Four Habits that Cause Wrinkles and Lines Around the Mouth

Wrinkles and lines are a part of aging, but bad habits and an unhealthy lifestyle can speed up how quickly they appear. Many women are troubled by lines around their mouth. These vertical lines, visible at the border of the lips, are referred to by dermatologists as marionette lines. Once they've made their appearance, piling on moisturizer or anti-aging skin creams won't do much to take them away. The key is to prevent them in the first place. How? Start by eliminating these four habits that cause wrinkles around the mouth.

Smoking

Smoking is bad for your lungs, and it's no better for your skin. Smoking damages collagen and elastin, the elements that give skin its support and structure. This directly contributes to wrinkles and lines around the mouth. Contorting the mouth muscles to puff on a cigarette also creates marionette lines around the mouth. If you want skin that still looks youthful as you age, smoking is one habit to give up ASAP.

Chewing Gum

Chewing gum sounds like a harmless habit but, as with smoking, repeatedly contorting the mouth muscles and overusing the jaw contributes to breakdown of collagen and elastin and causes mouth lines to appear sooner. There's no reason why you can't chew a stick of gum once in a while, but don't become a compulsive gum chewer.

Drinking Out of a Straw

When you drink out of a straw, you purse your lips in a manner similar to smoking a cigarette. People who drink out of a straw often have a characteristic pattern of lines and wrinkles around their mouth that resemble those you see in smokers. Avoid the drinking straw habit unless you're sipping a smoothie or milkshake.

Sleeping on Your Side

If you sleep on your side or bury your face into a pillow, you're a perfect set-up for sleep lines. In women, these form most commonly around their chin and lower cheeks. At first, sleep lines are only there when you wake up and disappear in few hours, but over time as elastin and collagen in the skin decline, they become permanent lines and wrinkles. Retrain yourself to sleep on your back to keep your skin looking youthful.

Mouth Lines and Wrinkles: The Bottom Line?

Be aware of repeated facial expressions that can become permanently etched on your face with time - and change the way you sleep if you snooze on your side or stomach. Don't forget to wear sunscreen. The sun is a known enemy in the fight against facial wrinkles.

References:

Journal of Investigative Dermatology (2003) 120 , 548-554.

The Telegraph. "Gum Chewers Develop Wrinkles Near Mouth"