What are Smokers’ Lines?

Smokers’ wrinkles are tiny vertical lines that form across the lip itself as well as the skin that runs from your upper lip towards your nose. They often stretch from one side of the mouth to the other, resulting in an uneven and cracked appearance that can make a person’s lower face look distressed and aged. While they are very small, they often appear in groups across a person’s lips, resulting in a wrinkled appearance that affects the entire mouth area. It is also common for lipstick to “bleed” and settle in the crevices that form, which can make the smokers’ wrinkles look darker, deeper and more distracting than they actually are. The smokers’ lines that form in the space between the upper lip and nose are often more pronounced than the ones that appear on the lips themselves.

Another widely used strategy to minimise smokers’ lines is Botulinum Toxin injections. The Botulinum toxin is an FDA-approved medicine that works as a muscle relaxant. When administered carefully by a trained professional, the botulinum toxin can soften lines and wrinkles around the mouth by reducing the number of muscle contractions and movements which cause dynamic wrinkles. It takes just a matter of days for smokers’ lines to reduce, with results that last from 3 to 4 months.

What causes Smokers’ Lip Lines?

In addition to the ageing process, a variety of unique factors cause mouth lines to appear. Lip lines are worsened by factors like genetics, repetitive facial expressions, sun exposure and, of course, smoking. See below for a full list of smokers lips causes:

• Smoking and vaping
• Sun exposure
• Drinking from a straw or bottle
• Repeated facial expressions
• Pouting / smiling
• Playing musical instruments (like the recorder or harmonica)
• Genetics
• Lifestyle factors