How to deal with puffiness under the eyes??

Hello Around every 3 months or so, the skin under my eyes becomes like sand paper and fills with fluid on my ckeek bones, so I look as if I have been crying for hours. I have tried various creams. It does eventually go. I am 75

No matter what our age, it seems like we all have problems sometimes with puffiness under the eyes.  It tends to get worse as we age because the skin becomes looser and there’s more room for fluid to collect.  Crying makes all of us puffy even though it can be incredibly therapuetic!  After a good cry, rinse the salt off, put a cold pack over your eyes for 5-10 minutes and then apply a light eye cream.

Several things will help but first your general health.  If this is a sudden change you might want to ask your doctor to check your thyroid or look at any changes in your medications (certain ones help with puffiness and others aggravate it).

These things help with puffy eyes:

  • Avoid everything salty and read the labels – lots of salt in restaurant food, soups and cheese;
  • Drink at least 8 glasses a day of water in addition to other things like tea or coffee;
  • Avoid cheap carbs like baked goods, and anything with white flour or sugar –  these cause fluid retention;
  • Sleep with an extra pillow if it’s okay with your neck or put something under your mattress that elevates the head off the bed by several inches;
  • Occasionally Botox / Dysport may aggravate under eye puffiness.

Products for puffy eyes:

  • Apply a light eye cream no more than twice a day –  a too heavy eye cream may aggravate the puffiness
  • Look for ones that say they are for puffy eyes or more gel based ones like the antioxidants SkinCeuticals AOX eye gel or the organic Eminence Neroli Serum.

Hope this helps,  Dr. I

Read skincare recommended by a dermatologist for eye issues.

Dr. Brandith Irwin, MD

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Hi, I’m Dr. Irwin. I believe that consumers deserve a medically trained and unbiased skin care advocate.

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