Penny Choose: Neutrogena lipcare SPF20 lip balm
This is a review of Neutrogena Norwegian Formula lipcare SPF 20 lip balm, and it’s our affordable Treat of the Week. It can be harder than you might think to find a lip balm that really works, especially if you’re looking for sun protection, and this is pretty well formulated.
Yes, you can get products that are a bit cheaper, but they tend to contain less effective ingredients and have no SPF. The four biggest ingredients here are: Ricinus Communis (castor) oil, paraffin, cera alba (beeswax) and ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate (a sunscreen). The fact that there’s a good quality sunscreen so high up the list suggests that it will give a good level of sun protection. The castor oil is a non-irritating vegetable oil that does a pretty good job of adding oil and moisture.
It doesn’t have an overly sticky or greasy finish, and I’ve found it useful for days when my sensitive skin is playing up and needs to be soothed and calmed down. It sinks in after a few minutes and seems to leave a protective barrier. Unlike some SPF products, it doesn’t leave a white cast on the skin, which is a bonus.
Must admit, my personal preference for this product mainly exists because I’m allergic to lanolin and also find menthol/mint and camphor highly irritating – ingredients you find in many allegedly soothing lipbalms that can cause bad reactions in quite a lot of people – and this balm does not contain any of those ingredients.
The product does contain a small amount of fragrance, that sort of ‘clean’ smell that Neutrogena add to many of their lines. It is unisex and it fades after a few minutes. However, I do think the manufacturers should leave this out if they ever reformulate, because it really isn’t necessary and an unfragranced version would be a good selling point.
All in all, a reliable product that moisturises and provides sun protection, and hasn’t irritated my particular type of sensitive skin. Worth a try if you haven’t had any luck with other lipbalms.
Neutrogena Norwegian Formula lipcare SPF 20 is available at Boots, price £2.80.
Do you have a favourite lip balm that you’d recommend, especially if it’s reasonably priced?
I really like body shop hemp lip balm. I have been using it since February and its lovely. No fragrance and very soothing. Mostly I use it at night before going to bed. It is a bit more pricey at £4 but I usually find some kind of discount voucher that would make it much less 🙂
Thanks for the tip, Fiona – I’ll be sure to check that one out next time they have a 50%-off code.