Like the rest of the skin, the lips need certain care to be one hundred, since any cut or discomfort in this area can make such basic activities such as eating and chewing impossible. We tell you more about the reasons why your lips can swell.
Reasons why your lips can swell / Photo: iStock
What causes swelling on the lips?
Being a sensitive part of the body, the lips can present discomfort such as swelling or dryness caused by various factors, including:
Allergy to makeup or lip moisturizers. The US National Library of Medicine warns against allergic reactions to some components of makeup. For example, from para-aminobenzoic acid, which is present in many moisturizers and sunscreens and can cause puffiness.
- Drug allergy. According to the Mayo Clinic, a drug allergy occurs when the immune system mistakenly detects the drug as a threat (a virus or bacteria) and then develops an antibody to that substance, causing an allergic reaction.
- Allergic reaction to food. Mayo Clinic explains that an allergic reaction to food is an immune system response that occurs shortly after eating a food and this is another of the Reasons why your lips can swell.
- Herpes labialis. According to the National Library of Medicine of the United States, cold sores are caused by the HSV virus and there is no cure, so those who suffer from it should only wait for the infection to disappear on its own. This type of infection can cause painful sores and inflammation in the area.
- Extreme weather. Cold and dry weather can lead to the appearance of inflammation and dryness on the lips.
- Blow or trauma. The blows cause the blood vessels to break and this sometimes causes inflammation in the affected area.
There are even cases in which the existence of toxic particles contributes to the inflammation of the lips.
What kind of allergy is it when the lips swell?
When there is inflammation in the lip area, it is known as allergic angioedema and, according to the United States National Library of Medicine, it can be caused by different reasons such as pollen, insect bites, animal hair, food, medicines or other types of diseases.
Reasons why your lips can swell / Photo: iStock
What is good to deflate a swollen lip?
As the swelling of the lips can be due to different factors, the solutions are also diverse. The Stanford Medicine Children’s Health site shares that the recommendation to reduce inflammation of a swollen lip due to a blow or trauma is to apply ice to the area.
The ice can be placed directly or through the consumption of ice creams, popsicles or cold foods.
As already mentioned, in the case of cold sores, there is no remedy as such, however it has been shown that some antiviral drugs have good results.
Swollen lips caused by allergic reactions to food are usually treated with loratadine in mild cases, while severe cases always need urgent medical attention.
If you feel tingling, numbness or pain in the area, the Mayo Clinic notes that it could be early symptoms of lip cancer, a type of mouth cancer. For these cases, the ideal is always to go for a medical check-up to rule out any prognosis.
Reasons why your lips can swell / Photo: iStock
How long does it take to reduce inflammation of the lip due to allergies?
Usually when it is treated, it lasts 24 hours, however, it does not last the same in all cases, it will depend on the organism of each person and the causes for which the swelling existed in the first place, but generally the swelling occurs 24 to 72 hours.
Now that you know the reasons why your lips can swellIt is important to remember that in the event of any anomaly or discomfort, consult your doctor as soon as possible and do not self-medicate.
Remember that there are people for whom allergic reactions could be fatal.
About allergies, we leave you a video so you know how to identify the symptoms of allergic rhinitis.