Adults aren’t the only ones prone to chapped lips. Little ones can get chapped, dry lips too. This is common in babies that sleep with an open mouth, and those that are outside during cold, winter months.
What do you do about chapped lips though? Is it safe to put chapstick on a baby? When putting chapstick on your little one, remember that they’ll more than likely eat it. Or suck it off their lips.
If that’s safe, then yes. If not, then no. It really depends on the chapstick.
In this article
Pay Attention To Chapstick Ingredients
The ingredients in chapstick or lip balm are what you need to pay attention to when deciding whether it’s safe for your little one. This article covers everything you need to know, especially regarding ingredients.
It goes into detail about why you should avoid lip balms that list fragrance as an ingredient and much more.
When you keep in mind that babies tend to ingest everything near their mouth, especially things on their lips, you quickly realize that some chapstick and lip balm is not going to be safe.
Chapstick Is Not Recommended For Children Under Two
Because of the ingredients in Chapstick, it’s not recommended for children under the age of two. Most parents will not want to use adult chapstick for children under the age of six, though.
This is because kids tend to lick their lips when they are dry, even if they are wearing Chapstick. This can lead to them ingesting all of the additives that are in the Chapstick or lip balm.
Chapped Lips On Newborns Is Normal
If your little one is a newborn, and they suddenly seem to have really bad chapped lips, it could be normal. Newborn babies tend to shed a layer of the skin on their lips.
Almost every newborn does this. If the shedding is happening rather quickly, it could appear as though your little one suddenly has the worse case of chapped lips you’ve ever seen. In this case, you don’t need to apply anything.
Most babies don’t mind this stage. However, there’s also no harm in applying certain things if you want to make sure that your little one is comfortable.
What Can I Put On My Baby’s Chapped Lips?
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Chapped lips are common and happen for a variety of reasons. It could be from open-mouth sleeping, the cold air, being sick recently, or several other things.
If the chapped lips are not due to a serious underlying medical condition, you can treat them at home. These are common, safe, and effective ways to help your baby’s lips go back to being silky smooth.
Baby Lip Balm
They have a lip balm that is specifically made for babies. This lip balm is designed to treat chapped lips, provide a protective coating, and you don’t have to worry about your little one licking their lips.
Before picking up a baby lip balm, it’s important to check the ingredient list, though. If that’s not an option, go for one that is marked organic or all-natural so you don’t have to worry about your little one consuming toxic ingredients.
- NON-TOXIC AND CLEAN: Nutrient-dense blend of botanical oils form this emollient cream. Plant-based oils heal aggravated skin, lock in moisture and reduce inflammation. Safe if ingested, nontoxic.
- PROTECTS AND HEALS: Effectively heals and moisturizes dry, chapped lips and irritated, exposed skin around babys mouth. Reduces redness, inflammation, & eczema around mouth.
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Lanolin
Lanolin is used very commonly to treat cracked nipples, making it more than safe for a baby’s cracked lips. If you’re breastfeeding, you probably already have some lanolin or all-natural nipple cream laying around.
(This stuff is also amazing as a quick fix when you’re out of diaper rash cream!) Keep in mind that all lanolin creams do not have the same ingredients. Make sure to read the ingredient list to determine if yours is safe for your baby.
I Use Coconut Oil
- NATURALLY EXTRACTED and NUTRIENT DENSE: Nutiva’s all-natural cold press extraction process yields a pure, light-tasting, nutrient-rich oil containing 63% medium chain triglycerides and 50% lauric acid without the use of dangerous and harmful chemicals, hexane, or heat
- PREMIUM DIET COMPATIBILITY: Nutiva Virgin Coconut Oil is an ideal addition to vegetarian, vegan, raw, whole food, paleo, ketogenic, and gluten-free diets
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I personally use coconut oil and have been using it on the littlest for years. It works exceptionally well for chapped lips among other things, and it’s cost-effective.
If you want to take some with you on the go, you can put a spoon full in a small plastic container that will fit inside of your purse. This all-natural option is safe for babies, contains no toxic ingredients, and will both protect and heal lips.
When you buy coconut oil, make sure that it’s raw, virgin coconut oil. If it’s truly raw coconut oil, it will not have been through a lot of processing, which can remove some of the benefits and add toxins to the oil.
Any Other Organic Oil Will Work Wonderfully
If you don’t have coconut oil in the pantry, any other type of organic oil will work in a pinch too. For example, almond or olive oil. The oil consistency will help the oil stay on the lips to protect them from cold weather.
Meanwhile, natural ingredients can help soften chapped lips. Almond oil also has natural healing properties.
A Dab Of Breastmilk
Every time that you feed your little one, make sure to rub a dab of breastmilk across their lips. This helps to moisturize the lips.
In addition to that, breastmilk is packed with vitamins and nutrients that your little one’s lips will appreciate. You don’t have to worry about it not being safe for them to ingest either!
Pick Up A Humidifier
A humidifier helps keep the air moist to prevent things like dry skin, thick mucous, and chapped lips. You simply put water in the bottom of it and turn it on.
Most of these have a warm air setting so you can trust that you won’t make your baby’s room cold. If you can get your pediatrician to cover one, some medical insurance companies will cover the cost.
Once you get a humidifier, you should be able to help your baby’s chapped lips by running it once a day.
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In Conclusion
Chapped lips are normal for newborn babies because they shed that first layer of skin. Babies can also get chapped lips from the dry, winter air.
Using home remedies, like coconut oil, a humidifier or baby lip balm are all great ideas to provide soothing relief to your little one.
