How To Get Rid Of Dark Circles & Puffiness Around Your Eyes

With the the cold, dark days, you might find your skin and in particular your eyes are in need of some TLC, so now is the perfect time to indulge in some self-care and eye soothing techniques from the comfort of your own home. 

Winter skin

It's a thing! During the winter our skin is generally drier as we are exposed to extremes in weather and indoor heating. Dry and flaky skin can look lacklustre, so we need to keep it moisturised to maintain a healthy skin barrier, to protect us from external aggressors. A weak skin barrier is prone to damage, letting in bacteria and germs. We also have reduced levels of Vitamin D, this has a negative effect on our skin appearance. The dark circles around your eyes can appear darker as the skin is paler and more transparent. Typically as the weather is colder, we are less active, this can impact the ridding of waste products from the body. A build up of waste toxins in the eye area can show up as dark bags.

What else causes puffiness & eye bags?

Those dark circles could also be down to diet, lifestyle, or even your age.  Collagen loses it's elasticity over time, as we age, the skin becomes thinner and less supportive of the fluid surrounding the eye and the thinner skin also shows the dark circles more easily. 

Are eye bags hereditary?

Puffiness and dark circles can also be caused as a result of the structure of the eye socket. Some shapes of eye socket are more prone to fluid build up at the base of the socket. A lack of structure makes it difficult for this fluid to be moved away easily. As fluid builds up, pigmented waste product from blood also builds up increasing the appearance of dark circles.

Eye bags can make you feel like you’re stuck with them forever, however we have some tips to help reduce the appearance of them.

Top tips to reducing puffiness and eye bags

• Traditional remedies such as leaving spoons in the fridge for 10 minutes (or until cold) and holding them on the eyes for 5 minutes will help reduce puffiness, the coolness will reduce swelling. Carefully apply pressure in a sweeping motion under the eyes to promote fluid circulation to reduce the appearance of eye bags.

• Treat yourself to an under-eye massage, this can be done on yourself or by someone else. The eye area is very delicate so it’s important to be gentle. Focus on an upward tapping movement around the eye to enhance blood flow, ensure to tap around the eye socket and up to the tear ducts, along the cheek bones and then up to the brow bone. Follow this with an eye cream for added healing and luxury. This relieves the eyes by enhancing circulation, helping to move the retained fluid which causes the bags.

• They don’t call it beauty sleep for nothing! Staying well rested helps the mind and body to heal and rejuvenate, as a result, stress levels are decreased helping to revive the skin and reduce eye bags. Read our 7 Steps For Better Sleep & Skin article on Our Journal to dive further into some tips on how you can improve your sleep.

• To shrink your eye bags quickly, try keeping your favourite eye care product in the fridge over night for a fresh start in the mornings. The cold helps narrow blood vessels to reduce inflammation that may have built up over night. The Power TonIQ™ Eye Contour Perfecting Essence is perfect for this as the doses are sealed, so it's fresh and hygienic every time!.

• Finally, stay hydrated, being dehydrated means fluid is more retained and builds up in the socket, amplifying the look of eye bags and puffiness. Looking after your skin starts from within, staying well hydrated boosts circulation helping to move that excess fluid away.

We hope these tips help lighten up your life and eyes! If eye bags and puffiness are something you struggle with, take our Skin Diagnostic to discover if you’re in need of our Power TonIQ™ Eye Contour Perfecting Essence. Or if you have any other concerns, our Diagnostic can provide you with a solution in under 5 minutes!