, you can be flushing too meaning electrolytes.

    So how does your sodium, potsssium and magnesium look like? Do you get cramping?

    No I really don't make it a point to limit sodium. I've had no issues with cramping either. My lips have started improving the past few days-perhaps I was breathing more through my mouth as another poster mentioned. I realized I do this more with working out for sure.

    Thank you everyone for your insights!
  • cee134
    cee134 Posts: 33,711 Member
    mrsbarnett1012 wrote: »
    So I know this is somewhat of an odd question but want to see if anyone else has expirenced it too.

    I average drinking a gallon of water per day, plus usually a cup (sometimes two) of tea as well too. I feel like this is plenty of liquid but my lips, and sometimes my skin, I feel have been very dry lately.

    Any thoughts on this? I'd be interested to hear. Thanks!

    Drinking water won't help your lips. Chapstick is the only thing that helps.
  • MostlyWater
    MostlyWater Posts: 4,294 Member
    How close are you to menopause?
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    Is that you in the mountains? I live at elevation and when I was even higher up I needed extra protection because of the very dry air. Chapstick.
  • boulank
    boulank Posts: 51 Member
    I have always had dry lips and the only thing that has worked for me is Vaseline. I carry it everywhere and have some on my night table.
  • artbyrachelh
    artbyrachelh Posts: 338 Member
    edited September 2017
    This is an interesting thread. I've always wondered this about myself, too. Not just dry lips and skin (yes I use chapstick and lotion) but always so thirsty! I drink tons, (maybe more than OP). But I do take a good multivitamin daily and have plenty of fat in my diet.
  • whosshe
    whosshe Posts: 597 Member
    cee134 wrote: »
    mrsbarnett1012 wrote: »
    So I know this is somewhat of an odd question but want to see if anyone else has expirenced it too.

    I average drinking a gallon of water per day, plus usually a cup (sometimes two) of tea as well too. I feel like this is plenty of liquid but my lips, and sometimes my skin, I feel have been very dry lately.

    Any thoughts on this? I'd be interested to hear. Thanks!

    Drinking water won't help your lips. Chapstick is the only thing that helps.

    Enh I'd have to disagree with this. Unless you know the cause of the dry lips you can't say something won't help for sure.

    Before I started watching my sodium and drinking enough water (sometimes I would go days without drinking a formal glass of water) my lips were dry af. I never left the house without chapstick and I would have a panic attack if I couldn't find it before leaving in the morning. Now that my sodium is under control if my lips feel like they're getting a bit dry I drink a couple cups of water and I'm good to go.

    Too much salt and too little water was the cause of my dry lips. So water did help. Depending on what kind of chapstick you buy it can only make it worse.
  • julesEMS2016
    julesEMS2016 Posts: 44 Member
    I read here recently that being low in Vitamin B will cause dry lips that crack in the corners. I've been fighting this off and on for the last year. When I'm good about taking my vitamins my lips heal up and stay moist like they should. Could be worth looking into.
  • mrsbarnett1012
    mrsbarnett1012 Posts: 63 Member
    MostlyWater wrote: »
    How close are you to menopause?

    I'm not quite 29 yet, so I've got a bit...
    julesEMS2016 wrote: »
    I read here recently that being low in Vitamin B will cause dry lips that crack in the corners. I've been fighting this off and on for the last year. When I'm good about taking my vitamins my lips heal up and stay moist like they should. Could be worth looking into.

    That's interesting, I'd never heard that B vitamins may help. I do take a daily multi religiously as well as a daily fish oil though, so hopefully that would cover me but I'll have to check the label I suppose.

  • jayemes
    jayemes Posts: 865 Member
    julesEMS2016 wrote: »
    I read here recently that being low in Vitamin B will cause dry lips that crack in the corners.
    Did you read it about a dozen posts up when I said it? :D;)

  • angelapaige88
    angelapaige88 Posts: 2 Member
    CMNVA wrote: »
    I just have dry skin. My lips have been dry for YEARS. I carry a little tub of vaseline around with me. I find some of the stick formulations make my lips feel weird.

    Vaseline sells a lip balm too! It is in a TINY vaseline tube. :)
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