Human Body: chapped lips

When someone has chapped lips and they put on chapstick their lips heal within a few days. What is in chapstick that makes our lips heal so quickly? (age 11)

The answer to this question has to do with the skin on our lips. If you look closely at your lips, you can see that there isn’t any hair on the pink part of your lips. Your lips also don’t have sweat glands or oil glands like other areas of your skin. On the rest of your body, the hair, sweat, and oil protect your skin. Since your lips don’t have this protection, they dry out more easily. When they dry out, they get chapped. Sun exposure, wind, dry weather, and licking your lips can all make your lips dry and chapped. When you put lip balm on your lips, it acts like the oils on other parts of your skin. The lip balm protects the skin on your lips so the skin can heal faster.
Thanks for your question!

Your friend,
Professor Science