Chapped lips - almost universal problem that from time to time faced almost everyone. Sometimes chapped lips cause severe pain and swollen so that the borders of the lips lose their sharpness. Of course, all this does not add to the attractiveness, as, indeed, does not cause and the person whose lips were cracked, engage in more or less close contact with the opposite sex.

In most cases, the appearance of the problem can be prevented, but even when the mouth is more or less severely affected, get help from a variety of means - both domestic, as well as those that you can buy without a prescription at the pharmacy. In some cases, when the lips crack often, in spite of careful nursing, a dermatologist may need counseling and special treatment.

Causes

The main reasons for which the lips are beginning to crack, are:

• Exposure to sunlight;
• Dry and cold weather;
• Dry air in the room - usually in the winter, during the heating season;
• Dehydration;
• Medication and supplements. The most harmful in this respect are retinoids such as isotretinoin and acitretin. Izbutochnaya skin dryness and cracking of the lips can also be caused by high doses of vitamin A, lithium, chemotherapeutic agents such as busulfan or actinomycin, d-penicillamine, isoniazid and phenothiazine.

In some cases, the lips cracked due to increased body temperature and lack of certain vitamins.

Prevention

In most cases, prevent the occurrence of cracks in the lips is possible by means of very simple measures. For example:

• In sunny weather, apply sunscreen on the lips;
• In cold weather, be sure to wear protective lip balm;
• The dry and cold weather use indoor humidifiers. Ideally, the relative humidity in the room where you live or work, should be 40-60%;
• Drink more water. The standard recommendation - drinking 8 glasses or 1.5 liters of water a day is quite contradictory. But definitely should drink water How to drink water to lose weight   whenever you feel thirsty, as well as before, during, and after exercise;
• Lower doses of the drugs, because of which cracked lips, or even stop taking them. Previously, of course, consult with your doctor.

Home Treatment

Effective treatment of chapped lips Tips for treating chapped lips - what is better: a cream or balm?   home use balms containing beeswax and phenol - ingredients, soothing his lips and soothe irritation. It is useful to lubricate the lips with Vaseline Vaseline: old friend That moisturizes and protects your lips. Lip balms with Aloe Aloe - its amazing healing properties   vera and vitamin E to help speed up the healing chapped lips. Avoid lip balms with different tastes - because they can often licking the lips and the skin will dry out and crack again. Some so-called "therapeutic" lip balms contain potent substances that can cause allergic reactions.

When you need expert help

Sometimes, chapped lips are a sign of disease, for which treatment is necessary to see a specialist:

• Haley, or cheilosis. Among the symptoms of this disorder - painful, swollen and cracked corners of the mouth. Cheilitis is particularly common in people with diabetes, anemia, immune deficiencies. Sometimes it is caused by a fungal infection, the treatment of which requires receiving steroids, antifungal or antibacterial agents.
• Actinic cheilitis. Its main symptom is a constant dry lips and cracks in them (most often - on the lower lip). This is often accompanied by skin lesions caused by prolonged sun exposure, such as actinic keratosis, and very deep wrinkles at a relatively early age. Actinic keratosis - a precancerous tumor, which is 6-10% of cases, precedes the development of squamous cell carcinoma. In some cases, treatment with drugs containing fluorouracil chemotherapy agent or an immunomodulator imiquimod and cosmetic procedures such as dermabrasion or elektrodessikatsiya. In more severe cases may need surgery called vermilionectomy.

If you notice that your lips began to crack - immediately take action. In most cases, you will be able to quickly restore their softness and smoothness, and sometimes not ignore this, at first glance, a small problem, you can prevent serious health problems.

There is a legend according to which Marie Antoinette is completely turned gray in the night before her death. For a long time there is no doubt that the reason for this was the stress associated with the upcoming beheading. According to scientists, it is very unlikely, but stress can still play a role in the appearance of gray hair - but in a more gradual.

The first gray hair

The first gray hair usually appear about 30 years for men and about 35 years - for women. This, however, average; in some individuals, they appear much earlier or later.

The process by which appears gray, begins in the hair follicles or follicles. The scalp of the person is, on average, 100,000 of these cavities having the shape of drops, each of which is capable for life "grow" a few hairs. At the bottom of each hair follicle is a "factory" for the production of hair where hair cells form. Keratinocytes (skin cells) form the hair from root to tip, overlapping one another and gradually dying, leaving behind mostly keratin, a colorless protein that gives hair its strength and texture. (Keratin is also a major component of the nail, the outer layer of the skin, hooves and tusks of animals).

While keratinocytes are engaged in the formation of hair next to the melanocytes produce melanin, which comes in keratinocytes in small "packages" - melanosomes.

There are two basic shades of melanin, which determines hair color - eumelanin (dark brown or black) and pheomelanin (yellow or red). Their combination in different proportions determined by a wide range of hair colors, which can be found in humans. Hair, lost most of melanin, have more or less light gray; When hair loses all of the melanin, they become completely white.

At any time, 80-90% of the hair on the human head are in the active growth phase, which may last for two to seven years. At the end of this phase, the hair follicle shrinks keratinocytes and melanocytes undergo programmed cell death (apoptosis), and follicle enters the resting phase, during which the hair falls out.

To begin to grow new hair, "factory" inside the follicle must be rebuilt. Fresh keratinocytes and melanocytes "hired" from among progenitor cells (stem cells) are also located at the bottom of the follicle. For some unknown reason, the stem cells from which the keratinocytes, live much longer than those of which overlook the melanocytes. It is a gradual depletion of stem cells Stem cells: on the edge of scandal   for melanocytes and is the root cause of hair graying.

According to doctors and scientists

What affects the size of the population of melanocytes? Stress hormones can affect the survival and / or activity of melanocytes, but a clear link between stress How to beat stress? Create an oasis   and gray is not revealed.

Graying hair can result in chronic damage caused by free radicals. Stress hormones produced systematically or locally (by cells of hair follicles) can cause inflammation that triggers the production of free radicals - unstable molecules that damage cells. There is a possibility that these free radicals can affect the production of melanin.

There are indications that stress hormones may be involved in signaling that instructs supply melanin in melanocytes keratinocytes. If stress hormones disrupt the signal, supplies will be disrupted and the hair will be left without pigment.

Many doctors say that those of their patients who are within two to three years, regularly exposed to stress, go gray earlier than others.

Many scientists agree that the appearance of gray hair is predetermined by genetics, but stress and lifestyle can delay or speed up the time for 5-10 years. However, scientific evidence to establish a causal connection is not enough.

So what happened to Marie Antoinette? There are at least three possible explanations. Her hair would turn gray as a result of alopecia areata - a rare autoimmune disorder that causes rapid loss of pigmented hair, leaving only gray. Perhaps a lot of stress led to the invasion of free radicals on the hair follicles, resulting in unstable molecules were destroyed and hair pigment. Or maybe she just did not put on her wig (or she was not allowed to put it on) - and her hair had already been gray. The latest version is not supported by historical documents, but it looks the most plausible.