| Most of us know to apply sunscreen when we’re outdoors during the day. The US Environmental Protection Agency recommends a generous application of sunscreen with at least SPF-15 when the UV Index reaches eight or above. But how many of us think about sunscreen for our lips? Lip skin is thinner, and therefore more sensitive, to UV exposure and skin damage, says Anisha Patel, a dermatologist at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. “You see people who are doing all the sun protection for their face, and then they have sun damage on their lips,” Patel says. “It can be a tricky place to protect.” Skin cancers like melanoma (in cells that produce melanin), squamous cell carcinoma (in middle and outer skin layers) and basal cell carcinoma (cells that produce new skin) are all observed in lips. And people who are at risk for skin cancer due to UV exposure are at risk for lip cancer, too, Patel says. While lip cancer cases have fallen from a rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people in the US in 1992 to 0.7 cases in 2022, according to National Cancer Institute data, it’s still the most common type of oral cancer. Treatment usually involves surgery. Though long-term exposure to sunlight can increase your risk of lip cancer, a sunburn doesn’t necessarily mean you need to call your dermatologist. But if you have a wound on your lip that refuses to heal, that’s when a doctor will start checking for growth under the skin, Patel says. Protecting your lips with sunscreen is hard, as it doesn’t tend to stay on very long. People might have a coffee, eat a snack or lick their lips, says Gabriella Baki, director of the University of Toledo’s Cosmetic Science and Formulation Design Program, making reapplication that much more important. It’s also important to use a sunscreen with enough protection. Patel recommends using an SPF broad spectrum product of at least 30 or above. You may have to reapply more than every two hours, which is the usual guidance, she says. Lipstick might also do the trick. Baki says that opaque lipsticks often include zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, two common ingredients in sunscreen. But she says you shouldn’t rely on your lipsticks to do the heavy lifting if the product doesn’t say it offers sun protection, as those claims have to undergo FDA sunscreen testing. — Jade Thomas | 
