Best Solutions for Thinning Lips – How to Plump Up Ageing Thin Lips – Injectables or Lip Lift Surgery?
A big part of your facial aesthetic is your lips. As you grow older, just like your skin, your lips start to lose their thickness, volume, and definition as the supply of collagen and elastin decreases. While this is a normal part of ageing, lip injectables or lip lift surgery can help you achieve younger, fuller, and voluminous lips. Coco Ruby Skin offers Injectable Lip Fillers and Coco Ruby Plastic Surgery can help with an Upper Lip lift Surgery.
Find out more about Injectable Treatments, download our Injectables Guide today
Causes of Thinning Lips
Several factors can lead to thinning lips, such as:
- Ageing
- Moisture loss
- Collagen loss or depletion
- Exposure to UV lights
- Genetics
How to Slow or Reduce Thinning Lips
Over time, your lips lose volume and they become thinner. Normally, there are simple things that you can do to slow this age-related process, such as:
- Proper hydration
- Good nutrition
- Avoid smoking
- Use of lip moisturizers
- Avoiding exposure to UV lights
However, if volume loss and thinning of your lips are prominent, you may consider lip fillers or lip lift surgery.
Treatments for Thinning Lips
You may consider the following non-surgical and surgical options for thinning lips:
- Lip Fillers: This treatment is a minimally invasive procedure that can be performed by one of our nurse injectors. It involves the injection of fillers into your lips to give them shape, hydration and volume. These fillers contain a naturally occurring substance in your body that is responsible for skin hydration, this is called hyaluronic acid. When fillers are injected into your lips, they help them look more defined, plump and hydrated. This type of treatment is also customizable to suit your specific needs. Lip filler is a temporary treatment and lasts approximately 6-18 months. After such time, the filler will be absorbed by your body. For this reason, you may need regular treatment sessions to maintain results.
- Lip Lift: This is an elective, surgical procedure that is performed under local anesthetic to alter the area between the lips and the nose. As we age, our philtrum columns flatten and elongate, leading to a flat upper lip. This surgical procedure improves your lip contour by lifting the corners of your mouth which in turn shortens the space between your nose and the top of your lips. A lip lift achieves permanent results and does not need to be maintained from time to time but carries more risks compared to lip fillers.
Benefits of Lip fillers for Thinning Lips
Lip fillers offer the following benefits:
- Minimally invasive: The procedure makes use of a naturally occurring substance that is injected into lip areas needing volume, fullness, definition and hydration.
- Less scarring: The appearance of scars is less visible since lips fillers do not require incisions.
- Shorter recovery time: This type of lip enhancement does not require surgical techniques and only involves lip injections.
- Highly customizable: The procedure can be customized to achieve your desired results and lip adjustments can be done as needed.
- Lesser discomforts: There may be a little discomfort at the injection sites but a numbing cream can be used to reduce discomfort.
Benefits of Lip Lift Surgery for Thinning Lips
A lip lift surgery has the following benefits:
- Permanent results: Lip lift surgery produces permanent results and doesn’t need to be maintained from time to time.
- Younger-looking appearance: The treatment lifts the corners of your mouth slightly upward, specifically the upper lip, which in turn creates harmony around the mouth area and results in a youthful appearance.
- Fuller and voluminous lips: Lift lip surgery improves the overall appearance of your mouth, creating more volume and definition.
What to Expect After Lip Filler
After the lip filler procedure, you will likely experience minor side effects such as redness, swelling, or itching around your lips. The filler may take 4 weeks to settle. After such time, you will notice the final results of the procedure. The treatment usually lasts for about 6 to 18 months depending on the type of filler.
What to Expect after Lip Lift Surgery
In the first 72 hours after the surgery, you can expect a moderate amount of swelling, pain, and discomfort in your lip area. It may also take you 5-7 days to recover so you must avoid strenuous activities and exercises. Make sure to eat soft foods only as they do not require a lot of chewing. For the incision to heal completely, you may need to wait two to three weeks.
Who is a potential candidate for lip filler?
To be considered for the treatment, you should have:
- Good physical and mental health
- Lips that lack volume and fullness
- Lips that lack definition
- Lips that may be unsymmetrical
- Realistic expectations
The treatment is not right for you if you have:
- Active infection or inflammation in your lip area
- Clotting or bleeding disorders
- Diabetes or any disease that can delay the wound healing process
- Facial nerve problems
- History of multiple allergies
- History of allergic reaction to bee-stings
- Unrealistic expectations
Who is a good candidate for a lip lift?
As we age, the skin loses collagen and elastin which contributes to sagging, loss of firmness and fullness. This also creates an elongated philtrum column, which is a wider space between your nose and lips. You may also notice that your lips may start to become thin, losing their shape and volume. To address this condition, a surgical procedure known as lip lift surgery may be right for you. However, this is not an ideal solution for everyone. To be considered for the procedure:
- You should have realistic expectations.
- You should be a non-smoker.
- You should have thin lips with an elongated philtrum column
- Your goal should be focused on achieving permanent results.
FAQs about Solutions for Thin Lips
Why are my lips so thin?
Genetics determines your facial features and appearance, which can contribute to the thinning of your lips. Also, ageing will cause your lips to lose volume and fullness.
How can I fix my thin upper lip?
There are temporary and permanent solutions to this problem. One of the temporary solutions is having fillers injected into your upper lip to add volume and fullness. Another option is a called a “lip flip” using anti-wrinkle injection. This improves the appearance of a gummy smile and stops the top lip from curling under when smiling. A permanent solution is to undergo lip lift surgery for suitable candidates.
How do you hydrate your lips?
Lips are like facial skin that needs to be moisturized and hydrated. Changes in weather can cause air shifts that can lead to lip dryness. To keep your lips hydrated:
- Drink plenty of water: Dry skin is a result of not drinking enough water. While saliva can help keep your lips hydrated, you will need to drink at least 2 to 3 litres of water daily to maintain the moisture in your lips.
- Use lip balm: Natural organic lip balm that is made of shea butter, cocoa butter, aloe vera, coconut oil, and a blend of essential oils can help relieve dry lips fast.
- Use moisturizers: It is recommended to use moisturizers daily with SPF ingredients that can help you protect your lips from the damaging effects of UV lights.
- Exfoliate your lips: This helps in eliminating dead skin cells, giving you a smooth and soft lip after.
What is the most attractive lip shape?
The perfect lips should be aesthetically proportional to the face, hence not occupying more than 10% of the lower third of the face. The golden ratio for most patients is 1/3 top lip to 2/3 bottom lip. This is why the consultation process is so important, to determine a suitable shape and size that will complement the other features of the face.
Can you make your lips bigger naturally?
In short, no. The use of natural options is only ever temporary, last only a few minutes in most cases. Lip plumping cosmetics usually involve ingredients such as capsicum or cinnamon that give off a “swollen” look to the lips and often tingle or sting. If you want to achieve fuller and plumper lips, lip fillers or lip lift surgery are recommended.
Can the effects of lip fillers be reversed?
Lips fillers add instant volume and fullness to your lips. If for any reason you are not satisfied with the results of your lip filler injections, there are solutions to this problem. These include the following:
- Massaging the area around your lips gently if you develop lumps or lip asymmetry.
- Injecting a special enzyme to break down the lip filler, thus, reversing its effects.
- Waiting patiently for 6 to 12 months until the effects of the lip filler have subsided naturally.
- Injecting additional lip fillers to achieve even lips.
How will I prepare for lip filler injections or lip lift surgery?
Before the procedure, you will undergo a health assessment to determine if you are a good fit. After the consultation period, you will be required to avoid taking medications or supplements that can increase your risk of bleeding or bruising. You will also need to avoid smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages.
What do I do next?
Book a consultation with one of our injectors to discuss what options may be best suited for you!
