Ask the Expert: How Do I Get Rid of Under Eye Circles and Puffy Eyes?
Dark circles and puffiness around the eyes can occur at any age, unlike wrinkles, but they have a greater effect on your appearance, making you look tired, gaunt and aged. This can be due to several different causes. To treat and reduce dark circles and puffiness the cause of these issues needs to be addressed. For that, consulting a doctor can help to find out individual causes and appropriate treatments.
In general, dark circles are due to pigmentation or blood vessels running under the skin, which has a bluish appearance. Eye bags or puffiness are due to fluid or fat accumulation under the eye. Both features may or may not appear together.
Environmental causes such as lack of sleep, alcohol, smoking, excessive sunlight and a lack of vitamins are common causes for dark circles. While hot humid days, salty diet, changes in hormone levels and allergies can lead to puffy eyes.
Genetics and aging are the other causes. Dark eye circles may run in the family with dark skin pigmentation under the eyes. This can be treated with lasers over a series of sessions to reduce the pigmentation and give a more uniform skin tone.
As we age, our face also naturally loses collagen and facial fat. Loss of fat under the eye may lead to folding and drooping of the skin giving a darkened appearance due to the shadow and ‘bunching’ of the skin or may make blood vessels under the skin more visible. In these cases, fillers can be used to “fill up the space” and stretch the skin back into place resolving the issue.
If you do not suffer from dark under eye circles just yet or would like to prevent it from getting worse, the below are a few steps you can take.
10 Steps To Preventing Dark Under Eye Circles
1. Get your beauty sleep! And remove your makeup before hand. Prolonged makeup on the skin can cause puffiness and pigmentation.
2. Reduce alcohol intake. It reduces and affects the quality of sleep.
3. Stop smoking. Not only is smoking unhealthy for you, the toxins and the smoke around your face can increase the level of pigmentation on your skin and cause dryness.
4. Drink plenty of water. Proper hydration keeps your skin healthy. Most people do not drink enough water throughout the day.
5. Reduce salt intake. Excess salt can lead to water retention and puffiness.
6. Take vitamin B and K. Fruits and green leafy vegetables are high in them. A lack of these vitamins are attributed to dark eye circles.
7. Apply creams or serums with vitamin E , C and K. This will brighten the skin under the eyes over time.
8. Reduce sun exposure. UV light increases pigmentation. Apply SPF 30 to 50 sunblock daily over sun-exposed skin and under the eyes.
9. Avoid allergens. Sinusitis and nasal congestion lead to dilated veins under the eyes resulting in dark circles. Food and chemical allergies can also cause this.
10. Avoid stress. Being unable to relax reduces the amount you sleep, cause you to eat irregularly and thus affect the absorption of vitamins and minerals into the body. This ultimately leads to unhealthy skin.
If you have checked off everything from the list above but still struggle with dark under eyes or puffy eyes, then maybe it’s time to leave it to the experts. Let Dr Ariffin Ziaudeen of Bio Aesthetic Laser Clinic help you get rid of this age-old problem with their range of treatments that can be customised to your needs.
Bio Aesthetic Laser Clinic is located at 68 Orchard Road, #04-56 Plaza Singapura, Singapore 238839. Click on this link to book an appointment or call them at +65 6333 4566.
Contributor: Dr Ariffin Ziaudeen
Dr. Ariffin Ziaudeen is a doctor working at Bio Aesthetic Laser Clinic. He found an interest in aesthetic medicine as he believes that everybody has the right to achieve aesthetic perfection through consumer friendly prices. To him, the pursuit to beauty perfection need not be an extravagant affair - it can be accessible to all.
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