A trifecta of cold winds, lack of moisture in the air, and sun exposure can cause lips to become dry and cracked. Because lips don’t contain oil glands like the rest of the skin does, they are often the first dermal casualty of the winter season. If you have a habit of licking your lips when they are dry, you’re only compounding the problem since saliva strips the skin of moisture.
The cure for chapped lips lies in drinking plenty of water each day, using a humidifier in your home, protecting your face from the cold when you go outdoors, and of course, the liberal and frequent application of soothing and conditioning lip balm.
Using typical chap sticks often means slathering your lips in petroleum, paraffin wax, artificial fragrances, and many other synthetic ingredients that temporarily alleviate dryness. Some ingredients – like menthol and camphor – may even irritate the skin, which certainly contributes to the vicious cycle of chap stick addition.
And whatever you put on your lips will inevitably end up in your mouth, so we recommend using only natural products that will heal and protect your lips with wholesome, organic ingredients. Instead of sitting on top of your lips, these balms will be absorbed through the skin for longer lasting moisturization.
Here are our favorites available online:
1. Bronner’s Organic Lip Balm
Best known for its castile soap, Dr. Bronner’s also creates healthy versions of toothpaste and other personal care products. Their lip balm comes in several flavors and is made with USDA certified organic ingredients: avocado oil, beeswax, jojoba oil, hemp seed oil, and vitamin E.
Get it here.
2. True Moringa Lip Whip
Using the moringa plant as the key ingredient in all of its products, True Moringa has perfected a line of soaps, facial oils, toners, body butters, and exfoliating scrubs that are made in partnership with 2,300 small farming communities in Ghana, a place where the “miracle tree” flourishes. Their lip whip, available in pink, gold, and burgundy hues, is a mix of moringa oil, castor seed oil, cocoa butter, candelilla wax, and vitamin E, as well as titanium dioxide to help naturally block out the sun’s powerful rays.
Get it here.
3. Beauty By Earth Beeswax Lip Balm
Making both of our top picks for natural sunscreens and organic skin care, Beauty By Earth is a fantastic company that is deeply committed to creating products that nourish your body with natural ingredients. Their lip balm is no exception, made with USDA certified organic sunflower oil, beeswax, castor seed oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, coconut oil, vitamin E, rosemary extract, and calendula extract. And the lip balms come in several exotic flavors like acai berry, Asian pear, green tea, and grapefruit pomegranate.
Get it here.
4. Badger Lip Balm
A family owned operation based out of New Hampshire since 1995, Badger’s body care products carry the seals that every natural living enthusiast ought to love: all are USDA organic, Non-GMO, gluten and cruelty free, and their products often top the list of the EWG’s skin deep cosmetics database. The base recipe for badger lip balm offers simple, good-for-the-skin ingredients: extra virgin olive oil, beeswax, castor seed oil, and rosemary extract. The flavored versions, such as Sweet Orange lip balm, contain a few extras like cocoa butter, aloe, and the essential oils of sweet orange, mandarin, bergamot, rosehip, and sea buckthorn.
Get it here.
5. Sky Organics Tinted Lip Balm
Sky Organics offers a natural lip conditioner made with many of the organic moisturizers we’ve come to know and love: castor oil, beeswax, cocoa butter, coconut oil, argan oil, aloe vera, and vitamin E. But with the added choice of four soft and natural hues – shimmer, champagne, plum, and raisin – you can have your natural lip care with a pop of color too.
Get it here.
6. Mongo Kiss Lip Balm
Derived from the nuts of the mongongo tree (Schinziophyton rautanenii), mongongo oil has long been used to cleanse and moisturize the skin by the peoples of South Africa. As the core ingredient of Mongo Kiss lip balm, it is naturally rich in vitamin E, zinc, calcium, copper, and polyunsaturated fatty acids which stay on the skin longer and have emollient and occlusive properties. Made along with sunflower seed oil, beeswax, cocoa butter, calendula extract, and rosemary extract, Mongo Kiss lip balm is available in pomegranate, peppermint, or vanilla honey flavors.
Get it here.
7. Eco Lips Brown Sugar Scrub
Although applying lip balm to already chapped lips will soften and moisturize them, removing the dead skin cells will help keep them nice and smooth. Gently buff away flaky skin with Eco Lips brown sugar scrub, made with fair trade and organic certified brown sugar. Once the dry skin is polished away, the other ingredients (castor oil, beeswax, coconut oil, jojoba oil, olive oil, rosemary, and calendula extract) will keep them fully moisturized and protected against the elements.
Get it here.
8. Babyganics Lip & Face Balm
Because newborns and babies also have their share of dry skin and chapped lips, the Babyganics formula is gentle enough for delicate skin while providing an instant dose of moisturization. It is dermatologist and pediatrician tested, made with sunflower oil, beeswax, coconut oil, castor oil, shea butter, calendula oil, cranberry seed oil, black cumin seed oil, red raspberry seed oil, and vitamin E. Use it on the lips or all over the face whenever a bit of hydration is needed.
Get it here.
9. Rugged & Dapper Lip Balm for Men
Formulated specifically for the menfolk, Rugged & Dapper is a manly man’s kind of chap stick. It has all the earmarks of natural lip care, made with organic sunflower oil, beeswax, jojoba oil, calendula extract, peppermint oil, vitamin E, rosemary extract, and eucalyptus oil. But unlike most lip balms, it goes on smooth with a matte finish and, since it’s scented in minty eucalyptus, it has a more masculine aroma than most other fruity flavored varieties.
Get it here.
10. Beessential All Natural Lavender & Lemon Beeswax Lip Balm
Containing the rare cupuacu butter, a soft and nourishing emollient that absorbs water, as well as Shea and coconut butters, this is an intensely moisturizing natural lip balm. Enriched with lavender and lemon essential oils (although many other flavors are available) and boosted with bee-made ingredients such as honey, beeswax and propolis, this is a favorite natural lip balm with thousands of Amazon reviewers.