Could Lip Gloss Cause Cancer?

Recent headlines linking lip gloss to cancer on the mouth raise some alarming concerns. The theory held by some dermatologists: the translucent sheen of gloss helps UV rays penetrate the fragile skin of the lips and reflects UV rays the way “the sun bounces off the water in a pool onto your face,” says dermatologist Heidi Waldorf.  Harvard facial skin cancer specialist Jessica Fewkes likens wearing non-SPF lip gloss in the sun to tanning with baby oil: “You might be able to infer that they both enhance UV exposure,” she says.

And consider this: according to Dr. Kevin Cooper, chairman of dermatology at Cleveland’s Case Western Reserve, squamous cell carcinoma (the cancer that accounts for 90% of new skin cancers on lips each year) has a higher risk of metastasis on the lips. That means that it’s more likely to aggressively spread if it starts on your lips than if it appears first on other parts of the skin.

Here’s the catch: There are no large, targeted studies proving or disproving this theory, which makes dermatologists and the American Cancer Society reluctant to draw fixed conclusions.

Just as you should protect your face from the sun daily, you should do the same for your lips. And these days, it’s not tough to find a gloss with sun protection. Protect the ridge above lips with a broad-spectrum SPF 30 sunscreen made for your face, and when you wear gloss, choose one with at least SPF 15. At the beach, switch to something less shiny, like a tinted balm.

Sources: Allure, ABC News
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