How to Fix Uneven Lips

Author

Dr. Stephen Cosentino

Uneven lips have many causes. Genetics is often responsible for baseline size differences between the upper and lower lip. Age-related collagen loss can reduce lip volume at different rates, leading to more pronounced unevenness over time. Lip injuries or trauma can alter the shape of the mouth. Medical conditions like Bell’s palsy can cause facial asymmetry that affects the mouth and lips.

Don’t worry. Whether your lips are downturned on one side, noticeably different in size, or asymmetrical across your face’s vertical midline, solutions exist. Here’s what you can do to fix uneven lips on your own or with the assistance of a trained medical provider.

How to Fix Uneven Lips

There are several ways to fix uneven lips. Some are temporary, while others produce results that may last for much longer.

Lip Exercises

Anyone can do lip-focused facial exercises at home, in the office, in the car — anywhere, really. You might hear references to “lip yoga” out in the world; lip exercises and lip yoga are one and the same.

Some popular lip yoga exercises include:

Kiss: Just as it sounds, this exercise involves making a firm kissing motion against the palm of your hand for 3 seconds. Next, remove your hand and slowly blow a kiss in the air. Repeat at least 10 times.
Tongue Twister: In sets of 3 reps each, roll your tongue clockwise around the inside of your lips, then counterclockwise. Repeat without interruption for 2 to 3 minutes.
Pout: Hold your breath and tighten your lips into an “O” shape. Hold the position for 10 seconds, then exhale, but hold the “O” shape until you’ve fully exhaled.

Mouth Stretch: Push the corners of your mouth upward into a wide smile position using your index fingers and hold for 5 seconds. Return to the resting position and repeat 5 to 10 times.

Lip Makeup

Strategic lip makeup application can reduce the appearance of unevenness. Simply apply stain or lipstick to create an equal-width effect on both lips (meaning more on the thinner lip). Lip tattoos also achieve this effect and are more permanent than makeup, but they’re also more difficult to remove.

Lip Fillers

Lip fillers can temporarily change your lip shape and reduce the appearance of unevenness. The most common type of lip filler uses hyaluronic acid (HA) as its active ingredient; there are several brands of HA lip fillers approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in the United States.

Hyaluronic acid fillers generally last 6 to 18 months, depending on the patient and the area being treated. The results are reversible if you’re not happy with them, another important advantage. But to reduce the incidence of preventable side effects and complications, it’s still important to work with a plastic surgeon, dermatologist, or other trained medical provider who has completed comprehensive dermal filler training.

Lip Implants and Surgery

The most permanent solutions for uneven lips are also more invasive.

Traditional plastic surgery is certainly an option for patients who haven’t seen satisfactory results from less invasive treatments, but it’s important to understand the potential risks. Those risks include the risk of unsatisfactory results that require further surgery to correct.

Permanent lip implants, whether synthetic or autologous (fat grafts), are another option. Again, it’s important to understand the potential risks before moving ahead with a procedure that’s more difficult to reverse.