DEALING WITH DARK CIRCLES

A lady's face is always the first part of the body to be seen and often used to judge her beauty. When this important part, especially the eye area, has dark circles; it gives the impression that the lady is older than her age or fatigued.

Dark circles are different from one's skin tone and appear most times with puffiness under the eyes. Experienced by men and women, this not pleasant circle could appear on the eyes areas, as a result of heredity, sun exposure, lack of sleep or rest, age, vitamins deficiency or even poor diet.

• Fatigue, lack of sleep: A lack of sleep or excessive tiredness can cause paleness of the skin, which again allows the blood underneath the skin to become more visible and appear more blue or darker.
• Nutrition: The lack of nutrients in the diet, or the lack of a balance diet, can contribute to the discoloration of the area under the eyes.
• Stress: A too fast-paced lifestyle, especially if you spend long hours on the computer can contribute to black bags under your eyes – perhaps mostly because you don’t get enough sleep.
• Heredity: Like varicose veins, dark circles under the eyes are usually an inherited trait. If you have dark circles, there is a good chance that others in your family also have them. The skin under the eye is very thin. When blood passes through the large veins close to the surface of the skin it can produce a bluish tint. The more transparent your skin, also an inherited trait, the darker the circles appear.
• Exposure to the Sun: Even in darker skinned people, exposure to sunlight, especially during the summer months, can cause a higher-than-normal level of skin pigmentation (melanin) under the eyes. People get suntans because exposure to the sun increases the natural pigmentation of the skin and draws that pigmentation to the surface. The same principle applies to the skin under the eyes.
• Allergies, Asthma and Eczema: Any condition that you have that causes your eyes to itch can contribute to darker circles under the eyes because rubbing or scratching the skin can darken the skin. Hay fever sufferers particularly will notice under-eye “smudges” during the height of the allergy season. Some food allergies can also cause the area under the eyes to appear darker.
• Medications: Any medications that you are taking that causes blood vessels to dilate, can cause circles under the eyes to darken. Because the skin under the eyes is very delicate, any increase blood flow shows through the skin.
• Pregnancy and Menstruation: The skin can also become more pale during pregnancy and menstruation, which again allows the underlying veins under the eyes to become more visible. 
• Age: If you have a propensity to have dark circles under you eyes, as you grow older, they are likely to become more noticeable and permanent. Excess folds of skin under the eyes will also make dark circles more pronounced.

 However, with proper care, these circles can be reduce or lightened up.

Tips
* Get adequate sleep because inadequacy of it can cause pale and puffy skin beneath the eyes
* Abstain from smoking
* Eat as much fruits and vegetables as you can to improve the condition
* Drink plenty of water
* Reduce alcohol intake, if possible stop it entirely
* Take vitamin supplements
* Apply eye cream that contains vitamin K and retinol to reduce puffiness and discolouration around the eye area
* Treat allergies, which can lead to dark circles
* Eat healthy, eat balanced diet
Other helpful tips: 

• Cold compress: Close your eyes and cover them with a cold washcloth for about five minutes. Repeat several times throughout the day. That will help constrict your blood vessels, minimizing darkness, and it may help minimize tissue swelling and eliminate some of the darkness.
• Moisturizer: To minimize the appearance of bags, plump up skin with moisturizer, one that contains vitamin C, an antioxidant that protects skin cells from damage and supports collagen production; licorice (or fennel) extract, an anti-inflammatory; and stabilized oxygen, a form of hydrogen peroxide that promotes circulation.
• Spread on the sunscreen. Use a sunscreen especially made for the face with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15, but preferably 20, “all day every day,” to keep the sun’s rays from darkening the skin under your eyes, 
• Potato/Cucumber combination are helpful.
  • Close your eyes and cover eyelids with slices of raw potato or cucumber for 15-20 minutes. Wash with warm water and apply a cream.
  • Grate a cucumber, squeeze to take out its juice and refrigerate. Make a mixture of lemon juice, and cucumber juice and apply around the eye for 10-15 minutes.
  • Dip some cotton in a 1:1 mixture of potato and cucumber juices. Put the cotton on your eyelids and keep for 20 minutes. Wash your eyes with cold water.

Enjoy a restful weekend!!!