Chapstick?

A question: is it possible to be allergic to chapstick?
I've tried numerous chapsticks for my chapped lips but none of them ever seem to work. They work well when they're actually ON my lips, but once they start to fade away, and are completely gone, my lips are worse off than they were before! I don't use Vaseline because there are rumors that it's actually bad for you. I don't know if that's true either. I started using Burt's Bees a while ago, and it worked fine until I ran out, and when I went back to it after a month or two, it just made my lips worse again. Cracks in my lips only occur on the outside of the lip extending to the skin, at the border that separates lip from skin, the vermilion border. It's really bad around there, cracked and bleeding, and hard to distinguish between lip and skin because the skin is all red. Why only this part of my lip?
So I guess 3 questions.
Is it possible to be allergic to chapstick?
Is Vaseline bad for you?
What can I do to help my chapped lips/skin/border?

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
From the symptoms cheilitis is an important possibility. Avoid licking the lips as saliva evaporates quickly resulting in them being drier than before. Drink plenty of water and take multivitamin supplements and do not apply lipstick or other cosmetic products for some days. Use a humidifier to moisturize the air in your home and apply shea butter or Vaseline on your lips.You can also use a homemade ointment mixed from 1 tsp glycerine, 1 tsp lemon juice and 1 tsp castor oil. Spread on lips overnight, refrigerating the leftovers for future use. Eat foods high in calcium, magnesium and flaxseed oil. If a week of compresses and emollients don't do the trick, you can add over-the-counter 1 percent hydrocortisone ointment to your regimen.

If the condition still persists or there is deep cracking in the region of your mouth,then pls consult your doctor as it can be due to infection(Angular Cheilitis).Antibiotics are needed in such cases.
It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.