Blue circles under my eyes

“I myself, shameful and corrupt,
With blue circles around my eyes,
Came to look at the important profile,
At the wax, open for show...”
(Alexander Blok)

The blue circles under the eyes in A. Blok's poem "Cleopatra" are a specific image that conveys the feelings of pain and excitement of the literary hero. In a less romantic area, in medicine, blue circles under the eyes are considered a kind of signal from the body - a symptom indicating an illness.

Women, puzzled by such a problem, resort to means of aesthetic "masking". Fortunately, there are more than enough of them: concealers and correctors are presented in the lines of almost all manufacturers of decorative cosmetics. If we talk about men, then they rely on the eternal, inherent in our Eastern European mentality, "maybe, somehow it will work out". It is easy to guess that such negligence can sooner or later lead to worsening of the skin under the eyes.

Causes of Dark Circles Under the Eyes

The skin around the eyes is considered the most delicate and sensitive area of the face. It has a number of significant features:

1. the thickness of the epidermis in this area is only 0.05 mm (for comparison, the thickness of the skin of the cheeks is 0.08-0.3 mm);
2. it contains much less collagen and no elastin;
3. sebaceous glands and subcutaneous fat are practically absent;
4. She is characterized by pronounced facial activity.

Another feature of the skin around the eyes, the most important in the context of this article, is that the capillary network is located very close to the surface. This is why any disruption of the blood circulation process in the body can cause a change in skin tone. The bluish color is explained by the dark color of the capillary blood due to the increased content of reduced hemoglobin in the blood, which has lost oxygen and combined with carbon dioxide. As already mentioned, the skin around the eyes is very thin, and therefore the bluish color is more noticeable in this area.

Thus, the main reason for the appearance of dark circles under the eyes is the large amount of deoxygenated hemoglobin in the small visible vessels of the skin.

Why do dark circles appear under the eyes?

Let's take a closer look at the possible factors that influence the appearance of dark circles under the eyes. They may be:

1. Heredity, manifested in the peculiarities of the skin structure: proximity to the surface and the pronounced capillary network, the anatomical structure of the skull with deep eye sockets.
2. Presence of diseases:
   1. cardiovascular system, in which there is “stagnation” of blood and insufficient enrichment with oxygen;
   2. bronchopulmonary diseases, in which there is a deficiency of oxygen in the blood due to insufficient supply of the latter to the lungs;
   3. liver and kidney dysfunction;
   4. allergic reactions;
   5. acute rhinitis, inflammation of the paranasal sinuses, hypertrophy of lymphoid tissue, which are accompanied by local stagnation of venous blood, insufficient outflow due to swelling of nearby tissues.
3. Physical or mental overstrain and associated disturbances in blood circulation and gas exchange.
4. Deficiency of vitamins C, K, A.
5. Chronic intoxication of the body with nicotine and alcohol.
6. Age-related changes in the appearance of the skin associated with its thinning - the capillary network becomes more noticeable.

When starting to fight dark circles under the eyes, you first need to find the cause of the blood circulation disorder and try to eliminate it as soon as possible.

Blue-red circles under the eyes

As already mentioned, the reason for the appearance of blue-red circles under the eyes is often due to internal diseases (problems with the kidneys, heart) or is a symptom of an allergy (for example, to gluten). In this way, the body signals danger - be sure to see a doctor and undergo an examination.

A sedentary lifestyle, a daily routine based on the "home-work-home" scheme, lack of useful physical activity and lack of fresh air - all this affects a person's well-being in a not very good way. Externally, the loss of vitality is very quickly reflected on the face: swelling, blue-red circles under the eyes - some of the first "alarm bells" that it is time to change the daily routine. Daily walks in the park, morning exercises in the fresh air and a healthy eight-hour sleep will restore a healthy appearance and improve well-being.

In addition, if the cause of the appearance of blue-red circles under the eyes is not a kidney or heart disease and is not a symptom of an allergy, they can be eliminated with the help of poultices of boiled potatoes, fresh cucumber or compresses of black tea.

How to remove dark circles under the eyes?

Concealer is ideal for masking dark circles under the eyes. It has a denser texture than foundation. Blue circles are “covered” by orange concealer. It is best applied not only to the dark circles, but also around the eyes, including the side of the nose (adjacent to the eye) and the upper eyelid. Use a brush: apply the product with patting movements, without smearing or rubbing it into the skin. After blending the concealer, use foundation to even out the complexion, then powder the skin. This will help hide unwanted blueness for a while.

You can completely eliminate dark circles under your eyes only by overcoming the causes of their appearance. If they are not associated with the presence of chronic diseases, which were discussed above, but are only a consequence of banal chronic fatigue and lack of sleep, use the following advice:

1. Restore the correct daily routine. Let us remind you that for an adult, 8 hours is enough time to get enough sleep and restore strength (for people suffering from hypotension, more time is required - approximately 10 hours). Before going to bed, it is necessary to air out the bedroom.
2. Walk more often in the fresh air, in green areas.
3. Try to maintain mental balance. The stress you experience contributes to the thinning of the subcutaneous fat layer, which makes blood vessels and capillaries more visible. Try to learn how to cope with everyday troubles. The following books can help you with this: How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie and The Perfectionist Paradox by Tal Ben-Shahar.
4. Everyone knows that nicotine constricts blood vessels, often leaving a memorable mark on the smoker's face in the form of dark circles under the eyes. You can get rid of them by giving up the bad habit, and a book can also help in this difficult matter. We recommend that all smokers read Allen Carr's bestseller "The Easy Way to Stop Smoking."
5. Don't forget to do a light massage of the skin around your eyes every morning - this helps improve blood circulation. Two to three minutes of light tapping with your fingertips from the outer corner of the eye socket to the inner corner is enough.

There are also many folk recipes for eliminating dark circles under the eyes. Here are the most popular ones.

1. A decoction of finely chopped parsley. To prepare it, you need to pour a glass of boiling water over fresh herbs and let the decoction sit for 15 minutes. Using cotton swabs, apply a warm decoction to the eyelid area every evening. Don't forget: after that, you need to lightly massage your eyelids with ice, and you can alternate the procedures.
2. Green tea compresses. It is advisable to use not fresh tea, but already used tea (the one that has been poured with boiling water several times). These compresses are also best done before bedtime.
3. Cottage cheese compress: put 1.5 dessert spoons into gauze pads, place the latter on the eyes, hold for 10 minutes.
4. Potato mask. Mix 2 tablespoons of grated potatoes with 1 teaspoon of clay, apply to a gauze napkin, place it on the eyelids and hold for 10-15 minutes. After 10-15 minutes, remove the mask with cotton wool soaked in green tea.

For the author of this article, olive oil has become an effective remedy in the fight against dark circles. The cause of the dark circles under my eyes was chronic lack of sleep and daily hours of work in front of a computer screen. Having read an enthusiastic review of the oil on one of the forums dedicated to the problem, I decided to take the advice. I was bribed by the simplicity of the manipulation: you just need to lubricate the dry skin under your eyes with olive oil before going to bed. The result was not long in coming, so I recommend you try it too - after a few days I noticed improvements, and after two weeks the dark circles under my eyes disappeared completely.