There have been different opinions on the use of eye cream in skincare routines. Some believe that eye creams are just a marketing gimmick created by retailers to help increase sales and customer spending, while others swear by using them twice a day in their daily skincare routines. We’re here to break down the facts about eye cream to help you decide if incorporating eye creams in your routine is what your skin needs.

Prevent and conceal dark circles

Dark circles under the lower eyelids can be caused by several reasons, including progressive aging of the skin, genetics, lack of sleep, allergies and stress. Two of the most important reasons are fragile vessels and poor circulation under the eyes.

Blood vessels that are fragile are more susceptible to breakdowns, causing a leak of red blood cells into the surrounding areas accumulating in the outer layer and inner layer of the skin. As the red blood cells degrade, the pigments from the red blood cells cause a dark discoloration around the eyes.

Another common cause of dark circles is the lack of proper blood circulation to the areas under the eyes. Blood with lack of oxygen is usually presented in a bluish discoloration.

So how does eye cream help with these issues? Quality eye creams formulated with ingredients such as peptides, tranexamic acid, caffeine, retinol and vitamin C can help prevent or restore the brightness to dull and tired-looking skin. The Tranexamic Acid + Glutathione Eye Cream from Mary & May contains 1,000ppm Tranexamic Acid that works to constrict the broken blood vessels to prevent leakage of red blood cell pigments to the surrounding skin area. Alternatively, the RNW Der. Blanc Eye Contour Cream is an eye cream with caffeine to contrict the blood vessels, hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid to boost hydration and exfoliating ingredients such as citric acid and gluconolactone to help remove dead skin cells. 

Reduce visible signs of aging

The skin surrounding the eyes is one of the thinnest, most delicate and the earliest to show signs of aging with fine lines, wrinkles and crow’s feet. This is because there are fewer oil glands underneath the skin to keep the area moisturized. In addition to that, the constant movement of the eyes and squinting also speeds up the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

Eye creams are generally formulated differently from face creams in that they are creamier in consistency and have a lot more active ingredients that are aimed to resolve problems commonly seen around the eyes. While you might be thinking that it would be a good idea to apply an anti-aging face cream to areas around your eyes, the result might not be as you would expect.  Facial creams that are heavier tend to encourage the development of milia under the eye area as the pores become plugged up by products that cannot be absorbed completely.

The Cicanoid Retinal Cream from Scinic is a great eye cream that contains retinal, retinol and bakuchiol to loosen the keratin plugs that are found in milia and push them to the surface of the skin to remove them.

Another alternative that contains peptides to help stimulate collagen production in the skin is the AHC Youth Lasting Real Eye Cream for Face. This creamy like texture eye cream contains 35 types of peptides, 9 types of collagen, 7 types of amino acids, hyaluronic acids and 9 types of vitamins to give the skin around your eyes a boost in radiance and vitality.

Reduce puffiness

In this era of technology, we are constantly on our smartphones into wee hours of the night, the lack of peaceful sleep, the occasionally late night alcohol, the extra salt in our meals, the lack of hydration and the list continues, all which most likely are the culprit that cause us to wake up to puffy eyes in the morning. When this happens, eye creams do come in handy to help diminish the puffiness and help the swelling subside.  An eye cream like the Royal Vita Propolis 33 Capsule Eye Cream that is infused with 33.5% Propolis Extract, Vitamin C derivative and hydrolyzed collagen is the perfect combination to nourish and hydrate your skin. This eye cream comes with an applicator that you can store in the fridge to cool down before use. A cool applicator and cream helps reduce inflammation and pooling of fluid to the areas around the eyes, thus reducing the puffiness.

How to apply eye cream

Generally, eye creams can be applied twice a day in your morning and evening routine. Gently pat the product into the hollow of your eyes and up into your brown bone. It is recommended that you apply your eye cream before your moisturizing step as eye cream tends to contain active ingredients that are best applied closer to the skin. It is also important to understand the types of ingredients in your eye cream to determine which routine that the cream should be applied in. For example, eye cream containing retinoid or exfoliating acids should be applied in your evening routine. Not to forget, always use SPF in your morning routine to help protect the skin around the eyes from damage caused by UV radiation when outdoors.

Takeaway

While eye creams may not be necessary for everyone, it is a solution for many who are struggling with issues related to their under-eye area and those who notice changes to this area. It is important to identify the concerns you have and choose products that contain ingredients that can specifically target and help with your concerns.

Reference:

Ahmadraji, F., Shatalebi, MA. Evaluation of the clinical efficacy and safety of an eye counter pad containing caffeine and vitamin K in emulsified Emu oil base. Adv Biomed Res. 2015; 4: 10. doi:10.4103/2277-9175.148292.

Freitag, FM., Cestari, TF. What causes dark circles under the eyes? J Cosmet Dermatol, 2007 Sep;6(3):211-5. doi:10.1111/j.1473-2165.2007.00324.x.

Pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. 2021. Tranexamic Acid. Retrieved from https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/5526