By Emily Trampetti, Licensed Esthetician
The eye area should be part of everyone’s skincare routine and active aging strategy. This is because the eyes tend to hold the first signs of skin damage and aging symptoms. And although some common complaints about the eye skin are mostly genetic, like dark circles caused by deeper eye sockets or bone structure, there are still many ways we can influence the appearance of common eye area complaints. Here are my favorites!
Crow’s feet ~ typically caused by collagen loss through UV and free radical damage and expression lines over time. Key to reducing the appearance of crow’s feet is to increase collagen synthesis and dermal hydration to the area. Using targeted muscular-relaxing peptides can also help prevent more damage without the use of injectables.
Treatments: Microneedling, microdermabrasion, light therapy
Ingredients: Retinoids, peptides (eg. Acetyl Hexapeptide-3, Palmitoyl Tripeptide), stabilized vitamin C
Dark circles ~ Typically caused by low oxygen levels in the blood, causing blood to appear darker. This can be caused by stress, limited sleep, fatigue, and malnourishment. It can also be highly genetic through bone structure and eye socket contouring – resting shadows that appear as dark circles. Typically can be treated by bringing more nourished blood flow to the eye area and supporting blood vessel health under the skin. Many products also include reflective agents to help bring more light to the under eye area.
Treatments: Massage, thermal masks/gommage, electro therapies
Ingredients: Retinoids, Vitamin K, stabilized vitamin C, short chain hyaluronic acid, sea fennel extract
Puffiness ~ Typically caused by excess fluid retention in the eye area, or stagnant circulation. Puffy eyes can be most seen when one is tired, fighting a virus, or dehydrated. Movement and increasing circulation is a key treatment, along with lots of good internal and topical hydration. Puffiness can also be caused by inflammation, in which case a cool mask or compress would be helpful.
Treatments: Cooling massage, lymphatic drainage
Ingredients: skincare formulated caffeine, short chain hyaluronic acid, mushroom extract, antioxidants like vitamin E and C
Bags ~ Mostly genetic, but can be exacerbated by premature skin damage caused by sun exposure, pollution, and poor lifestyle habits. Bags are hard to treat since they are either a predisposed condition or caused by irreversible damage. The best thing to do if you have severe bags is to talk to your cosmetic dermatologist about injections and surgeries to improve the appearance. Topical skin care will help, but will not remove the bags.
Treatments: Injectables, microneedling, radiofrequency, massage
Ingredients: Retinoids, tightening and lifting peptides (Trifluoroacetyl Tripeptide-2, Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-3, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-3/7), short chain hyaluronic acid, stabilized vitamin C
