Dermal Fillers February 8, 2023

When Can I Put Makeup on After Lip Fillers?

By Nazmul Huda

Every day passes without people asking their cosmetic doctors when to return to applying makeup after a lip filler injection. Worry less as the blog explains what lip fillers are, how long one should wait to apply makeup after lip injections, other tips surrounding makeup applications, and other things to avoid immediately after lip filler injections.

The popularity of lip fillers is growing daily, with more people seeking ways to improve their lip volume naturally. These fillers help to enhance the size of the lips with no or minimal side effects. Swelling and bruising are the common side effects that wear off 24 to 48 hours after the treatment. One is advised not to apply makeup because it damagesthe body’s healing process after filler treatments. As anxious as one might be returning to makeup collections, one should wait until lip filler materials to settle.

What Are Lip Fillers?

According to Ghasemi & Shohreh (2022), lip fillers are cosmetic procedures used to increase or restore lip volume without a surgical process. They are popular for making patients’ lips appear naturally plump and real. As one ages, their body mechanisms reduce the release of skin fats, hyaluronic acid, and collagen responsible for lips size and structural shape. Fortunately, cosmetic doctors inject lip fillers into lip muscles to introduce naturally manufactured hyaluronic acid and collagen to replace the lost skin proteins. Some fillers contain biodegradable materials like poly-l-lactic acid that stimulate the natural release of collagen and hyaluronic acid. According to Czumbel et al. (2021), hyaluronic acid works by attracting body fluid 1000 times its weight to restore youthful lip volume.Age is not the only reason people try lip augmentation. Some people are genetically born with thin lips, while others lip volume decreases massively due to certain disorders and infections. Nonetheless, lip filler effects are not permanent; they last for 3 to 8 months, depending on the patient’s body metabolic rate, filler concentrations, type of filler material, and how skilled your cosmetic practitioner is.

How Long Should You Wait to Apply Makeup After Lip Injections?

According to Rowland-Warmann et al. (2020), dermal fillers, including lip injection procedures, are considered safe by the Food Standard Agency (FSA) to only people above the legal age. The process is quick and can take less than a week for the filler materials to settle, depending on the patient’s caution and healing power. Even though the procedure is safe, sometime it might be accompanied by a few complications like cold sores and a few side effects that wear off within a few hours after injection. Most patients’ common side effects are bruising and swelling lasting 48 hours before fully disappearing. Therefore, avoiding applying too much pressure to the lip’s injected area is crucial to prevent worsening the short-term side effect. A patient should wait at least 24 hours after lip filler treatments before applying cosmetic makeup to avoid triggering certain complications and side effects. Greene & Ryan (2019) highlighted the following reasons why using makeup immediately after lip augmentation is not recommended:

Rough touches associated withapplying makeup can prolong the healing period of bruising caused by lip filler injections.
Sometimes applying lipsticks, cream, lotions, and other lips cosmetic collections can activate the herpes simplex virus that triggers cold sores and rashes around the injected area.
Lip filler injections are quick, but the materials can take a day to settle. Therefore, the brushes used to spread makeup on the lips, if used prematurely before 24 hours, might spread the filler materials to unwanted areas, thus causing an uneven result.
Facial makeup may cause sweating that can interfere with the estimated recovery time. If sweat gets into contact with injected areas in your lip tissues, it interferes with the skin healing process, thus worsening the swelling and bruising caused by the treatment.

What Are Other Tips Surrounding Makeup Applications and Lip Fillers

Apart from avoiding applying makeup immediately after the filler injections, there are other things one should adhere to for effective results. They include:

Always arrive with clean lips in the filler treatment: Before the treatment, cosmetic doctors are detailed to analysethe lips to determine their health status, volume, and shape. Applying makeup will tend to prolong the analysis time, and some hydrating makeup might make the lips appear plumper than normal.
Apply minimal makeup after the 24 hours are over: lip makeup is used to conceal lips lumps and bumps but ends up suffocating the lip tissue depending on the amount applied. In most cases, the next day after lip filler treatment, their lips have not yet regainedthe plump natural look they desire. Therefore,allowing the filler material to react with lip tissue fully is important. Butifone is a makeup lover,one can apply makeup lightly.
Maintain good hygiene when applying makeup. It is crucial after the lip filler treatment to apply new makeup using clean brushes to prevent any chance of infection to the treated lips.
One can change their makeup routine after the filler injections by reducing the application amount or deciding to go out naturally.

Other Things to Avoid Immediately After Lip Filler Injections

Avoid sleeping facing the pillow to prevent applying a lot of pressure to the treated area.
Avoid direct exposure to UV radiation for at least 24 hours after the treatment since high heat worsens bruising associated with lip filler injections.
Don’t consume alcohol for at least 48 hours after the treatment since alcohol makes the lips more susceptible to the likelihood of bruising and swelling.
Avoid strenuous exercises for two days after the cosmetic treatment since extreme activities cause an increase in blood flow to all body parts, including the treated area. As a result, there is a chance for filler materials to move untargeted areas.

Frequently Asked Questions about Lip Fillers

Can Lip Fillers Look Natural?

Lip fillers’ popularity is based on their effectiveness in providing plump likes that feel and look natural. If one chooses a highly skilled aesthetic doctor,they are guaranteed natural-looking results.

Do Lip Fillers Hurt?

Lip filler treatments are non-surgical procedures that don’t require stitches or cuts to deliver plump lips. One may experience slight discomfort that wears off a few hours after the injections. Most clients feel tingling when the filler is injected into the lip’s muscles.

Conclusion

Lip Filler injections are a common way to enhance the facial appearance by plumping and reshaping the lips’ size. Although the treatment is regarded safe, it can be accompanied by mild side effects like bruising and swelling. Therefore, waiting for at least a day or two before applying makeup to one’s lips is vital. Makeups tend to suffocate the lip tissues, thus prolonging the time required for the body to heal from swelling and bruising associated with the cosmetic treatment.

References

Ghasemi, S., & Akbari, Z. (2022). Lip Augmentation. Dental Clinics, 66(3), 431-442.

Czumbel, L. M., Farkasdi, S., Gede, N., Mikó, A., Csupor, D., Lukács, A., … & Varga, G. (2021). Hyaluronic acid is an effective dermal filler for lip augmentation: a meta-analysis. Frontiers in surgery, 8, 681028.

Greene, R. M. (2019). Comparing the use of injectable fillers for the youthful and more mature lip. Facial Plastic Surgery, 35(02), 134-139.

Rowland-Warmann, M. J. (2020). Dermal Fillers: Lack of Regulation Poses a Real Threat to Patient Safety. Expert Witness Journal, 1, 61-66.