Nothing says ‘I’m not at my best’ like bags under the eyes. While there are those that never seem to get them, there are others who can’t remember a time that they didn’t have puffy eyes. So what causes them and more importantly, what can we do about them?

Bags under the eyes are caused by a variety of factors, most of which result in an excess of fluid in the body. Whether it is from water retention or inflammation, it affects or whole body, but because the skin around our eyes is so thin it is more noticeable here.

Common causes include;
• Water retention
• Dehydration
• Hormonal imbalances
• Fatigue
• Pregnancy
• Illness
• Allergies
• Morning – it is really common for fluid to ‘pool’ in your eyes overnight, but once you are standing up and moving around the fluid evens out.

So now that we know how we got them, what can we do about bags under the eyes?

While the obvious answer is to address the underlying issues, this doesn’t help when you want to reduce their appearance before you leave the house today, so let’s look at some quick fixes for those bags.

Cold compress

Use an ice pack, or any cold compress on the eyes to reduce the inflammation and disperse the fluid. For a cold compress use ice water or cold milk. Soak a cotton wool ball and squeeze out the fluid, the place the balls on your eyes for 10 – 15 minutes. Be careful with icepacks because the skin around the eyes is very sensitive and easily burned.

Cold teaspoons are also known to work well.

Creams and serums

There are many creams and serums that advertise as being specialists at reducing bags under the eyes and in some cases these may work. For extra benefit keep them in the fridge and they can become like a cold compress while delivering all their essential nutrients.

Fruits and vegetables.

If you feel inclined than slice up a cold cucumber, potato, apple or strawberry. Not only will they soothe the puffiness, but the nutrients from the foods will absorb into the skin.

Cool teabags

The tannin in tea is reported to have ant inflammatory and astringent properties, so steep a couple of tea bags, allow them to cool and place them over the eyes.

Exercise

For those that suffer from bags under the eyes in the morning then doing some quick exercise – like a few star jumps – will help the fluid to disperse quickly.

Sometimes even just tapping the area lightly will encourage the fluid to move on.

When it comes to allergies anti histamines and corticosteroids should be really effective at reducing the bags under your eyes caused by the allergic reaction.

Preventing bags under the eyes

Most cases of baggy eyes can be prevented by increasing your intake of water, getting enough sleep, making sure that you exercise and that you eat a balance diet, and that you don’t harm the body or cause fluid retention by smoking or drinking an excessive amount of alcohol.

Bags under the eyes are annoying and sometimes they can even be embarrassing, but by taking a few minutes a day to relieve the swelling and addressing the factors that may be causing them you will soon start to notice a brighter eyed you when you step out the front door.