What is Cheilitis?

If your lips become sore and inflamed then the medical condition associated with this is called cheilitis. You can usually tell if you have this, it is far more severe than cracked lips and typical symptoms include:

  • Swollen painful lips.
  • Cracked lips that are red and inflamed.
  • Lips can have a burning sensation and are constantly sore.
  • peeling lips that may be accompanied by a crusting.

You can suffer from cheilitis on the lips but also in the area surrounding the mouth and if this happens it is known as angular cheilitis. The exact causes of cheilitis are unknown and therefore it can be quite hard to isolate the reason you have it and pursue a treatment. Cheilitis can occur when dirt, fungus or bacteria have entered the cracks in the skin of your lips. So if you have dry lips that turn into cracked lips then you run the risk of contracting cheilitis, particularly if you are not careful and keep them clean. A decent balm that provides a protective barrier once the lips are cracked should help avoid this condition from arising by stoping the bacteria or dirt from entering in the first place.

angular cheilitis treatment, exfoliative cheilitis

There are also other possible causes of cheilitis and some of these are not very easy to remedy. It could be caused due to poor diet and in particular vitamin deficiencies, these deficiencies can also cause a drying of the lips to begin with which will make you event more vulnerable to cheilitis. Other highlighted causes are underlying skin problems, a separate condition called ‘Candida Yeast Overgrowth’, immunosuppression or your body’s inability to efficiently process toxins. A healthy diet may go some way to easing the condition.

Cheilitis treatments

If you believe that you have cheilitis then it is recommended that your visit your GP. They can prescribe an antibiotic or anti-fungal cream which may have hydrocortisone to treat the infection and calm the inflammation. Your GP can help you to isolate the possible cause of the condition, if you have been ill recently you could be suffering from immunosuppression, or your diet could be to blame. Hopefully you can find a possible treatment that can work for you.