Normal, healthy lip color varies, depending on skin color and other factors, but should fall in the reddish-pink-to-brown range.
Generally speaking, your lips should be "pink, soft, and smooth," according to Chase. If you have healthy lips and want to maintain them, heed Kominiarek's advice: "Make sure to drink plenty of water, use lip moisturizers and balms, and visit the doctor if you have any non-healing lesions."
Structure of Lips
Most of the skin on your face has 16 cellular layers. But your lips only have three to five. The skin on your lips lacks the skin cells called melanocytes that produce pigment.
"With light skin color, the lip skin contains fewer melanocytes (cells that produce melanin pigment, which give skin its color). Because of this, the blood vessels appear through the skin of the lips, which leads to their notable red coloring."
There is natural variation between people in their lip color. A pigment called melanin gives the skin its color. Less melanin creates a lighter skin tone, whereas more melanin means a darker skin tone. If the skin begins producing more melanin than usual, it can lead to hyperpigmentation.
Normal, healthy lip color varies, depending on skin color and other factors, but should fall in the reddish-pink-to-brown range.
A good rule of thumb is to correspond your skin tone with the lipstick shade. For instance, if your skin is light, go for a paler nude, if your skin is deeper go for a richer nude. The Best Lipstick Shades: Fiery reds and oranges pop beautifully on warm undertones.
Cracked or peeling lips: Heartache, worry, dryness in the body, feeling cold. Discoloration or faded colour in the lips: Lack of proper circulation throughout the body. Hot/burning/red lips: Inflammation or too much heat within the body due to overly spicy foods, too much sugar, alcohol or caffeine.
Blue or gray lips and skin indicate a lack of blood flow or a lack of oxygen circulating in the blood. Sometimes lips that change color may be a warning sign of a medical emergency, such as a severe asthma attack or COPD flare-up.
Cupid. Cupid is the rarest of all lip forms. Cupid has a powerful, youthful appearance, and is very prominent in pre-adolescent females. Due to the natural growth process in a female's lips, the fullness of the lips fill in the middle first, then the sides.
Science has found that the most attractive lip shape has an upper-to-lower lip ratio of 1:2. Lips are most desirable in different shapes and forms for different people – 60% of people prefer a 1:1 ratio where the lips are completely symmetrical and evenly full.
Butterfly lip form is the rarest lip shape. This lip shape gives women strong expression and youthful appearance. Women mostly have this type of lip shape during puberty. Doing lip augmentation in a dose gives your lips a natural spring form.
A person should contact their doctor if they are concerned about the appearance of their lips. A doctor can diagnose different types of discoloration affecting the lips. People should also seek medical attention if they experience any of the following symptoms: irregularly shaped skin lesions.
Pink is the most preferred colour in the United States and the UK with almost 50 percent of the top lip colours being pink shades – significantly more than other countries where pinks make up only 20-35 percent of all try-ons.
Red Rules
Among all the lip shades, crimson shade holds the guys' eyes for longest. This is because this hue is linked to a strong reward which attracts the most. I am a big fan of the bold red lips.
Pale white skin around the lips can be caused from an iron deficiency anemia, a skin pigment condition known as vitiligo, or a circulation issue called vasovagal syncope. Read now for more information on causes for pale discoloration around the mouth and how to find treatment.
The short answer? You basically have more blood vessels in your lips, said Braverman. The waterproof protective layer of your skin, the stratum corneum, is really thin on your lips, which makes it a lot easier to see your red blood vessels.
Pink lips are often considered a sign of beautiful features and good health by many people.
PALE OR WHITE LIPS: Pale or white lips are a clear sign of being anaemic. This means that your body lacks red blood cells or haemoglobin. Haemoglobin is the main part of the red blood cells and binds oxygen. Therefore, if your body lacks this, then your lips are bound to turn pale.
Lack of moisture leads to discoloured, dark, hyperpigmented lips due to excess melanin production. This happens due to various reasons including sun exposure, smoking, pregnancy, certain medication or other medical issues. Less moisture also leads to dry lips.
There are numerous potential causes for a dark spot on the lips. Some possible causes include skin cancer, a vitamin B12 deficiency, excessive iron in the body, thyroid disorders, smoking, age spots, and dehydration. The only way to get an accurate diagnosis is to see a specialist such as a dermatologist.
Darkly pigmented lips are most often seen on people of color who fall into the skin category Fitzpatrick IV and up and in some cases Fitz III. Lips with higher melanin levels will often appear as multi colored/toned, such as a brown upper lip and pink bottom lip, and/or hyper-pigmented.