Dark undereye circles. If you suffer with these you know that no matter what you do they never really seem to improve. The advice is always the same; Sleep more! Drink more water! Eat healthier! The little shadowy rings around our eyes are forever indicating to others that you must be a party animal, up all night or just ill.
So what exactly are they?
Dark circles occur when the blood vessels are visible through the delicate skin underneath the eye area. This gives the appearance of a blue-purple, shadowy cast. Another kind of dark circle is one caused by hyper-pigmentation which leaves the skin under (and sometimes over) the eye a darker shade.
What causes dark circles?
Dark circles are typically hereditary, however studies have shown that other causes include: allergies, atopic or contact dermatitis, hormonal changes, sleep deprivation, nutritional deficiency and excessive UV exposure. The important thing to note about dark circles is that as the skin ages the area around the eye naturally becomes thinner, loss of collagen can make the eye looks more hollow. Hence why clients always come in saying their dark circles were never as bad as when they were younger!
How can we fix dark circles?
Unfortunately, dark circles are not easily taken away. Don’t rule out topical products though as the right formulas can help to brighten the area if nothing else. I highly recommend the products below
Treatments for Dark Circles
reatment-wise there are not many options available to successfully treat dark circles. If the discolouration is due to hyper-pigmentation, Intense Pulsed Light may be worth a shot, pun intended. However if it is more hereditary or intrinsically caused IPL will not be a worthwhile choice. The wavelengths used in IPL treatments target pigmentation directly and will bring it to the surface if the skin where it will then ‘shed’ off.
Another treatment worth considering is an Active Vitamin Facial from Environ. This involves the deep penetration of vitamin A as well as vitamin C (exceptionally good for brightening the skin) using an electrical current and sound waves to create little vibrations within the skin so the ingredients can be delivered.