You will find a wide assortment of products available in the market, claiming to reduce the puffiness and wrinkles around your eyes. However, most of these products yield short-lived results and do not provide a permanent solution to eye bags.
The under-eye bags are typically a cosmetic concern for the majority of the population, but it can also be a clinical sign of some other underlying health issues like thyroid diseases, allergies, and eczema. A few of the most common factors behind the development of eye bags include aging, excessive sun exposure, pigmentation issues, and chronic fatigue. However, it is very important to note that if your eye bags have appeared due to an underlying medical condition, you need to seek prompt medical assistance to treat that condition before tackling the eye bag issue.
This article will highlight some of the most effective lifestyle changes and remedies that can help you get rid of the under-eye bags.
How To Get Rid Of Under-Eye Bags Without Surgery?
1. Don’t Just Drink Tea. Apply It!
While most of us drink tea, what we don’t know is that the tea bags can offer some serious benefits for our skin. Caffeine in the tea bags consists of antioxidants that help enhance blood flow to your skin. It protects from the sun’s UV rays, delays the process of aging, and helps fade away dark circles. Green tea has been particularly shown to have beneficial anti-inflammatory effects in research studies.
After making tea, refrigerate the tea bag for about 20 minutes, then place it over your eye bags for 15 to 30 minutes.
2. Try Out A Cold Compress
You probably don’t need expensive cosmetic products when you can easily use materials available at home. Cold compress is a simple and quick hack that can constrict your blood vessels and provide instant relief to the swollen area when applied over the eye bags. It helps diminish the under-eye bags and reduces dark circles.
You can use a chilled spoon, a cool cucumber, a bag of frozen veggies, or even a wet washcloth!
3. Stay Hydrated
Dehydration can be a big reason behind your under-eye bags as 60% of your body weight is made up of water. Increasing your daily water intake can help reduce eye bags. According to experts, men need about 13 cups of fluids per day, and women need around 9 cups. You can always add fruit juices and vegetable smoothies to help fulfill your fluid intake while offering essential vitamins and minerals.
4. Take An Antihistamine
If you are suffering from an allergic reaction, it may aggravate the puffiness and dark circles under your eyes. Your eyes may appear red, watery, or even feel itchy. Consult your physician to get a suitable prescription for your case. You would probably be prescribed antihistamine medication such as Benadryl, Zyrtec, or Claritin. It is imperative to be cautious about the substances that aggravate your allergies. Try to avoid them as best as you can. Some of the most common allergens include numerous cosmetics products, certain soaps, makeup products, and hair dyes.
5. Use Lightening Products
Dark circles appear due to the overproduction of melanin in your skin. The majority of creams and gels that are used as skin lightening agents typically consist of an ingredient called hydroquinone, which hinders the production of melanin. As a result, dark circles under your eyes fade away. Most of the over-the-counter skin lightening creams available in the market today contain a 2 percent hydroquinone formulation. You will need a prescription from a dermatologist if you want a higher concentration of hydroquinone. For consistent results, you will need to regularly use such products and avoid exposure to sunlight, which will undermine its results. Also, do a patch test when you start using this cream and discontinue its use if there is a reaction.
6. Use Retinol Cream Regularly
Retinol is best known for its benefits for acne, aging, psoriasis, as well as treating some types of cancers. It is a form of vitamin A and is available as a gel, liquid, or cream. When applied over the eyelids, it helps to replenish collagen deficiency. However, you may need a doctor’s prescription if you want a stronger concentration of retinol.
Apply retinol each day for half an hour on a clean, washed face. Remember not to take retinol or excess vitamin A during pregnancy, as this can cause numerous adverse side effects.
7. Cut Back On Salty Foods
Salt increases water retention in your body and can potentially cause overall puffiness in your boy as well as under your eyes. High salt intake can even lead to some other serious health complications like heart disease and stroke.
According to the American Heart Association, you should not consume more than 2,300 milligrams (mg) of salt each day, but the average for a person, ideally, is 1500 mg of salt per day. Avoid overeating snacks and packaged foods to cut back on salt. Instead, add fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet.
8. Use Sunscreen Regularly
Wearing sunblock can help against skin discoloration, delay the process of aging as well as combat certain types of skin cancers. Additionally, sunscreens can also help reduce your eye bags and dark circles. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends that everyone should wear sunscreen, preferably a broad-spectrum one.
9. Consider Micro-Needling Therapy
Also called collagen induction therapy, micro-needling is said to decrease wrinkles, scarring, and pigmentation issues, including dark circles and under-eye bags. During this cosmetic procedure, fine needles puncture your skin, creating an injury in the skin that initiates a healing response, which in-turn repairs your skin. However, this procedure doesn’t produce immediate results and needs repeated sessions, one session per month for six months straight. Dermatologists do not recommend at-home micro-needling kits as they can cause serious health complications, such as bleeding, bruising, and infection.
10. Adopt A Regular Skincare Routine
Makeup can irritate your skin, can cause an allergic reaction that may lead to puffiness under your eyes. Taking care of your skin by washing your face, removing makeup before bed can help slow down the process of aging and keep infections at bay while simultaneously keeping your skin rejuvenated. But, this has to be done on a regular basis to observe noticeable results. Failure in doing so will expose your skin to free radicals that may cause premature aging.
11. Stay Elevated While You Sleep
Use two pillows to elevate your head when you go to sleep. This will prevent the pooling of fluids in the lower eyelids, helping to prevent puffy eye bags as you sleep. A special wedge-shaped pillow can also be used in order to avoid this eye bag problem.
12. Get A Good Night’s Sleep, Every Night!
If you are not getting enough sleep, it is the first thing that shows its signs on your face. Consistent lack of sleep can cause dark circles and may further aggravate your under-eye bags. You should get at least six to eight hours of sleep every night. Follow a scheduled sleep pattern, avoid caffeine and alcohol at night, stay away from screens before bedtime, and dim the lights to create a perfect ambiance for ideal sleep.
13. Add collagen-rich foods to your diet
With age, collagen turnover in your body reduces, your muscles wear-out and weaken over time. This may result in their inability to provide support. Consequently, the skin and fat tissue around your eyes may start to sag. Taking foods rich in vitamin C will help your body absorb more hyaluronic acid and assist in the optimal collagen replacement process in your skin. Vitamin C can be found in oranges, broccoli, strawberries, red peppers, kale, etc.
14. Include More Iron-Rich Foods In Your Diet
If your body lacks adequate iron reserves, it can lead to iron-deficiency anemia, which means that there are fewer red blood cells in your blood and inadequate oxygen supply to the cells. This can give rise to dark circles under your eyes, cause fatigue, and even aggravate under-eye bags.
You should consult your doctor for a recommended iron intake. Some of the common foods rich in iron include red meat, poultry, seafood, beans, leafy green veggies, raisins, apricots, dried fruits, etc.
15. Cut Back On Smoking And Alcohol Consumption
You should stop drinking and smoking altogether. Alcohol causes dehydration in your body and reduces vitamin C levels in your body; both of these after-effects negatively contribute to the development of eye bags. Smoking can also lead to wrinkles, discoloration, and dark circles over time.
You may experience nicotine withdrawal symptoms for a few weeks, but these will eventually fade away in 10 to 14 days. You can always seek professional help when giving up smoking, as it makes the whole process a lot easier for you.
1. Non-Surgical Eye Bag Removal Treatments
If you want long-lasting results, you can opt for non-surgical eye bag removal treatment options, which include:
A. Dermal Fillers
Dermal fillers are a quick and simple approach to fill out any grooves and hollows under your eyes, smoothing sagginess and shadowy dark circles. Hyaluronic Acid injections are used as dermal fillers, which help hydrate and stretch your skin to decrease wrinkles. The dermal filler treatment results last for about 9 months up to a year, after which a second session is needed.
B. HIFU
The high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) is used to rejuvenate deeper skin tissues. The HIFU device targets wrinkles and deep folds and grooves around the eyes, reduces sagging, and makes the skin firmer and smoother. Thus, it helps to decrease the under-eye bags and dark circles.
C. Thermage Radiofrequency
Monopolar radiofrequency devices use electrical energy and convert it into heat energy, which then penetrates the skin targets the excess fatty tissues. The thermage radio waves bring about contractions of the collagen, thereby stimulating elastin production, which tightens saggy skin. As a result, you will get youthful and smoother looking eyes.
D. CO2 Laser Surfacing
The laser surfacing device is used to eliminate saggy skin with the help of heat vaporization. What heat energy does is to vaporize the accumulated fluid in the eye bags and brings about skin tightening. You might see noticeable outcomes even after the first session. Your surgeon may combine other techniques, monopolar RF or HIFU, for better results.
E. Scarless Eye Bag Removal
During the Scarless Eye Bag Removal technique, eye bags are removed by eliminating the fat tissues permanently from the area under your eyes. A 600 micrometer or 0.6-millimeter laser needle is used to remove the fat and water. The entry point is as small as almost invisible. The procedure takes about 30 minutes to complete and has a recovery period of shorter duration as compared to surgical procedures for eye bag removal.
If You Can’t Prevent Eye Bags, Treat And Remove Them
Whichever procedure you decide on, make sure to choose a board-certified plastic surgeon to reap the best possible results, and minimize the risk of complications. Dream Plastic Surgery offers trained staff and experienced surgeons who have successfully performed thousands of procedures with tremendous outcomes and maximum client satisfaction.
About Dream Aesthetics and Plastic Surgery
Bespoke surgical for cosmetic or medical reasons is what Dream covers to bring out the beauty in every individual. Going beyond the aesthetics and working on physical anomalies are what we value the most in leading our patients to cherish self-improvement and confident lifestyles.
Derived from Associate Professor Vincent Yeow’s long-standing experience performing plastic surgery in Singapore, our treatment plans deliver physical remodelling in our patients’ favour. One of the notable remodellings is droopy eyelid correction. The ptosis surgery used for treatment eventually fixes drooping eyelids, improves vision and enhances appearance.
Most importantly, as a trustworthy plastic surgery and aesthetic clinic, we treasure positive and natural outcomes for each individual. We will ensure to deliver the beauty refinement of your dream without compromising your safety and privacy.
