By Dr Dhananjay Chavan , Dermatology
Dark undereye circles can be caused by a host of different things from heredity to allergies to poor sleep. Treatments include eye creams, peels, intense pulsed light therapy, Q switched Nd Yag laser therapy, skin resurfacing and injectable fillers, but before you choose one, it’s important to determine the cause.
This is a common problem and is frequently described as “tired eyes”. Although dark circles may be the result of facial aging, they can affect both men and women of all ages and have a variety of causes.
Dark eye circles and eye bags can leave you looking 10 years older.
Dark Eye Circle Causes-
Dark circles under eyes make you look aged and tired. A lot of times, dark circles can be attributed to age, but there are other contributing factors such as:
- Nasal congestions and allergies
- Atopic dermatitis (Itchy and chronic skin inflammation)
- Pigmentation abnormalities
- Sun exposure
- Smoking
- Alcohol and caffeine consumption
- Medical causes- Insulin resistance, hypothyroidism, anaemia
Besides these factors, genetics too can cause dark circles. Fortunately, dark circles are not a medical concern, but they do cause you much distress over your general appearance. Before undergoing dark circles treatment, it is important to know exactly what is causing the dark circles. Treatment for dark circles caused by allergies will be different from a dark circles treatment designed to correct bulging under eye fat. In some cases, a combination of treatments may be appropriate, especially if there are multiple factors causing your dark circles.
Laser Treatments For Under Eye Dark Circles-
Laser treatments take care of the pigmentation and wrinkling under the eyes. The commonly used lasers are:
- Q Switched Ndyag Laser: The laser beam targets the pigment and breaks it. After a few sessions there is a significant lightening of pigmentation seen.
- Laser Resurfacing: Laser resurfacing is a procedure to reduce the effects of sun exposure or aging. In this treatment, a short, focused beam of light is aimed at the affected area under the eyes. This light beam removes the layers of the skin, thus boosting the growth of skin cells which will lighten the skin and reduce the dark circles.
- Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) Therapy: If the circles under your eyes are blue or dark purple in colour, IPL therapy is for you. IPL effectively removes dark circles by using pulsed beams of visible light to reduce pigmentation under the eyes.