The anti-wrinkle straw. Yes you read that right; a straw that is designed to prevent wrinkles. Also known as a Lipzi straw or a LipSip, the anti-wrinkle straw has been doing the rounds among TikTok influencers who claim that the straw can prevent lip wrinkles. But does the anti-wrinkle straw really work? And should it be a tool to add to your anti-ageing arsenal?
Can you get smoker’s and lip lines from using a straw?
Vertical lip lines develop over time as a result of damage to the skin that gradually occurs with age. Certain things, like drinking through a straw, can accelerate the damage to your lip skin, accelerating the development of wrinkles around your top and bottom lip.
Lip lines are more commonly known as smoker’s lines because they are usually seen more frequently in people who smoke. Smoker’s regularly purse their lips when inhaling cigarette smoke. This causes the skin around their lips to wrinkle which damages the dermis and causes wrinkles to develop. Smoking also accelerates skin ageing, increasing the rate that they develop lip wrinkles.
A similar action of lip-pursing is seen when you drink through a straw. This is why people who regularly drink through a straw can develop smoker’s lines at a younger age.
Why does drinking through a straw give you wrinkles?
The action of pursing your lips when sipping through a straw causing the skin around your lips to bunch and crease. With repetitive creasing, the skin becomes damaged, and more prone to developing wrinkles. People who regularly drink with a straw may develop vertical lip lines at a younger age compared to those who don’t use a straw.
Smoker’s lines fro sipping through a straw
What is the anti-wrinkle straw?
The anti-wrinkle straw uses an innovative design that allows you to sip through the straw without pursing your lips. Rather than purse your lips around a small opening at the end of a traditional straw, the anti-wrinkle straw is curved in shape and has the opening on the side. You sip through the anti-wrinkle straw in a way that somewhat resembles playing the flute. There is also an alternative design that has an expansion at the end of a traditional straw, making the area you place your lips larger, allowing you to sip without pursing your lips.
The anti-wrinkle straw with its curved shape and side opening.
An alternative anti-wrinkle straw with an expanded mouth piece.
Does the anti-wrinkle straw work?
The principles of the anti-wrinkle straw are evidence-based. The less you bunch and crease the skin, the longer it will take to develop wrinkles. We use anti-wrinkle injections to prevent skin bunching, improve wrinkles and also slow down their progression. Therefore it makes sense to assume that the anti-wrinkle straw is less likely to contribute to the development of lip lines than traditional straws.
How you can reverse lip lines naturally
While anti-wrinkle straws are advantageous on preventing the development of lip wrinkles in people who frequently drink through straws, they won’t help reverse damage that has been done.
If you want some natural and at-home ways to combat lip lines, here are some very simple things you can do:
- Avoid cigarette smoke
- Apply sunscreen daily
- Stay hydrated, and use high-quality skin care that is matched to your unique skin type
- Consider using a low-strength retinol that have been formulated for the application around your lips, and stop using it if you develop irritation
- Try the anti-wrinkle straw if you like to drink through straws
How else can you prevent and treat lip lines?
If you want a more effective solution to prevent or treat lip lines, then the team here at Cosmetic Connection can help. We have a number of non-invasive, no downtime, proven cosmetic medical treatments that can improve the appearance of lip lines.
You can try anti-wrinkle injections along your top lip to reduce wrinkles. This works be relaxing the obcularis oris muscle, reducing skin bunching, which both improves and prevents lip lines.
Dermal filler can also be used to improve your lip wrinkles. This directly and effectively improves the appearance of deeper vertical lip wrinkles.
Should I use an anti-wrinkle straw?
Realistically speaking, most people don’t use a straw often enough for the anti-wrinkle straw to be worthwhile. However, if you prefer to drink through a straw, or simply want to do everything you can (or the simple things) to slow down the development of lip lines, then you could consider an anti-wrinkle straw.
