MYTH BUSTER – Dark under eye circles and wrinkles around eyes

Today’s myth busting post was submitted Dr. Michele Koo, a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon practicing in St. Louis, Missouri.  It’s nice to see that Dr. Koo corroborates what we’ve said in previous posts about the lack of efficacy in topical products for under eye circles. She also touches on a point we made in a recent podcast: that relaxing facial muscles reduces wrinkles as opposed to exercising facial muscles.

Dr. Koo says:

Your friends will suggest Preparation H, organic green tea bags, cold cucumbers, etc etc but none of these myths will work. They may make you feel better immediately after the application of the above suggestions but 10 minutes later, you’re starting in the mirror frustrated because the dark circles and wrinkles are no better.

The solutions to the dark circles depend on the cause. If the dark circles under your eyes is a result of pigmentation of the actual skin, medical strength topical creams will lighten the skin with continued use. Over the counter creams and ointments will NOT decrease the dark pigment no matter how expense the product. Most of the time, a chemical peel or micro-pen needling or laser will also be required to improve the pigment and quality of the skin around the eyes.

If your dark circles and bulges around your eyes is a result of excess fat and skin protruding from your orbit, surgical correction (blepharoplasty) is the only truly effective solution. The fat and skin need to be re-positioned and restored to the previous location and the excess removed. The key is not to remove too much skin or fat otherwise as one ages the eyes begin to appear too hollow and sunken.

The fine wrinkles surrounding the eyes can be improved with specific medical grade topical creams that should be designed specific for your needs and skin type by a plastic surgeon or a dermatologist. Most effective products will contain a retinoid, ascorbic acid, and a glycolic acid. The deeper the wrinkles, the stronger the products or peels need to be. The best intervention for the prevention of wrinkles is to use a sunBLOCK not a sunscreen everyday no matter if it is sunny or not.

If your complaint is the crows feet wrinkles, you will need BOTOX to stop the action of the muscles on a continued and repeated basis every 3-6 months. BOTOX paralyzes the squinting muscles thereby preventing the creases from forming and becoming deeper. A combination of BOTOX, topical skin creams, chemical peels, and micro-pen needling or lasering will improve skin quality and improve the appearance of the skin surrounding the eyes.

BEST SOLUTION FOR SKIN WRINKLES AROUND: Use the best skin products and sunblocks available at a very young age

BEST SOLUTION FOR DARK CIRCLES AND SAGGY EYELIDS OR LOWER EYELID BAGS: The correct surgery to address the specific problem with attention to being conservative.