How to Soothe Your Irritated, Sunburned Lips ASAP
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You’ve already heard us (and every dermatologist ever) sing the skin-protecting praises of anti-aging serums, retinol eye creams, vitamin C serums, and sunscreen. But one product application that gets overlooked? Sunscreen on your lips, which most people tend to forget, says dermatologist Mona Gohara, MD. “The lips are actually some of the most sensitive skin on your body,” adds dermatologist Zain Husain, MD, “so if you're exposed to UV light for a long period of time without protection, your lips will burn a lot easier than other areas of your body.” Basically, your lips are both biologically and situationally set up for more sun damage and burns.
Still, slip-ups happen, and if you’re here right now with burning, stinging, flaking lips and looking for relief, we’ve gotchu covered. I spoke with Dr. Husain, Dr. Gohara, and dermatologist Dione Marcus Super for the best tricks for soothing sunburned lips fast, including how long symptoms last, what products to use, and how to effectively prevent a lip sunburn from happening in the future.
How do you know if your lips are sunburned?
If your lips are sunburned, you’ll notice they might feel tender, inflamed, puffy, and/or look red or deeper in color on both your actual lips, and also on the skin around your lips, says Dr. Gohara. These symptoms can occur five to six hours after sun exposure, but they can progress for a few hours to a few days later, and result in throbbing, stinging, or, in severe cases, blisters, sores, or scabs. Your lips may also peel, shed, or itch as they start healing.
How do you treat sunburned lips?
Soothe swelling and redness
Relieve your puffy, inflamed lips with an anti-inflammatory product ASAP. All three dermatologists recommend dabbing 1 percent hydrocortisone cream onto your lips to bring down swelling and reduce inflammation as soon as you notice the sunburn. It won’t be pretty (think: thick and white), so try to layer it on in the morning or at night before bed. You can also smooth aloe vera gel on your sunburned lips to cool down any stinging and soothe irritation, says Dr. Husain (tip: Keep the gel in the fridge to amp up the calming effects).
Use ice to decrease inflammation
Holding a cold compress (like a towel soaked in cold water or an ice cube wrapped in a paper towel) against your lips helps constrict the blood vessels and can bring down puffiness, says Dr. Gohara. If holding a cold towel over your lips feels a little awkward, pop an ice roller in the freezer for 10 minutes and massage it over your sunburned lips for one to three minutes max.
Moisturize your lips
Sunburned lips can be chapped and dehydrated from excess sun exposure, so “adding a little hydration back to your lips will speed up healing,” says Dr. Super. She recommends layering on a hyaluronic acid lip balm, which will help pull water into your lips and lock it in. You can also look for lip balms filled with ceramides (lipids that form a protective layer over your skin to minimize moisture loss), as well as hydrators like shea butter, jojoba oil, squalane, almond oil, and vitamin E.
Use sunscreen on your lips if you’ll be in the sun again
When you do go back in the sun, apply SPF 30 or higher to your lips immediately, even if your lips are already sunburned, says Dr. Gohara. Extra sun exposure on already-burned lips can lead to even more dryness, burning, and redness. Though an SPF lip balm is easiest to apply, you can use your regular facial sunscreen on your lips. If you do, Dr. Husain recommends sticking with a mineral sunscreen (which uses zinc oxide or titanium dioxide), since it’s most tolerable for the sensitive skin on your lips.
Avoid popping or picking at blisters or scabs
If your sunburned lips start to blister or scab, avoid touching, popping, or picking at them. “When you try to pop or pick at the blisters or scabs, you're not only prolonging the healing process, but you're also irritating your skin and making it vulnerable to additional inflammation,” says Dr. Gohara, “as well as putting it at risk for long-term marks and scars.”
If you’re dealing with blisters or scabs that haven’t healed within a week or are worsening, go see your dermatologist asap, says Dr. Husain. “If the pain is severe, some patients may require stronger topical or even oral prescription steroids to make them more comfortable," he says.
What can you not put on sunburned lips?
“When your sunburn is fresh, you should avoid applying any petrolatum-based products,” says Dr. Super (see: Vaseline or Aquaphor), because they trap in the heat from your sunburn and could cause further inflammation. Instead, wait for your sunburn to stop stinging or burning before moisturizing your lips with petrolatum balms or salves.
Another lip balm ingredient Dr. Super doesn't recommend for sunburned lips? Menthol, because it can exasperate burning and redness, she says. Dr. Gohara also suggests patients steer clear of using topical antibiotics (like Neosporin or Bacitracin), which can sometimes cause contact dermatitis and actually create more inflammation.
How long do sunburned lips take to heal?
Sunburned lips take between three and seven days to heal, says Dr. Husain. “Whereas a sunburn on your back or face may take a week or two to heal, your lips tend to heal pretty quickly if left alone,” says Dr. Gohara. All the more reason to not pick at scabs or pop any blisters, which can increase healing time and potentially require a visit to your doctor for prescription intervention.
How can I reverse sun damage on my lips?
Sun damage on your lips can lead to dark spots on and around your mouth, which you can help reduce with products containing glycolic acid, tranexamic acid, or retinol—all of which help exfoliate skin and fade marks. You can also incorporate a vitamin C serum into your morning skincare routine, which can help block some pigment production and prevent your hyperpigmentation from getting worse. Still, that doesn’t mean you can completely “reverse” sun damage, especially if you had a severe burn, which is why prevention (and SPF!) is so vital.
How can I protect my lips from the sun naturally?
To protect your lips from the sun, Dr. Super says “the best prevention really is sun avoidance.” Obviously, hiding from the sun isn’t necessarily practical, which is where being smart comes into play: Try to minimize exposure when the sun’s rays are strongest (between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.), and always swipe on a sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher to your lips (and your whole body) 15 to 20 minutes before going in the sun and every two hours afterward. When you’re slathering on your daily SPF, you can massage the cream over your lips too, or just buy a dedicated SPF lip balm to keep on hand.
Final thoughts
If you find yourself with inflamed, stinging, or inflamed lips, soothe the irritation with some hydrocortisone cream or aloe vera gel, and keep your lips moisturized with a hydrating lip treatment. If your lips start to blister or peel, don’t pick them—contact your dermatologist instead. And to (hopefully, mostly) avoid sunburned lips altogether, just slather your lips in a sunscreen lip balm every time you step outside, k?
Meet the experts:
Mona Gohara, MD, is a board-certified dermatologist in Hamden, CT. Dr. Gohara is an associate clinical professor at Yale School of Medicine and president of the Women’s Dermatologic Society. Her areas of expertise include medical and surgical dermatology and treating skin of color.
Zain Husain, MD, is a board-certified dermatologist and Mohs micrographic surgeon at the New Jersey Dermatology and Aesthetics Center in Marlboro, NJ who specializes in skin cancer surgery.
Dione Marcus Super, MD, is a board-certified dermatologist and the founder of Super Dermatology in Conyers, GA and Atlanta, GA. She is an expert in skin cancer detection and treatment.
Why trust Cosmopolitan?
Beth Gillette is the beauty editor at Cosmopolitan with four years of experience researching, writing, and editing skincare stories that range from eczema shampoos to stretch mark creams. She’s an authority in all skincare categories but is an expert when it comes to sunburned lips, thanks to interviewing doctors about her own sun-damaged lips. She regularly tests and analyzes sunscreen lip balms for efficacy, while working with the industry’s top dermatologists to assess new formulas and brands.
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