What are dark circles? How can you prevent them?

Dark circles are the semicircles found under the eyelids. They are found to exist commonly in people of old age such as men and women. They make a person look tired and dull. They make the face look older and drained of energy. Dark circles are found generally in older adults, people with periorbital hyperpigmentation, and people with darker skin tones. Dark circles appear to be purple, blue, black, or brown depending on the skin tone of the person. 

Causes of dark circles

There are many reasons causing dark circles such as: 

Fatigue

Prolonged exposure to light from electronic devices makes you tired. Fatigue can make the appearance of dark circles. Staying up late at night for work or to binge web series can disturb your sleep cycle. This leads to sleep deprivation, which makes the blood vessels underneath the skin show. Getting less sleep may also make your ender eyes look puffy. The dark circles can also be the shadow of puffy eyelids

Aging

Due to aging, the skin under the eyes starts to lose its elasticity due to a reduction in collagen production in the body. This naturally makes the under-eye area lose and wrinkly. The under-eye also becomes thinner. The dark vessels under the skin also become visible. 

Overexposure to screens 

Staring at screens for very long hours such as desktops or TV screens puts strains on your eyes. This strain enlarges the blood vessels and makes the skin around them darker i.e. resulting in the formation of dark circles. 

Allergies 

Some allergies can make the under-eye super dry. To combat this, the body releases histamines. Symptoms of allergies are swelling, redness, puffy eyes, and itchiness. Histamines make the blood vessels more vivid underneath the skin as they dilate the blood vessels. 

Allergies make you uncomfortable and make you rub the eyes which leads to even more darkening of under eyes.

Dehydration 

Spending time in closed rooms can make you less thirsty; by the regular occurrence of this, your body can get dehydrated. Dehydration reduces the plumpness of the skin and makes you look sick and unhealthy. This makes the appearance of dark circles even more clear. 

Genetics 

In some families, dark circles are genetic and therefore passed from one generation to another. Under such circumstances, no action can be taken to reduce dark circles. In such cases, the dark circles are visible from childhood.

Too much sun exposure

Spending time under the sun is fun but by sun exposure, our body produces melanin which is a dark-colored pigment. Excess sun exposure can make the area around the eyes quite dark. 

Anemia 

This is a disease in which red blood cells are lower than normal and can make you dizzy and weak. People with anemia have pale skin with dark circles under the eyes. 

Foods to reduce dark circles

As you know our diet majorly contributes to healthy bodily functions. Consuming healthy food-rich nutrition can help to reduce skin issues like hyperpigmentation and dark circles. Remember, change starts from the inside. Consume the below-listed foods if you are suffering from dark circles:

Tomato

They are rich in vitamin C, vitamin K, and potassium. Tomatoes protect the skin and promote blood flow and good blood circulation. They contain antioxidants like lycopene. Antioxidants protect the blood vessels and improve blood circulation. 

Cucumber 

It is high in water and hydrates skin. Cucumber enhances collagen production and is rich in vitamin E, vitamin K and vitamin A. it helps in increasing skin’s elasticity. 

Watermelon 

Watermelon contains antioxidants such as beta carotene which help in keeping the eyes healthy. It has 92% water. Watermelon also contains magnesium. 

Blueberries 

They contain vitamin C, vitamin K, manganese, and omega-3. It protects the blood vessels and improves blood circulation to the eyes.  

Final note: 

Dark circles are found commonly in people of old age such as men and women. They make a person look tired and dull. People with periorbital hyperpigmentation and darker skin tones face under eye dark circles even more. They can be caused due to multiple reasons such as fatigue, aging, overexp[osure to screens, allergies, dehydration, genetics, too much sun exposure, and anemia. If you want to naturally decrease dark circles, include fruits and vegetables like tomato, cucumber, watermelon, and blueberries in your diet. Although, the market contains many under-eye creams to treat dark circles. You must be careful when buying such products. With pharmaceutical supplychain management, the manufacturers can track and trace their products efficiently.