Do Your Eyes Age Faster or Have Dark Circles? Here’s Why.

Today is all about the eyes and how to care for them. Unfortunately, this is one of the first areas to show signs of aging, fatigue, or distress. Let’s talk about how to care for your eyes, what products to use, what to avoid, and what causes dark circles and puffiness. Let’s dig in!

Why Do Your Eyes Age First?

First, the eyes age faster than our faces because we are constantly tugging, pulling, and rubbing at this delicate skin. Think about how you apply makeup to your eyes, or wear contacts (popping them in and out daily). The skin around our eyes is delicate, lacks oil glands, and tends to become dry and show wrinkles first. As we age and lose collagen, fat pads decrease in volume, leading to sunken eyes and deeper wrinkles, also known as crows’ feet. We used to believe the eyes aged from gravity, but we are learning it’s related to the loss of volume in our fat pads. PubMed states, “The changing morphology of the midface may not be completely due to gravitational soft tissue descent, but also due to the relative deflation of certain fat pads.”

How to Take Care of Eye Skin?

Because the skin around your eyes is so fragile, gentle care is essential. Be gentle when removing makeup; tugging, rubbing, or pulling on the eye area will increase wrinkles. Use a daily eye cream to treat the undereye area. We will talk about this in more detail later. Gua sha is a great treatment you can do daily to firm and depuff the eye area.

Dark Circles

Dark circles are caused by lack of sleep or heredity. The skin around our eyes is the thinnest on the body. This area is also very vascular, meaning it contains tiny blood vessels. As we age, we lose collagen and volume in our fat pads, leading to a hollowed appearance. The eye area appears dark essentially, it is the visible blood vessels paired with the shadow of the hollow area that appears darker. Darker skin tones tend to be prone to dark circles. PubMed states, “A variety of pathologic and age-related processes result in increased permeability of the local vasculature resulting in these pigmentary changes.”

What Vitamin Am I Lacking if I Have Dark Circles?

Dark circles aren’t always age-related; they can indicate something isn’t right in your body. We talk about this in our Face Mapping article, “This area is delicate and vascular, making it prone to showing imbalances.” The eye area is related to the kidneys and can be a sign of dehydration or a lack of absorption of nutrients from your food. The answer isn’t necessarily to drink more water, but pay attention to your body. Iron deficiency and a lack of Vitamins B12 and K can show up as dark circles.

Puffiness

The eyes are part of your sinus cavity, which is why you have puffy eyes when you’re sick, suffering from allergies, or a sinus infection. The eyes tend to be puffy in the morning because you’ve been lying down for several hours. The best way to depuff your eyes is with a gua sha stone. Be gentle when going around the eyes in a movement that moves fluid away from the nose. Make sure to drink plenty of water and limit your intake of sugar, pre-packaged, or processed foods. 

How Can You Restore the Skin Around the Eyes?

Our recommendation is to start with the foods you’re eating. Sugar breaks down protein in the body and speeds up aging. Processed foods, like gluten, dairy, and sugar, cause inflammation in your gut. This prevents your body from absorbing essential nutrients, showing up in the skin, especially around the eyes. Eye cream can only go so far. Eye problems start from inside your body. To restore the skin around your eyes, limit your sugar and carbohydrate intake, and increase protein intake, especially fatty red meat. Avoid seed oils and opt for olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, or beef tallow. Keep your body hydrated, and this doesn’t just mean drinking more water. Instead, increase your intake of electrolytes to help your body retain hydration when you drink water.

How to Rebuild Collagen Around the Eyes

Collagen production declines naturally with age, but proper nutrition can slow the process. Sugar and carbohydrates cause glycation, a process that breaks down proteins and speeds up aging. Increase your amount of fatty red meat, a complete protein that contains all your essential and non-essential amino acids. This helps maintain collagen (more than collagen powders) and keeps your skin youthful. It takes time, but you can strengthen your collagen naturally by increasing your protein intake. 

What Step in the Skincare Routine Do You Apply Eye Cream?

Eye creams are most effective when applied between serums and moisturizer. The goal of a moisturizer is to seal in the actives and prevent water loss. You can use an eye cream in the morning and at night. Consistent application helps maintain hydration and firmness over time.

How to Apply Eye Cream for Maximum Effectiveness

This is one we see many people get wrong. Eye cream must be applied to the brow bone only. The reason this is the best application method is that blinking our eyes moves the product. Have you ever applied your eye cream only for it to start burning after a while? It’s not a bad product, but you applied it too close to your eyes. 

Here’s how I educate clients about proper application:

• Apply a pea-sized amount of eye cream to your ring fingers (your weakest finger)
• Tap them together to get an even amount on both fingers
• Start at the outer corner of your eye and gently tap the product on your brow bone
• Do this below and above your eye until all the product is absorbed

How To Choose the Right Skincare for Your Eyes?

When it comes to eye cream, less is more. Acids, exfoliants, and retinols should be kept to a minimum. I don’t recommend these twice daily; it’s too strong for your delicate eye area and will dry it out. Instead, opt in for eye creams with caffeine, niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, or nourishing vitamins like C, E, or K. We love our Vitamin K eye cream that helps fight dark spots, wrinkles, and puffiness.

What is the Best Eye Care Routine?

The best eye care routine is to apply your eye cream twice a day. We like to keep it simple. If you do feel puffy, using a gua sha stone helps depuff the eye area by moving excess fluid from the eye area. Another great way to soothe the eyes is to apply a gel mask. Keep yours in the fridge or freezer and apply it after you apply your products to calm the skin, depuff, and help your products soak in.

Ready to Get Started?

If you like what you read and are looking for a great eye cream, we have one I recommend checking out. Click here to shop. Got questions? Drop them in the comments.