What Deficiency Causes Broken Lips? Vitamins, Minerals, and More

November 29, 2025 •

3 min read

According to research published in the journal Cutis, deficiencies in several key vitamins and minerals are often the root cause of dry, cracked, and broken lips. A nutritional shortfall, including low levels of B vitamins, iron, and zinc, can disrupt skin health and lead to painful cheilitis or angular cheilitis, which manifests as cracked lips or sores at the mouth's corners.

Quick Summary

Broken lips are often caused by deficiencies in key nutrients, such as B vitamins, iron, and zinc. These shortfalls disrupt skin cell function and healing, leading to inflammation and cracking. Other factors like dehydration, weather, and irritating lip products can also contribute to this condition.

Key Points

B-Vitamin Deficiency: Lack of B vitamins like riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), and cobalamin (B12) is a primary cause of cracked lips and angular cheilitis.
Iron and Zinc Shortfall: Deficiencies in the minerals iron and zinc are strongly linked to chapped lips and impaired wound healing.
Dietary Solution: Increasing your intake of nutrient-dense foods like leafy greens, meat, whole grains, and legumes is crucial for restoring lip health.
Beyond Nutrition: Environmental factors like dry weather and habits such as lip-licking can also cause or worsen broken lips.
Seek Medical Advice: If cracked lips are persistent despite dietary changes, a healthcare professional should be consulted to rule out absorption issues or other conditions.

The Nutrients Behind Healthy Lips: A Deeper Look

While environmental factors like cold weather, sun exposure, and dehydration are common culprits for chapped lips, persistent or severe cases often point to an internal issue. The thin, sensitive skin on the lips lacks oil glands and is therefore more vulnerable to nutritional deficiencies. An inadequate supply of specific vitamins and minerals can impair the body's ability to repair tissue, transport oxygen, and maintain skin integrity, leading to the discomfort of broken lips.

The Critical Role of B-Vitamins

B-complex vitamins are a family of water-soluble vitamins crucial for cellular metabolism, energy production, and healthy skin. Deficiencies in specific B vitamins have long been linked to various forms of cheilitis, the medical term for inflamed, cracked lips.

Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin): A lack of this vitamin is strongly associated with angular cheilitis, a condition causing painful, cracked sores at the corners of the mouth. It is also linked to a magenta-colored tongue and other skin issues.
Vitamin B3 (Niacin): Severe niacin deficiency, known as pellagra, can cause dermatitis and a red, swollen mouth and tongue, in addition to dry, cracked lips.
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine): Insufficient B6 can contribute to dermatitis and cracks at the corners of the mouth.
Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin) & B9 (Folate): These two are vital for red blood cell formation and tissue repair. Deficiencies can cause angular cheilitis, mouth sores, and even pale lips.

The Importance of Minerals: Iron and Zinc

Beyond vitamins, essential minerals also play a vital role in maintaining healthy skin and, by extension, healthy lips. Iron and zinc are particularly important.

Iron: This mineral is a component of hemoglobin, which transports oxygen throughout the body. An iron deficiency can lead to anemia, resulting in pale, dry lips and angular cheilitis because of impaired oxygen supply to the lip tissue.
Zinc: An essential trace mineral, zinc is crucial for immune function, wound healing, and skin health. A deficiency can manifest as chapped lips and inflammation at the corners of the mouth.

Comparison of Nutrient Deficiencies Causing Broken Lips


Deficiency	Key Role in Lip Health	Associated Lip Symptoms	Dietary Sources to Counter Deficiency
B-Complex Vitamins	Cellular energy, tissue repair, skin maintenance	Angular cheilitis (cracks at corners), dry/peeling lips, swollen tongue	Whole grains, eggs, meat, leafy greens, legumes
Iron	Oxygen transport, wound healing	Pale lips, dry/cracked lips, angular cheilitis, fatigue	Red meat, poultry, seafood, fortified cereals, legumes, dark leafy greens
Zinc	Immune function, skin repair	Chapped lips, inflammation at mouth corners, hair loss	Meat, shellfish, nuts, seeds, legumes, dairy
Vitamin C	Collagen production, antioxidant properties, wound healing	Swollen, bleeding gums; dry, cracked lips	Citrus fruits, berries, broccoli, kiwi, leafy greens

Other Contributing Factors to Broken Lips

Nutritional deficits aren't the only cause. Environmental and behavioral factors frequently contribute to or exacerbate the condition.

Dehydration: Simply not drinking enough water is a leading cause of dry skin and lips. Staying hydrated is a primary defense against chapping.
Environmental Exposure: Cold, dry, windy, or overly sunny weather can strip moisture from the lips, causing them to crack.
Lip-Licking: Saliva contains digestive enzymes that can irritate and break down the delicate lip skin, creating a vicious cycle of drying and licking.
Irritating Products: Some lip balms or toothpastes contain ingredients like fragrances, menthol, or sodium lauryl sulfate that can cause allergic contact dermatitis or irritation, making the problem worse.
Medications: Certain drugs, including those for acne (like retinoids), high blood pressure, and chemotherapy, can have a side effect of dry lips.
Underlying Conditions: In some cases, broken lips can signal a more complex issue, such as an autoimmune disease, thyroid disorder, or gastrointestinal condition that affects nutrient absorption.

Conclusion

Persistent broken or cracked lips, especially in the corners of the mouth, can be a tell-tale sign of underlying nutritional deficiencies, particularly involving B vitamins, iron, and zinc. While external factors play a role, addressing the root cause through a nutrient-rich diet is key to long-term healing. Foods like eggs, meat, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and leafy greens are excellent sources of the essential nutrients needed to support healthy lip skin. If dietary changes and good hydration do not resolve the issue, consulting a healthcare professional is advisable to rule out other medical conditions or assess the need for supplements.

For more detailed information on nutrient deficiencies and their effects, you can visit resources like the National Institutes of Health(https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536929/).

Frequently Asked Questions

The most common nutritional deficiencies linked to broken lips are those involving B-complex vitamins, particularly riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), and B12. Deficiencies in minerals like iron and zinc are also frequent culprits.

Yes, an iron deficiency can cause cracked lips, particularly a condition called angular cheilitis, which affects the corners of the mouth. Iron is essential for oxygen transport and tissue healing, and a lack of it can lead to dry, cracked, and pale lips.

B vitamins are essential for cellular energy, metabolism, and skin repair. When deficient, these processes are disrupted, leading to inflammation and compromised tissue integrity, which manifests as cracked lips, inflamed corners of the mouth, or a swollen tongue.

To address broken lips caused by deficiency, consume foods rich in B vitamins (whole grains, eggs, meat, leafy greens), iron (red meat, legumes, fortified cereals), and zinc (shellfish, nuts, seeds).

If your broken lips are persistent, painful, or bleeding, and do not heal after a few weeks despite hydration and dietary changes, you should consult a doctor. This may indicate an underlying condition or a need for supplements.

Yes, dehydration is a very common cause of dry, chapped lips, as the skin on the lips is particularly vulnerable to moisture loss. Drinking plenty of water is a simple yet effective way to combat dryness.

Yes, an excess of certain vitamins, particularly Vitamin A, can cause dry lips. It is important to be cautious with supplementation and consult a healthcare provider.