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Full, pouty, sensual lips are in the news. And it's all the same news; i.e. three young, hopeful women trying several topical items hoping they will see noticeable changes in the plumpness of their lips. In truth, the results are so temporary; the user will never experience any substantial lip pouting.

Lips are soft tissue; they easily lose hydration and shrink when men and women reach a certain age. The area surrounding the lips is muscle. As the orbicularis orris muscle shrinks due to atrophy and no exercise, the lips begin to implode. They appear smaller because they are affected by the collapse of the mouth muscle into the soft tissue.

After a while, the lips look dormant; they become thinner and usually lose their well-accentuated borders and contours. Likely, small lines will invade the area where the border was once prominent. Women see little lines that disturb their lipstick and liner; lip putties and topical preparations will slightly help to 'fill in the cracks' but these are only temporary.

Many women and some men will try soft tissue augmentation to enhance their lips. There are many injected types of filler offered by physicians; these, too, are temporary and may cause discoloration, lopsidedness and swelling.

Some fillers are human derived (cadaver material!); some are animal and non-animal sources. These materials are 'purified' before use then dehydrated, re-hydrated and then either injected or pulled through tunnels underneath the lip. Does that sound scary? These methods and modalities will have to be repeated over and over again for the user to maintain the enhancement.

So how does one enlarge the lips without pain, recovery time and expense? If you are serious about protecting your lips, your face, here is a proven exercise to give new life to your mouth:

While standing in front of a mirror, put the heels of both hands together. Place your thumbs in your mouth in a 'V' position. Push the lip muscle outward without creating any lines around the mouth or lip area. The entire upper lip surface should be smooth and oval. Compress the upper lip muscles against your thumbs and hold for a count of five seconds. Remove your thumbs, take a deep breath, exhale and repeat the above movement for 10 seconds. Again, remove your thumbs, take a deep breath and exhale. Repeat the above movement twice for another twenty seconds.

Stand back and look at your face'keep it still and relaxed while you experience the rush of oxygenated blood and strength to your upper lip. Watch closely as your mouth corners turn upward'and your lips feel fuller, now marvel at the new, appealing you.