DD's lips

[LifeInAHamsterWheel]

Can anyone recommend something that will heal my DD's lips? It doesn't help that she licks them too often, but we've tried all sorts of balms & creams and nothing seems to work. The mark above her lip just came up earlier when she was drinking out of a metal cooler bottle I don't know if it's the way she was drinking out of it that caused a sort of suction (that what she says caused it but it hasn't abated yet) or she's had a reaction to the metal. Her lips are constantly dry and cracked like this. She's 12.

She's reacting to all these lip balms.
Try coconut oil

I had this at the same age, turned out after trying billions of lip balms that I was allergic to petrolatum which is in a lot of them. Vaseline is pure petrolatum, it's also in carmex. The lavera sensitive lip balm is the one I've found the best

It clear it up completly I ended up being referred to a dermatologist as it had been dry and cracked and covered in allergens so long it had developed into very stubborn eczma.

Is she drinking enough OP? My lips used to look like this as a child because I was always dehydrated. Maybe get her to drink a couple of extra glasses of water a day?

Blistex did the trick for me. It tingles when you rub it in but does the business very quickly.

Not stinging stuff like Blistex or Carmex. Two of my teens would get this due to walking to school in the cold and kicking the sore patches.
Eucerin is amazing - soothing and healing. For corners only, fucidin - pharmacist said this has mixed results and we tried mainly as a placebo but it worked within three days

www.eucerin.co.uk/products/aquaphor/soothing-skin-balm-45ml

Thanks to everyone for suggestions. Going to try one by one and for a week at a time 🤞🏻

Please can you let us know if you have any success, good luck

I will indeed

Carmex will fix that asap. £1.99 in Boots or Superdrug. Don’t even bother with Vaseline, it won’t do anything

DD had a lot of this. Turns out she has a mild nut allergy (almonds and walnuts). Has she been having Nutella recently?

I have very sensitive skin, eczema & psoriasis. I find blistex harsh but rely on blisteze relief see pic. Bonus that it doesn't taste very nice so she won't keep licking her lips which makes chapping worse.

Lanolin. A godsend

If you’ve been bombarding them with various salves then I’ve heard that going cold turkey and using absolutely nothing is the answer. It takes a week or two for your lips to get used to it and then they do (apparently).

She’d have to stop licking through is the problem.

Another vote for good old fashioned lanolin. It's the only thing that works on mine.

Going back to your original post, OP, the photo looks like lick eczema, but it's interesting that the rash came up after exposure to metal. Water bottles are usually made of stainless steel, and this sometimes contains nickel, which is common allergen. Lick eczema/dermatitis can be hard to distinguish from an allergic dermatitis (I'm a GP)

I would try switching her to a plastic water bottle.

In terms of an emollient (moisturiser), many of the suggestions on this thread contain irritants like camphor, which are likely to make things worse. You want a moisturiser recommended for eczema e.g. Diprobase. If that doesn't work, talk to your pharmacist/GP about a short course of a topical steroid.

Good explanation of lick eczema here

PS, if there is any chance she may be developing a nickel allergy, be careful about jewellery. I'd stop her wearing anything not gold or silver for the moment. It's a pain if you develop a full-blown allergy, as nickel is in so many products (zips, for example), so it would be good to minimise exposure for the time being.

Lucas papaw ointment - costs about £10 but lasts ages

Okeeffes works well for my dd, but I see you have tried that.
Vaseline is a barrier, so try rubbing a good plain moisturiser in - Child's Farm unfragranced is good - and then pat vaseline over the top.

Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream works miracles

My daughter picks her lip and it gets very sore and dry, especially in the cold weather. It's expensive, but the Elizabeth Arden 8 hour lip balm is great. It's expensive but you only need a small amount. I put it on when my daughter is asleep so she can't lick/wipe it off

The only lip balm that works for me when my lips are very sore is Carmex in the original tube.

Nipple cream, the purple one (can’t recall the name). Much better than any lip balm.

Lanolin

Agreed. I use it for dry sensitive under eyes too.