Dreaded Dark Circles – How You Get Them, And How To Ditch Them

If you wake up in the morning after an ‘almost’ decent night of shut eye only to find the dreaded dark circles on parade under your eyes, you aren’t alone.

It turns out that, despite what you may have heard, it’s not always a terrible night sleep that results in dark circles.

Everyone suffers from dark circles at some point in their lives, and to be honest, there are few things worse than looking like last night’s hangover meeting the harsh light of day. Especially when all you did is deal with the joys of parenting at 2 o’clock in the morning. So we thought we’d let you in on a few secrets. If you want to avoid getting dark circles or you want to deal with the ones you already have, read on.

First Off, What Are They Really?

Before we get into what causes dark circles and how to get rid of them, it might be time for you to really understand what those dark circles are. Although stress, overworking and lack of sleep are often said to be behind them, dark circles are actually the result of the thin skin below your eyes showing the blog vessels and the blood. The skin around the eyes is very thin, about 0.5mm thick compared to 2mm everywhere else, which means the blood that is there is much easier to see.

Dark circles can appear worse because of two things. The first is blood leakage from the blood vessels in the skin close to the eye. This isn’t a major medical issue, but damaged vessels can leak blood which can make those dark circles look much worse. The second thing that makes them worse is puffiness. This is usually caused by fluid buildup as a result of illness, allergies or eating too much salt. When your body retains more fluid, it increases pressure on the skin, force the blood vessels up, and worsen dark circles.

Why Do You Get Dark Circles?

Let’s get down to business now: What is it that causes dark circles?

Tiredness

If you think that tiredness is the cause, you might be a little right. Dark circles can sometimes be caused by fatigue because when the body is tired it produces more of a chemical called cortisol to keep you awake. Among many of the other amazing things it goes, cortisol also increases the volume of the blood in your body, making blood vessels swell and therefore making dark circles worse.

Genetics

Unfortunately genetics can make dark circles worse for some people. If you have very fair skin, or your genetics involve very thin skin under the eyes, then blood pooling from slower circulation during sleep is more likely to cause dark circles.

Allergies

If you’re someone who suffer from allergies than dark circles can appear much worse on you. The reason behind is that when histamines are released into the body they cause blood vessels to swell and the circles to appear more prominent.

Age

Age can be another decided on how badly you suffer from dark circles. This is to do with the thickness of the skin under your ryes. As you age, the skin looses collagen and becomes thinner, making those veins more obvious as they’re closer to the surface.

How Do You Get Rid of Dark Circles?

There are a few ways to get rid of dark circles, but they’ll work better for you if you can figure out what the reason is behind your dark circles. So, take some time to think about your own life and lifestyle. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, if you’re eating a high salt diet, if you suffer from allergies or if you have thin skin due to genetics or age, you’re treatment will differ.

From Allergies: If you’re getting dark circles from allergies, consider going on a daily antihistamine to relieve the allergy symptoms. You’ll find that once the symptoms of the allergies are gone, and you aren’t dealing with puffy eyes from allergy-related fluid retention, your dark circles won’t look so bad.

From Thin Skin: If thin skin is the problem then a collagen-building cream may yield improvements to your dark circles. Products that contain retinol are worth looking out for, as is that which contains Vitamin C. Remember, if you’re dealing with thin skin from age or genetics too much sun exposure can make it worse, so make sure you wear sunscreen every day!

From Blood Leaking: If your dark circles are the result of vascular issues, there are a few things you can do. First, double up your pillows to stop blood pooling under the eyes. Second, when you wake up in the morning use a cold compress on the area for just give minutes to constrict those vessels and make them less apparent. Alternatively, you can use an eye cream that features caffeine to constrict them, or one that includes Arnica that is thought to have anti-inflammatory properties. A diet change to include more foods rich in Flavonol, like dark chocolate, and omega-3 fatty acids, like salmon and walnuts, might also be beneficial to improve blood flow.

From Unknown: If you can’t figure out what is causing your dark circles and you just want to hide them, you can always choose to do that. Cleverly applied makeup can more than improve dark circles, sometimes even vanishing them all together. Just make sure that you have a concealer that is specifically for the under-eye area, and that you apply it in an inverted triangle that blends into your facial concealer, not just a small semi-circle under the eye.

How do you banish dark circles?