Lip care · 5 min read
Is lip balm safe for kids? What to check before you buy
By Aarti Solanki · Updated
The short answer
Lip balm is safe for children when it is made from simple food-grade butters, oils and waxes with no menthol, camphor, phenol or salicylic acid, and when any nut-derived ingredient is checked against allergies. Our balms are suitable from age 3, with an adult supervising the first few uses. Children swallow a good proportion of what you apply, so the ingredient list matters more than the packaging.
- Assume anything on a child's lips will be eaten - keep the list short and food-grade.
- Avoid menthol, camphor, phenol and salicylic acid on children's lips.
- Check nut-derived ingredients such as sweet almond oil against known allergies.
- Scent-free is the safest starting point for sensitive or eczema-prone children.
- A tin they like the taste of is the one they will actually reapply.
What to avoid on children's lips
The cooling tingle in many high-street balms comes from menthol, camphor or phenol. It feels like relief and behaves like an irritant on split skin, which is how children end up reapplying all day and getting worse.
- Menthol, camphor, phenol - cooling agents that dry and irritate
- Salicylic acid and other exfoliating actives, which have no place on a child's lips
- Heavy artificial fragrance on eczema-prone or already-cracked lips
- Anything without a full ingredient list you can read before buying
What a good children's balm contains instead
Butters and oils to soften, a wax to seal, and vitamin E to keep the oils fresh. That is genuinely all a lip balm needs to do its job.
Ours are kokum, shea and cocoa butters with jojoba and sweet almond oil, sealed with plant-based carnauba wax rather than beeswax, plus vitamin E. They come in 15 ml refillable metal tins, are vegan and cruelty-free, and are made and hand-labelled in the East Midlands.
Allergies and age guidance
Our balms contain sweet almond oil, a tree nut derivative, so they are not suitable for anyone with a nut allergy. They are suitable from age 3, with an adult supervising the first few uses, and we recommend a 24-hour patch test on the inner arm for children with sensitive or reactive skin.
Five of our six flavours contain a fragrance. Plain Jane, the original recipe Yana made at five, is scent-free and is the one we suggest for the most sensitive lips.
Why children lick it off, and what to do
Licking is a habit loop: lips feel dry, saliva feels like relief, saliva evaporates and takes moisture with it. Breaking the loop needs a balm that lasts, not one that tastes exciting enough to keep chasing.
- Apply a thicker layer at bedtime, when nobody is licking it off
- Reapply after meals, drinks and before going outside in wind or cold
- Let a child apply it themselves - they reapply far more reliably than you will
- Keep one tin in the school bag and one at home
Where this came from
Yana was five and in hospital when the dry air left her lips cracked and bleeding, and every balm they tried made it worse. She asked her mum whether they could make their own. Plain Jane was the answer, and it is still the balm we hand to any parent whose child reacts to everything else.
Questions people ask
What age can a child use lip balm?
Our lip balms are suitable from age 3, with an adult supervising the first few uses. For younger children, ask your health visitor or GP and stick to plain, food-grade ingredients.
Is it bad if my child eats lip balm?
Small amounts of a simple, food-grade butter and oil balm are not harmful. That is exactly why the ingredient list matters: avoid balms with menthol, camphor, phenol or exfoliating acids, and speak to a pharmacist if a whole tin is eaten.
Are your lip balms vegan?
They are vegan and cruelty-free, made with plant-based carnauba wax rather than beeswax, and contain no animal-derived ingredients in the balm itself. They do contain sweet almond oil, so avoid them with a nut allergy.
Which flavour is best for sensitive lips?
Plain Jane. It is scent-free and it is the original recipe Yana made at five years old during her hospital stay.
Can lip balms go in party bags?
Yes, and they are our most popular party bag filler. You can pick the flavour mix and see the per-bag price before ordering on our party bags page.
