Lip Ointments vs Silicone

[Lauren168]

I have a brutal case of chapped lips and wonder if lip ointments will break down the silicone if they come in contact with the mask?

[Elle]

Pure lanolin will be ok and I have heard Carmex was ok.

[LSAT]

I've used Carmex every night for the past 3+ years.

[Lauren168]

Never heard of carmex - what is it?

[LoneStar]

Basically you want to avoid any lip treatment that contains petroleum - think ChapStick. I use Burt't Bees lip balm as it doesn't have petroleum and I've never had a problem. I use it on my nares, too, to get a good seal with my nasal pillows.

Lisa

[robysue]

Lauren168,

Chapped lips and chapped nares have been the Energizer Bunny of all my on-going problems with CPAP. I never really got a genuine respite from them last winter, and they even persisted well into spring and summer. I posted about this problem in January 2011. There were a lot of replies with quality suggestions. You can read the whole thread at: Chapped lips and chapped nares

For me, I finally managed to get ahead of the chapped lips late last summer and they've not been anywhere near as bad this winter. To keep ahead of the chapped lips, I have to make sure I'm well hydrated at all times, I use a custom-made petroleum free chapstick at night, and tons of chapstick du jour along with shea butter. All of this manages to keep the problem under control most of the time.

[LSAT]

Never heard of carmex - what is it?

http://www.mycarmex.com/our-products/default.aspx

[TalonNYC]

I use some Burt's Bees lip balm (in stick form) before bed. They use beeswax instead of petroleum jelly, but otherwise it's just normal lip wax. So far, I have not noticed any issues with silicone breakdown, and I use a FFM so the bottom part does tend to touch my lower lip during the night.

My dermatologist used to recommend aquaphor, which is pure white petrolatum (basically Vaseline) over the other lip balms - but that was before I started CPAP therapy. She mentioned that it got better results than Carmex, which I used quite a lot at that point in my life. I've found all three products to work quite well for my chapped lips.

[Janknitz]

I use Chapstick. It absorbs right into my lips and I don't spend all night kissing the cushion on my ff mask.

I wouldn't use a petroleum product on skin that's in continuous direct contact with the silicone all night, but otherwise I don't worry about it.

[RocketGirl]

FWIW, Carmex does contain petrolatum.