Tingling lips makes you feel like “pins and needles” on your lips. It is a common problem caused due to nerve damage when a person is exposed to extreme temperature. There are several causes for getting tingling lips ranging from allergic food products to cosmetic factors. Tingling of lips may vary in duration with respect to its causative factor. For some it may be for few seconds and for others it can extend for hours. There may or may not be numbness and pain when tingling of lips occur. For some people, it may affect their consciousness or may cause intense headache. If there is repeated tingling of lips, accompanied with numbness you need to seek immediate medical care.
Symptoms :
Some of the common symptoms with tingling of lips are burning feeling on lips, dryness, numbness (for few seconds), chapped lips, pain (mild to moderate), warmth and redness over the lips, and inflammation of lips. For some people it may cause tingling on other parts of the body.
It can be a symptom of stroke or any complicated nervous disorder if tingling of lips is seen with numbness on one side of your body. Tingling of lips can be a warning signal if it influences your conscious level or alertness. There may be slurring of speech or sudden inability to speak when nervous system gets affected. For some there may be inability to move body parts on one side indicating partial paralysis. Some people vision may get affected causing blurred vision and there can be worst headache which they have never had before. All these are serious symptoms wanting prompt medical care and hospitalization.
Causes :
There are several causes for tingling of lips. Allergic foods can cause tingling in some people. It can be due to chemical burn or change in cosmetics. Chapped lips may be the reason for tingling sensation. When a person is exposed to extreme weather conditions of heat or cold temperature, there can be tingling of lips. You may also get this problem due to the infection caused by herpes simplex virus. A simple cold sore can cause tingling of lips. Injury caused to lips may also affect the tissue covering of lips.
Sometimes, tingling lips can be caused by underlying diseases like cancer and cervical spondylitis. It is a signal to tell that nerve damage has been caused in the spine or neck area. Disease like multiple sclerosis may also produce the sign of tingling of lips, since it may affect the brain causing weakness and balancing problem. Shingles is an infection caused by zoster virus which can cause tingling lips. Skin problems like lupus erythematosus may also produce this symptom. For some people tingling lips occur when there is deficiency of vitamin B12. In rare cases, tingling lips (if accompanied by other symptoms) can be indicative of stroke and cranial nerve trauma.
Treatment :
Your doctor will have to find out the underlying medical cause for getting rid of tingling of lips. Since lips tingling are not an illness by itself and it is a signal for identifying other illness, it takes time for your doctor to treat this problem. In case if tingling lips is caused due to consumption of allergic foods, then you can avoid eating them. You can use antihistamines for managing tingling of lips.
If you are diabetic, tingling of lips may be signal of increased blood glucose. It can be due to deficiency of vitamin in children and hence it is necessary to supplement their diet with well balanced nutrition. For some people, tingling of lips can be controlled by practicing relaxation techniques like Yoga and other exercises. You can also try some herbal remedies for making this symptom disappear.