THE TRUTH ABOUT EYE CREAMS

I don’t use an eye cream. I think eye creams are crap and a waste of money. But a lot of people who are getting older purchase eye creams to prevent aging; they use it but don’t see any result. The second you wash your face all the benefits on an eye cream are washed away all of the benefits go away.

The skin under our eyes is a little different than the skin of the rest our face. The skin underneath the eyes is a little very thin, which means that we need products that penetrate into the skin to work on specific skin concerns like wrinkles, fine lines etc. Most companies use exactly what they are using in their moisturizers with some extra fragrance or an active. Sometimes it can be too hydrating and if the molecules are not small enough to penetrate deep into the skin and plump up the individual layers.

These products usually contain fragrance, they can cause allergens over time which is bad, sometimes fragrance act as emollients or preservatives which are good for the face and totally depends how sensitive your skin is. The skin under the eyes is thin, it absorbs things and it the product contains fragrance or an essential oil it can be extremely irritating. Like when you are cutting an onion your eyes water this is the same with some eye creams too.

For an eye cream to work we need potent ingredients like retinalaldehyde, glycolic acid, lactic acid or malic acid but the problem arises is that the more potent the ingredients are the more damage they can cause.

For a treatment you need to know what the problem is. Do you have puffiness or brown and purple discolouration or you want to treat wrinkles. Companies want to sell you an eye cream that is going to treat all the 3 different problems but these are very different problems and need different treatments.

A very popular eye cream ingredient is dimethicone. This a present in many make up primer that smoothen the skin, so its why your acne scars look filled in,wrinkles look diminished. When used in an eye cream it smoothens wrinkles temporarily while the cream is on, but the second you wash it all off all those benefits go away.

Also a popular ingredient is caffeine. When it comes to puffy eyes, there is no research indicating caffeine can have any benefit, in fact, there is research proving that caffeine can make you look younger. Truly it’s a mix of pros and cons for skin. It should be avoided in eye creams. Using the back cold spoon underneath the eyes will de-puff your eyes instantly and instantly wake you up.

There are 2 types of dark circles-

1. Biological- there are blood vessels underneath the skin then the layers of skin. This is when it comes down to genetics. You can have a lot thicker skin so u don’t actually see these blood vessels but like me you can have really thin skin, your skin is a lot more translucent so these blood vessels are very obvious.

2. Pigmentation- this is when your skin is naturally darker and its got nothing to do with the underlying blood vessels. It could be both or it could be one or the other. It comes down to genetics.

Lest be realistic, you cannot get rid of them completely you can only reduce them. Dehydration, smoking, lack of sleep can cause more or worsen your dark circles.

Do not use thick creams under your eyes this can cause little white bumps that can only be removed with surgery. Use light creams and serums under the eyes to avoid this problem.

Do not rub your eyes this can be extremely damaging in the long run and will cause wrinkles.

Invest in jade rolers and gua sha tools to get rid of puffiness on the face. These tools are a one time investment and provide anti-aging benefits too.