Your Growing Lips

Your lips are growing and expanding with the rest of your body through your teens and early twenties, but as you age they tend to lose their luster. The look of your lips is also affected by the changes in your teeth, muscle, fat and bones.

While everyone considers the eyes are the windows to the soul, the lower half of any woman's face is defined by her lips, and changes in facial fat, combined with loss of muscle, jawbone, and teeth can wind up in a loss of lip support.

Generally, a woman's lips start to age around the age of 35, when they begin to flatten out and thin. They will also begin to droop and form lip lines. The aging process that affects the lips is really all about volume loss. It's about the layer of fat under the dermis eroding away and the muscles under that weaken and lose both their tone and elasticity. These changes usually show up in the thinning of the skin, drooping at the mouth corners, and the onset of jowling.

Collagen

Collagen plays an important role in making youthful lips attractive. The border of youthful lips are characterized by a smooth ridge of the substance along the upper and lower lip; this is called the Vermillion border. Firm collagen is what holds and shapes the lip's contours. And it is two descending columns of collagen dropping down from the nose to the lip that lift the upper part to produce an attractive pout.

The Cupid's Bow of the upper lip is also the result of the placement of collagen.

Moisturizers

It is possible to slow down the process of aging where your lips are concerned, but only temporarily. The best way to fight back against the ravages of Mother Nature is to apply daily moisturizers and to protect your lips from the sun. Just like for any other part of your body, a moisturizer with sun screen built in provides sufficient protection. Gentle exfoliation can also help. 

All About The Face