Everything you want to know about under eye bags and dark circles

Under eye bags, pigmented circles and puffiness are largely caused by a combination of two things – genetics, and life. Yep, a poor night’s sleep, a hayfever burst, or one too many tipples (ahem) are all factors. No need to hate on the appearance (lots of us can blame mum and dad for their presence anyway), we’re all darn beautiful. But should you wish to shift ‘em, or the puffiness is a little uncomfortable, it’s good to know exactly what’s going on, and what you can do about it. Enter: us.

By Rachel Spedding

• 1 The cause: dark circles

  If your under eye circles are bluish in tone, fatigue is most likely to blame. Extreme tiredness can lead to those tell-tale blue rings as, essentially, the water balance in your body is off-kilter. When you’re super tired, the body can increase its production of cortisol – that stuff breaks down collagen and engorges blood vessels, hence their more pronounced appearance.
• 2 The cause: under eye bags

  It’s the same sort of story for puffiness. When various life factors are at play – smoking, alcohol, and definitely tiredness – the structures supporting our eyelids weaken. The surrounding skin thins, the muscles relax, and the fat supporting our eye descends into the lower lid. Water retention is a key culprit too – that’s why you may find your bags at their worst post-long haul flight. Wrap an ice cube in gauze and gently press across the skin when you wake up, or post-flight, to get the fluid moving.
• 3 How they get worse

  Sadly for our taste buds, there’s more to blame than just our sleeping pattern. A too-salty diet could be at work too. Consuming large amounts of sodium can cause the body to retain water (upsetting the sodium balance in your skin cells). Your body will hold onto excess fluid to prevent dehydration – thus, bags. Along with that, stress, allergies, and hormonal changes (like switching up your contraception) can be culprits too. Not just the green Pringles then. ​
• 4 How to break the cycle

  Aside from lowering your salt intake (boo) and an early night, there are treatments which can help too. An LED facial targets light energy to the skin at the right wavelength to give cells ‘fuel’ to produce collagen and elastin. That plumps up the skin and gives a brighter aesthetic. Lisa Eldridge is to the thank for the next trick – facial lymph drainage. The technique encourages lymph to shift from the under eyes through gentle pressing and massage. It’s also ridiculously soothing – bonus.

  With Treatwell, you can book beauty online at all your favourite salons – simple, hassle-free, and you can do it on the go. Discover amazing salons in your area.