Category Archives: Eyes Care

Three Ingredients to Go For in an Eye Cream

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The most important question to ask about any eye cream is “What exactly is in it and what will it do?”. Most of us are seduced by wonderful packaging or a glamorous advertising campaign fronted by some impossibly beautiful and wrinkle free supermodel. We may claim to be hardened consumers immune to the heavy sales pitch but if we are interested in an anti aging product to get rid of eye wrinkles then we are – to a degree – chasing a dream.

Having said that, anti aging products are increasingly effective at doing what they say. Eye creams in particular are much more effective nowadays in dealing with specific common problems associated with aging around the eyes. You can buy an eye cream to address under eye wrinkles or to get rid of puffiness and dark circles or you can go for a product that takes a general approach and targets all three. The choice is all yours.

Coming back to the original question – you need to know just what is in any eye cream you buy since you are going to apply it once or twice a day to the sensitive area around your eyes. Eye creams can cause reactions for many women especially those with more sensitive skin. If you wear contact lenses then the ingredients and formulation of the product will matter even more. Above all you want your new cream to work and its effectiveness will largely depend on what its key active ingredients are. So – here are three common active ingredients in eye creams to watch out for.

1. Vitamin K: If you go for an eye cream to target dark circles this antioxidant will probably be in there somewhere. Vitamin K is one of the few ingredients found to actually work to improve problems with capilliaries that create a darkened look under the skin around your eyes. To work properly vitamin K has to penetrate the top layer of the skin and needs protection from deterioration in the cream or gel. Look for a product that carries microencapsulated vitamin K for maximum effectiveness. Vitamin C is another antioxidant ingredient that is used in place of vitamin K and is also best used in microencapsulated form. Some sensitivity can occur in either of these ingredients so make sure you can return the product if it causes problems.

2. Kojic acid: a safe natural skin lightening ingredient which is commonly used in many eye creams of all types. Kojic acid lifts the appearance of dark skin which contributes to the tired look around the eyes that plagues us as we get older. It is also a safe ingredient for use in the sensitive eye area.

3. Sunscreen: a UV blocker probably containing titanium dioxide is a common ingredient in eye creams since sun exposure is responsible for quite a bit of the skin damage you see in the under eye area. Incorporating a sunscreen into your eye cream is a very good idea to limit future damage. If your eye cream has no sunblock – use one on top and wear large framed sun specs.

Quite apart from these key actives your eye cream or gel will have a whole range of ingredients making up the base formulation and these will include moisture boosting agents to plump out your wrinkles and protect the under eye area from further harm.

The important thing is to be an intelligent consumer and choose with care after doing your research. If it fails to work or causes a problem take it back and try again. There are many excellent products out there and there is one waiting with your name on it to help you look younger and more beautiful as you age!

Preventing Eye Wrinkles – The Six Most Important Things You Can Do

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Preventing eye wrinkles is much easier than getting rid of them. Life style plays a huge part in how our skin looks and there are some immediate steps you can take to make sure you never get those glaring signs of age!

Reduce sun exposure
The first and most important tip is to reduce your exposure to the sun. We know now that increased sun exposure damages skin and dries it out. This is not to say live in a cave – sunlight is also good for us. But cover up as necessary, use a sun screen and for the area around the eyes, use a quality pair of sun glasses. Sun causes 80% of wrinkling. Enough said.

Quit smoking
Secondly, quit smoking. There is a direct relationship between the development of deep wrinkles and smoking. You may think this only affects the skin around the mouth. In fact, you use just about every muscle in your face if you smoke and in addition, you’re exposing your skin to carcinogens and drying it out. Want to prevent eye wrinkles? Just one more reason to give up those ciggies.

Diet
Third, eat properly. Preventing eye wrinkles is much easier if your skin has the nutrients it needs to stay young and healthy. By far the most important nutrients in this case are antioxidants. As we age, our skin oxidizes and free radical activity accelerates, actually damaging skin cells. Antioxidants are natural antidotes to this. Lots of fruit and raw vegetables will go a long way.

Moisturize
The fourth tip in preventing eye wrinkles consistently moisturizing. Skin with the proper moisture balance does not wrinkle as quickly as dry skin. Olive oil, avocado oil and babussu oil are particularly well suited emollients to prevent eye wrinkles.

Makeup habits
Five, watch the kind of makeup you use and remove it as soon as you can. Cheap makeup just isn’t good for your skin. Of course, not using makeup would be the best option. I have to admit it isn’t one for me – I use makeup and I always will! I don’t go out without eye liner and mascara but I wash it off when I get home and I use quality products.

Use a natural eye contour gel
The final tip in preventing eye wrinkles is to start using a natural eye contour gel with ingredients formulated specifically for the area around the eyes. The right gel will bring all the nutrients your skin needs to stay young, radiant and wrinkle free. Be careful to get one with the right ingredients though because there’s a lot of junk out there.