SMOKER'S LINES
Whether you’ve been a smoker all your life, or never smoked a cigarette in your life, don’t be fooled by the name. Lip lines, aka. ‘Smoker’s Lines’ are those thin, vertical lines which appear around the mouth as we age.
As with most dynamic lines, these are a result of repetitive movements of the muscles around the mouth. When a smoker begins to see ‘smoker’s lines’, it is partly due to the repetitive pursing of the lips around the tip of a cigarette. Other causes are repetitiveness of drinking through a straw, pursing the lips to apply lipstick - aka. ‘lipstick lines’, or just repetitive facial expressions. Yes, unfortunately, the more animated and enthusiastic we are in our younger years, we will likely begin to see creases earlier than those who are not.
Lips lines can be very difficult to conceal with makeup, as concealers often form in the crevices, making them more prominent, and lipstick can bleed into the lines, again, hence the nickname ‘lipstick lines’.
If you catch them while they are still fine lines, we can try sessions of microneedling to stimulate natural collagen production around the mouth. What we recommend at Skinfidelity for prominent lipstick lines are Botox treatments.
Botox is best used for ‘dynamic lines’, which are lines caused by muscle movement. When injected, the Botox acts by relaxing and reducing the strength of the muscles. In this case, we inject it into the large muscle which circles the lips.
Because we want to ensure our clients are still able to perform facial expressions such as smiling, and functions like drinking, chewing, and speaking normally, we used very small doses of the botulinum toxin. Results are seen instantly, with the full affect visible in about a week, and lasting up to 6 months.