A Different Approach to Dark Circles Under Eyes

Dark circles under eyes can be caused from various reasons. Therefore, remedies should be specific to the cause. The most common causes are heredity, exposure to sun, allergies, medications, improper nutrition, pregnancy and menstruation, fatigue and aging. Thus the cause of dark circles under your eyes can be hard to isolate. With that in mind, let's look at each of the causes and select the appropriate treatment.

Heredity: The skin under the eyes is very thin, and the more transparent the skin the more blood passing through the large veins will show through, thus leaving a bluish tint or dark tint under the eye. In order to alleviate the veins showing through the skin a cold compress is needed. Cold constricts and shrinks the veins under the eyes. A cold compress of caffeinated black tea would be my recommendation. Cook up some tea bags and cool in the refrigerator. When cool apply to closed eyes and relax 10 minutes or so.

Sun exposure: sun is very damaging to the skin, especially to the sensitive skin around the eyes. If you have developed dark spots around the eyes and face, a bleaching agent is needed. Natural bleaching agents are lemon juice. Apply some lemon juice with the almond oil around the eye area and leave it on for 10 minutes and rinse. Apply a toner (get a toner recipes here ) to restore pH balance and moisturize as usual. Almond oil is a great moisturizer for the eye area. Note: lemon juice is photo toxic so when applying lemon juice to any dark spots do not go into the sun. Additionally, if you are allergic to nuts you would not want to use almond oil.


Medications or ill health: medications or ill health can play havoc on the skin and the eye area. If you are suffering from dark circles from medications or ill health the best we can do is keep the eye area moisturized, provide it with the necessary nutrients and bleach the dark circles with lemon juice.

Nutrition, pregnancy, menstruation: to eliminate dark circles under eyes caused from these conditions is to re-evaluate your diet and ensure that you care getting all the vitamins and anti-oxidants needed. Good nutrition is a vital ingredient to enjoying great skin. Pregnancy and menstruation takes a lot out of a woman's body thus it is important to have a well rounded diet rich in vitamins and anti-oxidants. Dark circles under eyes may be an indicator that you are lacking some important vitamins.

Allergies: if you suffer from allergies, dark circle can be caused from the constant rubbing of the eyes, thus breaking the tiny blood vessels under the skin. Additionally, your allergy medicine may be the culprit too. Tighten up the eye area and constrict the blood vessells with a cold compress.

Fatigue: Sleep is an important ingredient to a healthy life, and lack of sleep will show in the eye area by sagging skin, dark circles and lifelessness. If you suffer from constant insomnia, my suggestion would be to see the doctor. If sleeplessness is just occasional then a cold compress will wake up the eyes and reduce the puffiness.

Aging: unfortunately the eye area is the first to age. The skin loses elasticity under the eyes and the fat cells diminish leaving a hollow, shadowy area. The one place that fat cells do diminish as we age, go figure! To alleviate dark circles a treatment high in anti-oxidants and collagen is recommended, a vitamin C serum for example. Additionally apply moisturizers with natural ingredients such as avocado oil, almond oil, sesame, vitamin K and Vitamin E. You may also use a bleaching agent such as lemon and cucumber juice.


Below are a few more recipes to reduce or eliminate under eye circles, maybe one of these recipes is the one that works for you.

Rosemary Tea Bag Treatment for sagging skin: Rosemary is a strong astringent for toning and binding. Apply a cold a cold compress of rosemary tea to increase circulation, which helps reduce swelling around the eyes. Make a tea by bringing a half-cup of fresh rosemary and a quart of water to a boil. Steep the tea for 20 minutes, strain and chill. Soak a washcloth in the tea, ring out extra liquid anal place over eyes for 15 to 20 minutes, once a day, as needed. Note: Rosemary is highly stimulating and should not be used by people with epilepsy, high blood pressure or pregnant.

Moisturizer to reduce appearance of bags: Almond oil is a great emollient for softening and conditioning the skin. It is rich in essential fatty acids and vitamins A, B1, B2, B6 and E. Massage a little around the eye area every evening. Sweet almond oil is light and penetrates easily. If you are allergic to nuts, do no use almond oil, try avocado oil. Additionally, a cold compress will reduce puffiness for a fast fix.

Almond/Lanolin Cream: Use this recipe to nourish the eye area and has bleaching properties.

1 tablespoon lanolin
1½ tablespoon almond oil
1 teaspoon soybean flour
2 teaspoons cold water

Melt lanolin over medium heat, add almond oil. Remove from heat, add soybean powder and cold water and stir for ten minutes. Let cool, apply around the eye area and leave on 15 minutes. Gently remove and rinse and follow with toner and moisturizer. Note: if you are allergic to nuts do no use this recipe.

As with any new skin care product, a patch test is always recommended.

For more skin care recipes, how to videos, and informative articles, visit Complete Skin Care Therapy

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