Wide Awake! Everything You Need to Know to Minimize the Appearance of Eye Wrinkles and Circles

If eyes are the windows to your soul, then what do your eyes say about you? Do your eyes sparkle and shine, or do they look tired or haggard because of dark circles and wrinkles? Your eyes play a huge role in creating a healthy-looking and beautiful appearance, so you want to do all you can to keep the skin surrounding them looking its best. Here are some tips on how to turn your eyes from dull to dazzling.

Find a Good Everyday Eye Cream

The skin around your eyes is super delicate, so you want to use a product specially geared towards that area. DERMA E’s Advanced Peptide and Collagen Eye Cream may help smooth the look of pesky lines while adding radiance and brightness to the skin’s surface with potent ingredients such as green tea and vitamins A, C and E. Plus, the peptides Matrixyl® and Argireline® are commonly used in anti-aging products and may minimize the appearance of eye wrinkles. Depending on the product you choose, you may want to use a daily eye cream morning and night for maximum impact.

Drink Lots of Water

That thin skin under your eyes needs a lot of hydration because when it’s parched it tends to show lines and wrinkles more easily. Drinking water is good for your overall wellness, not just your skin, so stay hydrated with plenty of fluids. Don’t worry about drinking a certain number of glasses or ounces—as long as you get enough water throughout the day so you never feel thirsty, you should be fine. If you want some extra moisture for the undereye area, try DERMA E’s Hydrating Eye Cream—it’s got hyaluronic acid, which can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water.

Incorporate Cucumber into Your Diet

There are many foods you should be eating for glowing skin—richly colored fruits and veggies especially—but cucumbers can be a powerhouse for de-puffing baggy eyes. Whether you slice them up in a salad or dip them in hummus for an afternoon snack, cucumbers can supply you with skin-friendly vitamins and nutrients. You can also put some slices in your water to give each glass a crisp and refreshing bite, too. If you need some relaxation in a pinch, put a couple of soothing, cooling cucumber slices over your eyes for a few minutes.

Find a Product That Targets Your Skin Care Needs

It’s great to have an undereye cream for daily use, but if you want to really minimize the look of eye wrinkles or dark circles, you may want to add a specialized product into your skin care mix. For wrinkles, try DERMA E’s Anti-Wrinkle Cream or Firming DMAE Eye Lift; the latter has InstaLift® Goji Berry glycopeptides for firming, lifting and tightening that can give the skin under the eyes a more youthful appearance. If you’re plagued by dark shadows, then DERMA E’s Dark Circle Reducing Eye Cream can brighten your day by improving the look of your skin tone.

Get an Allergy Test

If you’ve got dark undereye circles that just won’t go away—plus symptoms like watery eyes, sinus aches and sneezing—you may want to ask your doctor to test you for allergies. If your nose is congested, that fluid buildup can cause those dark circles, which are sometimes called “allergic shiners.” If allergies are the culprit, your doctor can help you with medication or lifestyle changes, such as putting an air purifier in your home or staying inside if outdoor allergens such as pollen are on the rise.

Be Gentle with Your Skin

Next time you start to rub your eyes, stop: tugging, pulling or other harsh moves can put strain on the delicate skin around your eyes. That goes for how you use skin care products, too. When applying an undereye cream, such as DERMA E’s CoQ10 Super Repair Eye Cream, don’t rub the product into the skin. Instead, gently pat it into the area with your finger tip, using light pressure, until it’s absorbed into the skin.

Catch Some Zzzz’s

When you’re well rested, you look well rested. Sleep is so important for your health, but it also gives you a wonderful, refreshed look, especially around the eyes. You should generally aim for about seven to nine hours of sleep each night. If you’re not getting that, try setting an earlier bedtime and refrain from watching TV or using your phone, tablet or computer at least an hour before that. You can also try making your bedroom more inviting for sleep—block all light, make sure the temperature isn’t too warm or try a drop or two of some relaxing lavender oil on your pillow. If you care about ethical beauty, using DERMA E products can help you sleep well at night. They are 100% vegan and cruelty free, with effective, natural ingredients—antioxidants, botanicals and vitamins—that are good for you and the planet.

When it comes to looking refreshed and radiant, the eyes have it—improving the appearance of dark circles and wrinkles can give your whole face a certain glow. Let us know your favorite trick for undereye skin care in the comments below.