Suffering from swollen, puffy eyes? Dermatologist shares why this may happen and how to reduce puffiness

You will be surprised to know that your diet has a role in swelling your eyes. Read on to find out which diet is responsible.

Eyes are the window to your health. But often people overlook the undereye area, which is also very crucial. One of the several under-eye area affected conditions is puffy eyes, besides dark undereyes. Puffy eyes may not just happen after you bawl your eyes out; there may be other underlying conditions, too. Dr Chiranjiv Chhabra, Founder and Chief Dermatologist at Alive Wellness Clinics, told HT Lifestyle why puffy eyes may happen.

“Puffy under eyes is something that we all have experienced. It often results from periorbital edema, which is nothing but fluid accumulation in the delicate under-eye tissues due to poor lymphatic drainage, allergies, or high salt intake," he explained.

As Dr Chhabra pinpointed, poor lymphatic drainage, allergies, and even high salt intake can contribute to swollen, tired-looking eyes. Note that here as well, your dietary choice is one of the risk factors. High salt intake also includes hypertension as one of the potential consequences, indicating how deep the damage of a sodium-rich diet can be. From this deduction, it can also be understood that people who suffer from hypertension may have very swollen eyes.

Puffy eyes condition may increase with age, as he added, “because the muscles and ligaments around the eyes weaken, allowing the fat pads to protrude and create that puffy look.”

How to reduce puffy eyes?

So let's see if there are any remedies, both short-term and permanent, that help reduce swollen under eyes.

For the short term, some home remedies can be done. The dermat suggested, “Cold compresses or chilled eye masks can be done as they can constrict dilated blood vessels and reduce periorbital edema, offering quick relief.”

Although if swollen undereye persists, then a home remedy may not be effective then one may have to resort to more targeted treatment with eye cream. “

Revealing the ingredients of this eye cream, Dr Chhabra noted, "Another thing that can offer relief is choosing an eye cream containing caffeine, peptides, or hyaluronic acid, which improves microcirculation and strengthens the skin barrier and further reduces water retention. ”

How to reduce dark undereyes?

From eye patches to creams are used to treat under eye problems. (Shutterstock)

Now that we have discussed under-eye conditions and treatments for puffy eyes, let's also take a look at dark under eyes, a condition that is very common.

Dr Chhabra revealed the ingredients that work for dark circles: “Dark circles can be improved with topical ingredients like Vitamin C, kojic acid, or tranexamic acid, which work mainly on pigmentation and oxidative stress that gradually helps in brightening the area.”

He further recommended pairing dark under-eye cream with a broad-spectrum sunscreen around the eyes. UV exposure is not good as it discolours and weakens collagen.

But the dermatologist recommended seeking advanced treatment and urged visiting a doctor if dark circles under the eyes stay despite sleeping well and using brightening creams. Treatments like under-eye mesotherapy, PRP, gentle laser treatments, or even subtle fillers are some of the options.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.