People can always tell if I haven’t had enough sleep. I have terrible dark circles under my eyes. They look like caverns, dark and depressing.
The truth is, even if I do get enough sleep, I still get dark circles sometimes. I never understood why. I asked my mother years ago and she said that it must be hereditary, because she gets them, too.
There may be some truth in that. However, dark circles are really the result of leaky capillaries in the eye area.
Leaky capillaries are very common, but usually we don’t notice them in other areas of the body. Because the skin is paper thin around the eyes, it is much easier to see the result of those leaky capillaries.
We tend to rub our eyes, especially if they are itchy or tired. This can cause dark circles by breaking the capillaries. Sometimes when our eyes itch, it is the result of allergies. So in a way, allergies might be causing the dark circles.
If you do have allergies and you also have dark circles, then treating the allergies might help. If you’re no longer rubbing itchy, watery eyes, then the dark circles might diminish.
There are old-fashioned home remedies that may work. Cucumber slices or dampened tea bags over the eyes might provide some relief from inflammation and irritation.
Creams with ingredients designed to moisturize and firm the skin around the eyes might help.
Finally, if all else fails, use a good concealer. They’ve helped many women who have a few things to cover up.
Poor Nutrition May Be Cause of Dark Under Eye Circles
At first glance it may seem like diet and dark under eye circles have nothing to do with each other, however, you may be surprised that there are links between your diet and the appearance of these dark circles.
Your diet doesn’t have to be over-the-top or excessively hard to accomplish in order for you to lose weight and dramatically reduce dark under eye circles.
What Causes Under Eye Circles?
There are many contributors of dark under eye circles. Everything from seasonal allergies to genetics can be blamed for this build up of blood vessels under eyes. However, the two causes we would like to address are underlying diet related diseases and health and nutrition.
First, underlying diet related diseases. Gluten intolerance, or the allergy to wheat flour, may be a cause of dark under eye circles. Celiac Disease, which is a more serious form of gluten intolerance may also be an underlying cause.
If you suspect you may have a gluten intolerance you should see your doctor to get tested. Remember you can be gluten intolerant without having Celiac Disease.
Second, lifestyle factors, including poor nutrition. Poor nutrition can consist of many different things, but most are relatively easy to remedy. Some of the dietary choices that most commonly affect the appearance of dark under eye circles are:
– Poor Nutrition Choices
– Excess Alcohol Consumption
– Too Many Caffeinated Drinks
– Cigarettes
– Lack of Exercise
Healthy Alternatives
Lucky for you there are plenty of healthy alternatives that can help to break your bad dietary habits. Your diet should be balanced with adequate amounts of Vitamin K and B12 along with plenty of fruits and vegetables. It is also essential to drink enough water.
You should determine your own balanced diet with the help of your doctor or nutritionist and they can often work with the foods you enjoy eating.
Where Can I Find Vitamin K and B12?
It is easy for us to say eat more foods with Vitamin K and B12, but you may not know which foods contain these essential vitamins. Vitamin K, a powerful antioxidant can be found in many leafy greens (spinach and cabbage), cauliflower and liver.
Vitamin B12 on the other hand is found in animal products including fish, milk, milk products, eggs, meat, and poultry. Many fortified breakfast cereals provide another great source of B12.
Supplementation
Supplementation is also a great option when it comes to aiding your diet. It doesn’t cost a fortune to find the best diet pill for effective weight loss!
One of our favorite diet pills is Apidextra. Apidextra is a non-prescription formula that has 8 clinically proven ingredients to deliver you powerful results. Apidextra not only burns off your excess fat, but helps to speed up your metabolism and curb appetite, making it easier to avoid those foods and habits that you have chosen to give up.
Other Causes and Cures for Dark Circles
Blemishes under eyes can be an annoying skin problem. Constant worry about what others are seeing and thinking when they look at your face is a constant distraction. Staying up too late, suffering from allergies, or plain old heredity determines how noticeable those dark circles get.
Understanding the Ugly Bruises
These dark blemishes could be a sign something slightly more serious is the problem. Nutritional deficiencies play a huge role in the skin and especially in how dark circles under eyes are.
Often described as “bruise-like,” dark circles are just that: bruises. A bruise, as in a dark area of the skin, is usually some form of a dark purple or yellow, and is caused by blood vessels leaking blood underneath the skin. Because blood usually collects where there is no broken skin, it gathers there and creates the darker colored areas.
Underneath the exceptionally delicate skin of our eyes, we have dozens of tiny capillaries that can’t always hold all the red blood cells traveling through them. It’s very common for many of these red blood cells to leak out of the capillaries—which creates the bruised look. This happens all throughout our bodies, but because the skin around our eyes is so soft and thin, it’s much more noticeable.
Fix the Problem
Don’t get discouraged, though. There are many things that will help your body improve the skin, and reduce the leakage of red blood cells.
Whether in a supplement form, eye cream form, or in the form of natural food sources (highly recommended), you can help your body make these blemishes barely noticeable, if not gone. Here are some recommendations to how to get rid of dark circles permanently:
Drink Water. Dehydration makes dark circles appear much worse. Not getting enough water for your body increases the amount of toxins building up in your body as your body isn’t getting enough water to flush them out. This toxin build-up increases blood pooling and makes the dark circles worse.
Take Vitamins. Many times circles under eyes are caused by not getting the right nutrients. Adding vitamins to your diet helps your get what it needs to stay healthy and reduce the look of under eye bruises. Vitamin K is a huge help to reduce the looks of these dark circles as it helps your blood clot and improves its movement through your blood vessels. Vitamin C is also essential to help your dark circles go away because it improves collagen production and helps your skin protect itself against sun damage.
Get the Right Amount of Iron. With the right amounts of iron in the body, it helps your blood pump better to make sure all the tissues and parts of your body are oxygenated properly. If you’re deficient on iron, it increases the dark circles under your eyes and makes the blood pooling worse. Try adding foods rich in iron to decrease the excess pooling of blood.
Use Topical Aids. Applying different therapies directly to your skin adds the nutrients right where they need to go. Creams with vitamins in them help (but make sure you’re still adding them to your diet), and so does placing tea bags over the eyes, or resting with slices of cucumbers placed on top of the circles.