FIVE OF THE BEST

Products for dry lips and cold sores . . .

As chosen by Dr ANTHONY BEWLEY consultant dermatologist at Barts Health NHS Trust, London

Vaseline Lip Therapy

£1.99, 20g tin THE skin on our lips is thinner, and has a thinner barrier of moisture than the rest of our body, leaving it prone to dryness and chapping — especially in the wind, cold or sun. Use this lip moisturiser as a barrier, protecting the lips from the outside elements.

Aciclovir 5pc Cream

£2.00-£4.75, 2g tube NINETY per cent of us are born with the herpes

simplex virus — 10 per cent of people have recurrent cold sores. This cream (available under certain brand names, such as Zovirax) contains an antiviral agent. It needs to be put on as soon as you feel the telling tingle that a cold sore is about to appear. If caught early it can prevent a cold sore developing, but if not it can at least reduce the time the sore remains.

Eucerin Sensitive Skin Lip Active

from about £10, 4.8g tube THIS helps reduce the loss of moisture on the lips. Keeping lips moisturised is good for not only treating dry or chapped lips, but also prevention. Putting a dab of this on a cold sore will create a barrier that will help prevent it drying out and cracking, which increases risk of bacterial infection. This also contains vitamin E, which is an antioxidant, meaning it fights against skin cell damage.

Blistex Relief Cream

£2-3, 5g tube THIS cream contains ammonia and phenol, which help relieve pain and kill germs, so preventing cold sores from becoming infected. It also helps to moisturise and protect the lips, with camphor to soothe and lanolin to protect.

As well as after meals and drinking, applying a lip balm like this before bed helps. This is because when we’re asleep we’re not eating or talking so bedtime can allow the lips’ skin barrier to be repaired.

Neutrogena Revitalizing Lip Balm SPF 20

Approximately £10, 4.2g tube THIS is especially good because it contains an SPF 20 for sun protection. This helps against sun-related damage, and cold sores can often be brought on by sunshine — UV light reduces the immunity of our skin.

This is the one to use if you’re going somewhere sunny, if it snows in Britain this winter or if you’re heading off skiing.