Skin expert issues warning against LIP SCRUBS - revealing why they are likely causing DAMAGE to your pout instead of healing it... as she details what you should really be doing to soothe dry, cracked skin

A dermatologist nurse practitioner has divulged why you shouldn't be using lip scrubs on dry, cracked lips this winter.

The tip was shared on TikTok this week by Catie Boucher, who is also the founder of the Delaware-based SavvyDerm Skin Clinic.

Boucher often takes to her social media account to share insider information about various skincare trends and other wisdoms.

In the clip, Boucher explains exactly why she believes that lip scrubs 'are not for dry lips,' and what you should be using instead.

Catie Boucher, a Delaware-based dermatology nurse practitioner, took to TikTok this week to reveal why you shouldn't be using lip scrubs on dry lips 

Boucher also told viewers what they should be using instead when it comes to treating their dry lips 

'I get it, it's so tempting to reach for your favorite lip scrub, but before you do, consider this,' she began.

'The skin on your lips is very different from the skin on your face, it's actually more similar to the skin on your mouth or your mucosa,' the expert continued.

To be precise, the skin that's on your lips is actually about one-third as thick as the skin on your face, according to Boucher.

She explained that if you want to cure your dry lips, you need to actually repair your skin's barrier.

'When you're using scrubs, and you're kind of mechanically exfoliating, you're removing that protective outer layer of the lips and you're leaving them even more compromised and stripped,' the nurse practitioner explained.

'We've all had, myself included, that dry chunk of skin that you bite off,' she furthered. 'It doesn't end well. It bleeds, and leaves you at risk for cold sores, infection and the cycle to continue.'

In order to combat these dry lips without having to turn to a lip scrub, Boucher offered viewers some suggestions.

The first one was to get something called a 'lip hydration,' a popular treatment at her clinic that involves injecting a bit of filler into the lips. 

In the video, Boucher explained that the skin on your lips is thinner than the skin on your face 

Boucher often takes to her various social media accounts to share her tips and tricks about all things skin

'It doesn't end well. It bleeds, and leaves you at risk for cold sores, infection and the cycle to continue,' Boucher said about picking at dry skin on the lips 

'It entails coming in and placing filler in your lips, not to augment them or make them bigger, but to hydrate them, because as we get older, we lose that hydration,' she explained.

However, if you don't want to have to resort to needles, there are also other steps you can take to heal your lips, the dermatologist nurse practitioner advised.

'What I recommend doing is applying an emollient at night,' she said.

'I like CeraVe healing ointment because you can get it at a drugstore.'

An emollient is an ingredient in moisturizers that 'form a film' on the skin, per the Cleveland Clinic, and can help to heal any dryness.   

'Apply it even before your skincare routine, 'cause sometimes your retinoid, if we're lazy with it, can get on your lips and make thing worse,' Boucher advised about the lip treatment.

The expert then shared another reminder with viewers to stay away from lip scrubs this season. 

'The name of the game this winter is keeping your lips hydrated, not trying to scrub the top layer off,' she concluded.  

Instead, Boucher suggested that people use an emollient, recommending the CeraVe Healing Ointment 

Boucher also recommended a filler treatment that she frequently does on patients during the cold, dry winter months 

For those looking for specific hydrating lip products, a beauty guru recently took to TikTok to reveal some of her favorites that 'actually' heal your lips.

Tennessee-based content creator AbbyGrayce Fraley shared the list in a video, but said the best one was definitely the Fenty Skin Plush Puddin' lip mask.

'I will put this on at night and wake up and it is still on my lips, my lips are completely healed and so, so moisturized,' she said in the video.

'I really don't know what Rihanna put in this, but it honestly feels like it's medicated. Like, it actually heals and bonds your lips to make them so much more moisturized and just healthy again.'