Nothing is more noticeable than dark circles. They instantly mar your beauty and alter your expression. Dark circles age the face, create a tired, haggard appearance and cast a deceptively disinterested expression. Don't tolerate dark circles one minute more. Neutralize them and reclaim the wide-eyed dazzling look you deserve.

THE BLAME GAME

Blame it on heredity. Blame it on the aging process. Blame allergies, sun damage, or poor lighting. A compilation of the following factors may conspire to form dark circles.

• Dark Shadows

  No, it's not about the classic 60's vampire show. Contrary to popular belief, most dark circles have nothing to do with actual skin color changes. Rather, dark shadows form when changes in facial anatomy occur. A normal part of the aging process, the infraorbital fat pad (the fatty layer located just above the cheek bone and below the eye) thins producing a sunken appearance. Light reflects off these hollows creating the illusion of shadowy circles. So while boomers struggle with fat accumulating around hips, tummy and jaw line, the opposite problem is happening beneath the eyes.

This is one time that facial fat is a highly sought after commodity!

• Bag Lady

  Bags emerge as a result of gravity, loss of dermal integrity, hormonal skin changes, allergies, capillary fragility and inflammation from chronic sun damage. Under eye puffiness augments the tired appearance and exaggerate dark circles.

  Pooling of excess tissue fluids contributes to bag formation. This edema (fluid buildup) forms as a result of the inflammatory process, leaky capillaries and poor lymphatic drainage. DS Laboratories Viterol.A (viatrozene gel) 29% Lotion for Signs of Aging leaves the skin firmer and more elastic as well as reduces bags and shadows under the eyes

• Roses Are Red, Veins Though Are Blue

  The proliferation of veins in the area is an important factor in the development of dark circles. Factors may include heredity, the natural aging process and cumulative sun damage. While sheer numbers of veins is on the rise, the thinning of the fat pad brings them closer to the surface increasing their visibility.

  Larger veins are visible, others including microscopic capillaries are not. Both contribute to the characteristic skin tone changes associated with dark circles.

• True Hue

  Occasionally chronic rubbing brought on by allergy sufferers reacting to itchy, watery eyes can lead to true skin color changes. Further rubbing leads to a vicious cycle of ever increasing darkening skin. This is the rare instance when a bleaching agent (in addition to control of the underlying condition) is necessary to solve the problem.

  Treatment is two-fold. Stop the itching and watery eyes so that the impetus to rub is eliminated. Control allergies/hayfever with oral antihistamines such as Zyrtec or Claritin. Ask your physician if Rx antihistamines will help in stubborn situations. Brief intermittent use of low potency prescription topical steroids, Protopic or Elidel (each should be kept out of the eyes) can help provide relief.

  Bleaching this delicate area is a bit tricky but not impossible. B. Kamins Therapeutic Eye Cream or Murad Lighten and Brighten Eye Treatment may be applied and during the daytime followed by a broad spectrum sunscreen such as DERMAdoctor Body Guard Exquisitely Light SPF 30 For Face & Body. Skin brightening is accomplished and the sunscreen provides potent antioxidants to reduce free radical damage, a source of photodamage-induced dark circles.

Defeating The Darkness

Eliminating dark circles begins with camouflage. Therapy options to improve dark circles don't work overnight. Hiding them provides immediate gratification and restores radiance to the eye area. Yellow counter acts blue so this is the color of concealer to look for. A simple effective cover-up is T.LeClerc Corrector Palette (Banane). It may be applied alone or beneath concealer/foundation depending upon one's skin tone.

Reducing fluid build-up and bagginess beneath the eyes makes the face look fresher, more rested and youthful. Antioxidant treatments help shrink bags. Those that help stimulate dermal fibroblast activity go further by helping firm and tone the region. Antioxidants like Vitamin C (look to Cellex-C Eye Contour Cream, Cellex-C Advanced-C Eye Toning Gel or Murad Essential-C Eye Cream SPF 15), AHK Copper Peptides (think Neova Advanced Refining Lift Eye Gelee) or peptides found in DERMAdoctor Wrinkle Revenge Rescue & Protect Eye Balm or Borba HD-Illuminating Eye Specialist are all excellent choices for helping to stimulate dermal fibroblasts.

Treatment of venous concerns has traditionally been the domain of topical Vitamin K products. A study in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology demonstrated that use of a topical vitamin A derivative (such as a retinol or rx version) ub a combined routine with vitamin K was even more beneficial. Consider incorporating Vitamin K containing products such as Peter Thomas Roth Power K Eye Rescue, K-Derm Gel or MD Skincare Lift & Lighten Eye Cream Advanced Technology in a routine with Vitamin A containing treatments such as Afirm 2X. The retinol is always used solo every other night, filling in off once or twice a day with the Vitamin K treatment. MD Formulations Vit-A-Plus Anti-Aging Eye Complex is also an off night option. It contains glycolic acid and Vitamin A, helping refine lines, too.

I've always been struck by the fact that the approach to handling dark circles seems so scattered. Why conceal without treating or why treat for 6 months without concealing? In response to this dilemma and wanting to simplify the process, DERMAdoctor Eye Spy Daily Eye Treatment and Shadow Neutralizer was created. A universal yellow concealer helps hide the dark circles while containing everything you could want to eliminate them.

DERMAdoctor Eye Spy Daily Eye Treatment and Shadow Neutralizer contains caffeine to shrink the bags and reduce inflammation; dipeptide-2 to improve improve lymphatic circulation; white tea a potent antioxidant; palmitoyl tetrapeptide diminishes visible puffiness, improves skin firmness and elasticity; retinol to help reduce fine lines and puffiness. And finally, in place of Vitamin K which can be very irritating to this delicate area, hesperidin methyl chalcone for decreasing capillary permeability and preventing fluid buildup within the skin.

The Quick Kitchen Fixes

If unprepared for under eye bagginess and the dark circles that inevitably follow, try a quick fix straight out of the kitchen. Moist cool tea bags (the caffeinated ones) rapidly reduce swelling. The tannins in the tea help reduce the swelling by reducing inflammation. And caffeine draws water from the skin helping deflate puffiness.

Another solution is in the vegetable crispercool cucumbers. Enzymes contained in cucumber slices reduce tissue inflammation, shrinking bags and erasing unbecoming shadows. Keep these on hand for those little life emergencies like when your kids have kept you up all night or you need to look your best for that special event. They're temporary, but do work!

Filler Her Up

Sometimes treatments just aren't enough. Deep hollows may ultimately sometimes need to be filled in order to eliminate the problem. Fat transplantation has become a popular method of dealing with recalcitrant dark circles, mainly when puffiness is not an issue. Fat is removed from the hip, thigh or buttock through a syringe or liposuction cannula from locally anesthetized skin, rinsed and then injected under the skin into the hollow.

Added fat instantly plumps up skin and neutralizes shadows. It also helps reduce visibility of veins that peek out from beneath the surface. Fat transplantation is typically performed by plastic surgeons, and sometimes by dermatologists. It isn't a permanent solution and you may need to undergo more than one treatment in order to see results but it may be worthwhile.

If plastic surgery is not your thing, look to quick-fixes like MD Formulations The TEMPS Brighten & Tighten Eye Serum or DERMAdoctor Faux Fillment Instant Topical Line Filler to help temporarily plump the skin underneath the eye area.

In rare instances, it is the presence of the veins themselves that are the real culprit. For these large noticeable blood vessels, consult a plastic surgeon specializing in facial plastic surgery or an ophthalmologist specializing in plastic surgery procedures of the eye. In these cases fat transplantation and vein stripping may need to be performed. This is not something to leave to just anyone. See an expert.

Eradicating dark circles is not easy, but through perseverance and a little make-up magic you should be able to improve their appearance as well as the overall general health of your skin's appearance.

Thank you for taking the time for reading my newsletter. I hope you have found it informative.

Audrey Kunin, M.D.

(Any topic discussed in this article is not intended as medical advice. If you have a medical concern, please check with your doctor.)

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