All About Lips - Oak Bay News reviews corrective lip habits with Dr. Lupin in their Beautiful You supplement.

While the eyes may be a key feature for many people, the lips are often a close second.  To learn more about how lips differ from other facial areas, we chatted with Dr. Mark Lupin MD FRCPC, Dermalogy and Laser Medicine at Cosmedica Laser Centre.

Beautiful You: Do lips age in a different way to the rest of the skin on the face?

Dr. Mark Lupin: Lips age in concert with general skin aging but tend to be more prone to early lines in part because of sun exposure and in some cases, a tendency to strong pursing of the lips as part of normal facial expression.  There is deflation of the lips and a loss of definition of the nice youthful borders of the lips with time.  In addition, sun damage can lead to reduced redness of the lips.  The corners of the mouth tend to turn down with time leading to a grumpy or unhappy look.

BY: What are the most common complaints patients have with their lips and/or mouth area?

ML: Patients often tell me that they are noticing lines appearing on their upper lip and lipstick may start to bleed into those lines.  They also note that their lips have lost some fullness.  They want fuller lips but are scared about having overdone lips.  My emphasis is to rejuvenate the lips by restoring volume, support and definition while keeping things natural.

BY: Are some people more susceptible to these concerns than others?

ML: Sun damage and smoking appear to be the two most important environmental factors that lead to premature aging and weathering of the lips.  Some people are also genetically prone to lines from a tendency to purse the lips when talking.

BY: What are some of the options to address these concerns?

ML: Dermal fillers, Botox® and resurfacing lasers are the three modalities to consider.  Fillers are the mainstay as they provide the pillars of support to lift the corners of the mouth, restore lost volume and crisp up the lip borders.  Principally, I use hyaluronic fillers for the best balance of safety, longevity and natural feel.  Botox® is used either as a primary treatment to prevent early lines or as a secondary treatment to complement dermal fillers by extending their longevity and enhancing the benefit.  Laser resurfacing such as with the Fraxel® re:pair laser remodels the skin around the lips to address those deeper, ingrained line for a softer, smoother appearance.

BY: What kind of "preventive medicine" should people practice with their lips?

ML: An antioxidant lip balm with broad spectrum sunscreen built in is the single best piece of advice to help protect the lips.  And avoid smoking!

BY: Anything else you'd like to add?

ML: Lips are the easiest thing to overdo and we see plenty of examples of this in the tabloids, on TV...and even around town.  With the rising number of non-specialist and non-physician providers, there appears to be a rising number of "lips gone wrong." The public should realize that there is a long learning curve to be able to provide the best results.  My recommendation is therefore to research your provider: ideally they should have over a decade of experience specifically with cosmetic lip restoration - and their aesthetic sense should match your own.  Get your lips right the first time - the best treatment does not look like "a treatment." The best lips are beautiful, natural-looking lips and should not look treated.

Beautiful You. February 2011