If your face is carrying too much baggage around your eyes, you’ll be pleased to know there are a few quick fixes.
Barring certain medical conditions, bags under your eyes are generally caused by a lack of sleep and dehydration. If you like your food salty, then chances are your body becomes dehydrated more easily. To compensate for this, you retain water at a few locations and one of those spots is within the tissues under your eyes.
Drinking plenty of water if you have a savoury tooth will also help your body flush out toxins as well as removing the need to retain fluid.
But if you need to get rid of those baggy eyes now, the old cold cucumber slices can help. The salad vegetable has antioxidants and flavonoids believed to reduce irritation and inflammation. Cucumber slices should be chilled before applying because the cooling effect, once placed on your warm skin, is believed to reduce swelling.
Another trick is to keep two teaspoons in the freezer overnight. Remove them in the morning, go back to bed so you are lying down and place over the puffy areas for about 10 minutes.
Teabags have also been used through the generations to reduce the appearance of under-eye bags and dark circles. It is thought the tannins (a naturally occurring polyphenol found in plants, seeds, leaves and fruit skins) in tea behave like a mild anti-inflammatory remedy. To use this method, soak two teabags in boiling water for around 20 to 30 seconds. Remove them from the water and allow them to chill in the refrigerator. Lying down, place the teabags over your bags, again for 10 minutes or so. While using herbal teas, such as camomile or peppermint, have fewer of the anti-puffiness tannins, some people prefer them because the plants’ essential oils are thought to be soothing.
Finally, pay attention to your sleep hygiene to reduce the likelihood of waking up with swelling around your eyes:
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- Don’t stay up late and make sure you get around eight hours of sleep, if you can.
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- If you sleep on your side or your belly, your tissues are more likely to collect fluid on the part of your face in contact with your pillow. Try sleeping on your back.
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- Remove makeup before going to bed so that the chemicals in your cosmetics do not irritate the delicate skin under your eyes.
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- After washing your face, preferably without a harsh soap, apply vitamin E cream or some other gentle moisturiser to your skin. Don’t be stingy with the cream as the more you apply, the more will stay on your skin when your pillow begins to soak it up.
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- Keep devices with a blue light, such as mobile phones, tablets and chargers, out of the bedroom at night. This type of light has been known to interfere with the quality of sleep.
Do bags under your eyes run in the family? What gives you baggy eyes? Do you have any other tips for reducing puffy eyes?
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