Skin Care For the Eyes

The eyes are the first place on your face to show stress, aging and fatigue. The skin in the eye area is five to 10 times thinner than skin on the rest of the face and contains a very small amount of subcutaneous fat and few oil glands. Visible effects are:

• Dark circles
• Puffiness
• Fine lines
• Crow's feet

Eye creams are an essential staple to keep on hand for prevention as well as damage control. They imitate the function of oil glands and provide hydration. Other benefits of eye creams are:

• Stimulating circulation (reducing dark circles and puffiness0
• Improve the skin's elasticity (diminishing the crinkled look and crow's feet0
• Plumps up the fine lines so they look less pronounced

When choosing an eye cream, choose one that addresses your biggest concern.

Dark Circles:

• Common for fair-skinned people and may be due to lack of sleep, sun exposure, dehydration, kidney or thyroid conditions, genetics and allergies
• To fight against allergy-induced dark circles, supplements that address both allergies and skin health may help. Vitamin C builds collagen and strengthens blood vessels
• The antioxidant activity of alpha-lipoic acid and green tee may help prevent skin and blood vessel damage
• Green tea and green, leafy vegetables are a source of vitamin K, which may reduce leakage from blood vessels and help diminish dark circles

Puffy Eyes:

• Five minutes under a cold compress can constrict blood vessels to help decrease puffiness and dark circles
• Fluid retention causes puffy eyes and is common in the morning as fluid builds up overnight
• Sleep on your back with your head elevated to let your eye area drain

Smooth Lines and Crow's Feet

• The outer corners of the eyes are notorious for dryness and wrinkles
• Sun exposure causes the fine lines, or crow's feet
• Creams rich in vitamins C and Y, and other antioxidants provide natural sunscreen protection and helps to keep your eyes looking fresh
• Always wear sunglasses when in direct sunlight

Source: Strausfogel S. eye - catching creams and gels.. Better Nutrition [serial online]. January 2007;69(1):36-38. Available from: Health Source - Consumer Edition, Ipswich, MA. Accessed August 6, 2008.

Written by: Connie Limon To find more skin care articles and tips visit http://smalldogs2.com/SkinCareTips To find a variety of reprint articles visit http://www.camelotarticles.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Connie_Limon