Sick of looking like you need a good night’s sleep? Often the first place to show ageing is our eyes, and dark circles can leave us looking more fatigued and run down than we actually are.
In some cases, no matter how much sleep you get you’ll find that you’re still left with dark circles that just won’t go away. That’s because fatigue isn’t the only reason behind them.
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Possible causes of dark circles:
- Dark shadows cast by puffy eyelids.
- Genetics: you may have inherited fair skin or thin skin under the eyes, which means fragile capillaries can leak and appear darker. If you gently stretch the skin under your eye and the colour becomes darker it is likely genetics are to blame.
- Ageing: over time skin loses collagen and thins, which means veins under the skin appear more obvious.
- Excessive sun exposure: the sun speeds up the ageing process as it breaks down collagen. It also prompts your body to produce more melanin, the pigment that gives skin its colour, which means you may also end up with dark spots under your eyes and on other parts of the face.
- Rubbing or scratching your eyes.
- Lack of iron and poor nutrition.
- Lifestyle factors such as emotional stress, smoking and alcohol.
- Kidney or liver problems.
How to get treat and cover dark circles:
1. Concealers and correctors
Although only temporary, the easiest, quick fix to hide dark circles is to cover them. After applying primer and foundation, follow with a concealer or corrector. Dark circles have a purple undertone, so look for products with a yellow base that can balance them out successfully. Look for a rich, creamy concealer that won’t seep into fine lines around the eyes. Apply the concealer on the circles only, starting from the inner corner of the eye outwards. beautyheaven product picks: Designer Brands Take Cover Mineral Concealer and Rimmel London Wake Me Up Anti-Fatigue Concealer. You may also want to consider a corrector. While concealer provides coverage and evens our skin tone, correctors help to hide discolourations. beautyheaven product pick: Bobbi Brown Corrector.
2. Eye creams
Use an eye cream twice a day, morning and night. Look for products containing vitamin K and retinol, which help to reduce discolouration and puffiness, and vitamin C, which encourages collagen production and can help brighten skin tone.
kōtia Brightening Eye Cream and Kosmea Apple of My Eye Cream™ .
3. Home remedies
There’s an abundance of home remedies that seek to treat dark circles. Try gently massaging almond oil or vitamin E oil into the circles at night to help improve blood circulation. You could also try applying cotton pads soaked in rose water on your eyes for 10 minutes to soothe, reduce puffiness and brighten.
4. Vitamins
Vitamin K helps to heal the damaged capillaries and arteries in the skin. Look for vitamin K-enriched foods, found in most leafy green vegetables. Vitamin A aids the repair of skin tissue around eyes, as well as containing many anti-ageing properties, and vitamin C increases collagen, removes free radicals from the skin and helps protect the skin against sun damage.
5. Prevention
Be sure to wear sunglasses to protect the delicate eye area from harmful rays if you’re outdoors throughout the day. If you know your dark circles are associated with lifestyle factors, then try to avoid smoking and excessive alcohol consumption, which will only exacerbate the issue. If the issue persists and you fear your dark circles may be the result of a medical problem, always consult your doctor.
6. Face tan
If you have a cool-toned and pale complexion, your dark circles can appear more prominent in contrast to the rest of your skin. By applying a face tan, it will help to even out the tone between the two, softening your circles and bringing warmth and brightness to your face.
bh recommends: Lancôme Self-Tanning Face Gel and Le Tan Face Face Tanning Drops.
*This article has been updated since its original publication date.
Main image credit: @shaninamshaik
Do you have dark circles? What are you tips for remedying them?
Much needed when it’s not work from home anymore
My dark circles are genetic. Concealer is the only thing that helps reduce the look of them
Very informative article thanks
I use eye masks , eye creams , bit of concealer .
Thankfully I don’t really have any
I ended up with dark circles. It turned out that I had developed a fatty liver due to my gallbladder not working and shunting the bile back to the liver. I ended up with a really bad infection and spent 8 days in hospital on heavy duty antibiotics for them to get on top of the infection before they could remove my gallbladder. Once it was removed my dark circles disappeared. If you have dark circles that appear from no where then its certainly something to mention to your Doc.
Thankfully not a problem for me.
I always make sure I wear sunglasses when I’m outside, I use eye cream, and I try to keep myself well hydrated. And of course there’s my trusty concealer. My personal preference is BareMinerals Complete Coverage Serum Concealer.
Thanks for sharing Meedee. I have non alcoholic fatty liver. I have noticed a bit of undereye darkness. I will look out for it getting worse. Meanwhile, thank goodness for concealer. I love Nude by Nature concealer, but want to try DB Mineral concealer.
I was very lucky Frenchy apparently my fatty liver was ready to turn and become cirrhosis. I have been tested since my surgery and my liver is now back to normal. Its a very forgiving organ….phew.
Nude by Nature have some really lovely products…they are one of my favorites also 😀
I swear by the Becca under eye brightening concealer
What a great article. I hate my dark circles, I feel like I always look tired (well more tired than I already feel haha). Nothing seems to help. I didn’t know about vitamin K being so good for repair, I will have to look into that more.
An extra early night’s sleep can help rectify them I’ve found. If I’ve been unwell or on antibiotices (thankfully not very often) I do find them looking dark. A double dab of concealer can help a lot in this case!
Healthy eating (heaps of raw fruit and veg for best hydration), sleep, no salt and concealer hehe
Sadly, mine are hereditary (thanks a lot Mum/Grandpa!) but sleeping well does help a little…and you can’t go wrong with colour correcting!
Mac and Laura Mercier concealers and I are well acquainted. 🙂
Oh that reminds me I really need to put another iherb order in but I’m not sure it will come as it’s in the middle of the c virus ?
Sounds like a great thing!
I love the nude by nature concealer too – that little tube gets a real workout here.
I have some dark circles but mainly terrible puffiness, both are I’m assuming hereditary. Thanks Poppa and Mum…
Concealer has never really worked for me, but I might try the Vitamin E oil.
I use eye creams and concealer. I have used several different concealers but are still looking for one that doesn’t sit in my creases.
I have them and I just accept them. I don’t try to conceal them.
always tan my face, its makes the worlds difference
I might have to try tanning my face, nothing else seems to work for me.lol
Not too much of a problem for me, thankfully. Nothing that some concealer can’t cover 🙂
Last night I put some fake tanner on my face and then this morning when I looked in the mirror it looked like I had hardly any dark circles at all – the fake tanner kinda disguises them really well!
Good to know thanks, especially that vit K is good for capillaries
Me too.
I mostly treat the at home using fresh ingredients like cucumber,tea bags.
I have dark circles… They are from allergies… Cleaning up allergens in my life and they are reducing!!!
I always feel they are more prominent after a bad nights sleep
I have pale skin and I have had dark circles my whole life concealer is the only way that makes a big difference. I am not interested in the fake tan option but everyone is differnt
One of my biggest insecurities is my dark under eye circles. Omg they just get worse day by day
There are always trials offered to so many for eye creams and those to help reduce dark circles. I haven’t been lucky enough to get on any of these even though I do have dark circles due to ageing and sensitive eyes to boot. Some products are so bad that I end up with painful eyes and therefore very reluctant to buy more. Trials are the best way to get a good idea, but samples also help if you can get any. Recommendations only work if you don’t suffer too badly with issues or are younger with skin that will bounce back with the right products.
Everything looks so much worse with pale skin – acne scarring, discolouration, uneven skin tone, redness sigh
Concealers are a daily must for me. My dark circles never seem to be affected by external creams and products, but good sleep and general good health work wonders. If only that could be bottled!
Yes and such a helpful read.
Concealer is a daily must for me, but i put it on before my foundation. So tommoz might seem a little brighter under my eyes al least:)
I had never thought of using a face tan. Good tip.
Abundant amount of sleep and concealer are the way to go.
This is a good read
Healthy eating,drinking lots of water,good sleep,and of course Concealer!!
There are so many wonderful under eye concealers that do a perfect job of hiding dark under eye circles and some concealers help with puffiness as well.
It should…
I ordered some stuff through Amazon Prime International and it arrived within two weeks.
I hate my dark circles and I’m always trying new eye creams and products to hide or get rid of them. Thanks for the tips. Will try and eat more foods high in vitamins K, A, and C.
Love that it lists the reasons behind dark circles, as sometimes it’s you need more than a product. Mine usually comes down to low iron or a sluggish liver. But a natural face tan does help with the general complexion.
I have under eye dark circles since forever and I just couldn’t get rid of them. I am glad to know what to do to reduce at least the intensity of my dark circles. Thankyou beauty heaven for this informative article.
I have puffy under bags and I use a rose quartz facial roller that has been in the freezer over night and that really helps
I only get dark under my eyes when I’m getting over a migraine. I use cold pads which I keep in the fridge.