Are you struggling with wrinkles, puffy eye bags and or dark circles under your eyes? Eye bags are a natural part of ageing that make people appear tired, older and even sick.
Let see the main causes of bulging skin under the eyes, wrinkles and dark circles and recommend some top free at home remedies.
What causes eye bags
First let’s look at what’s the main cause. Most people think it’s caused by a lack of sleep, but the main cause is gravity. Gravitational pull exerts a downward force on all earthly objects including our skin. The more time we are exposed to gravity, i.e. the older we are, the more effects it has on us. The bags under eyes – mild swelling or puffiness under eyes are a natural part of ageing. As people get older, the tissue around the eyes and the muscles that support the eye lids weaken allowing fat that helps support the lids to move into the lower lid and thus the lower lid appears puffy or bulge with fat. When plastic surgery is performed to fix bags, surgeons remove this excess fat thus removing the appearance of puffy eyes.
Allergies are another cause of eye bags and puffiness for millions of people. Allergies can causes inflammation in the face and because the skin is thinner under the eyes, a collection of fluids there will puff out the skin.
The cause of dark circles under eyes
Dark circles under the eyes are the result of oxygenated blood pooled beneath the eye skin. This is a thin layer of skin almost transparent and blood as a result shows through. This is why dark circles can appear in the morning after you get up. Because of lying horizontal for a period of time fluids accumulate and the veins expand to hold more blood.
Instant De-puff action
Almost everyone wakes up in the morning with puffy eyes, but the puffiness usually goes away pretty fast. For some, however, the puffiness can stick around most of the day making you look tired and not rested. Say you have an early morning meeting and you got up looking like a pufferfish, don’t freak out and use one of the following remedies:
- Cold cucumber slices – take a cold cucumber and cut it up into thin slices (6 to 8 is fine). Apply directly onto each of your closed eyelids. Keep for 3 minutes and replace with fresh ones. The cold compress will force the puffiness away and soothe the skin. The high water content of cucumbers also contain ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and caffeic acid, both of which help soothe skin irritations, and reduce water retention and swelling. It will moisturise the skin, giving you a fresh feeling and awake-looking eyes. Go ahead and munch on the rest of that cucumber – it’s good for you!
Chilled green/black tea bags – Soak two tea bags in hot water and put the cup in the refrigerator overnight (or until it gets cold). In the morning, take the tea bags out of the cup and squeeze out extra liquid so that they are moist enough but not dripping. Place one tea bag on each of your closed eyelids and keep for 5 minutes. This gives you the same effect as the cucumber slices, with a cold compress, but the caffeine content of green tea also has excellent stimulation and anti-inflammatory properties to increase circulation thereby tightening the skin and awakening your eyes. AND you can drink your tea too! - Cold raw potato slices – as with cucumber slices and tea bags, a cold potato can do the same in reducing puffiness. Take a raw potato from the fridge, peel it, and cut into several thin slices. Place on closed eyes for about 5 minutes and voila! You are good to go.
- Frozen spoon – This is a really simple and great trick if you are running low on time and don’t have any of the above mentioned items. Place a spoon in the freezer overnight so it’s handy when you wake up in the morning. Take the spoon and apply to under the eye, one at a time. Keep it for 30 seconds under one eye, switch to the other for 30 more seconds, and repeat 3 – 4 times. So easy, so simple!
- Raw egg whites – Take one egg and separate the egg white from the yolk. Scoop up some of the egg white with your fingers and apply directly to the skin under your eyes. Let it dry for about 5 minutes then rinse off with cold water and pat skin dry. As the egg dries, you will feel a tightening sensation on your skin, and you’ll get an instant perk-up for your eyes. The vitamin B content of egg whites also promotes circulation to help reduce puffiness. Good for nutrition AND for beauty!
Use Eye Creams
After washing your face and doing one of the methods described above, use a good under eye cream or gel to moisturise. Some creams even have de-puffing qualities mixed in. When applying eye cream, be gentle – don’t rub. Use one finger to gently tap from the inside to the outside back and forth.
Makeup tricks
Now, this is the fun part! You can really work wonders with makeup to make your eyes appear bigger, stand out more, and even change the shape. This may take some time to master but here are some basic tricks you can use.
Darkness be gone! Next, you are going to take care of any dark circles if you have them. Most of the time, chronic dark circles are a hereditary condition, or they may appear from time to time due to stress, lack of sleep, poor diet, or some medical condition. To cover them up you are going to need a basic staple in anyone’s makeup drawer – the all-powerful concealer.
Big is beautiful. Create an illusion to make your eyes look bigger. The key here is to use light shadow on the lid and brow bone, and medium shadow in the crease of the eye. Then lining the upper lash line with black or brown eye liner, putting some shimmer shadow in the inner corners of the eyes, and using a white pencil in the inner bottom rim.
Luscious Lashes.
Give your eyes a wide open look and make them look bigger by curling your lashes up using an eyelash curler. Coat top and bottom lashes twice with mascara and your eyes are set to dazzle. Get more makeup tricks to make your eyes stand out: Long Full Eyelashes and Beautiful Eyebrows
Besides the free home remedies, of course there are a few products on the market that you can purchase to deliver results as well. The hard part is finding one that works best for you without having to try multiple products and waste time and money waiting for results and risking damage to your precious skin.
