Dark circles around eyes

When there is dark spots around our eyes, we all know that these are black circles. Generally speaking, dark circles appear due to staying up late for a long time or aging. Especially those who have poor blood circulation are more likely to have dark circles. Getting enough rest can speed up the disappearance of dark circles. However, for dark circles caused by other reasons, symptomatic treatment is required.

Dark circles are caused by staying up late, mood swings, eye fatigue and aging, which lead to slow blood flow in the blood vessels of the eye skin and stagnation; insufficient oxygen supply to the tissues and excessive accumulation of metabolic waste in the blood vessels cause eye pigmentation. As people age, the subcutaneous fat around their eyes becomes thinner, so dark circles become more obvious.

Dark circles around the eyes

There are two types of dark circles. One is cyan dark circles, which are caused by blood retention in the microvessels; the other is brown dark circles, which are caused by incomplete melanin production or metabolism. Dark circles under the eyes are more common in people with irregular work and rest schedules, especially in young people. Dark circles under the eyes are mostly related to aging. Long-term sun exposure causes pigmentation around the eyes, forming dark circles over time. There are many causes of dark circles under the eyes, such as:

1. Genetic constitution and physiological structure

When the skin around the eye sockets is particularly thin and the subcutaneous tissue is particularly scarce, when blood flows through the large veins here, a blue-black halo will appear very close to the surface of the skin, which looks like dark circles.

2. Lack of sleep

There are many microvessels around the eyes. Staying up late prevents the eyelids from getting rest, causing the blood vessels to remain tense and contracted, and blood flow to increase for a long time, causing congestion and edema of the blood vessels in the subcutaneous tissue around the eyes, leaving behind dark shadows.

3. People who are weak due to long-term illness or have just recovered from a serious illness

Due to the weak subcutaneous tissue around the eyes, the skin is prone to pigmentation, which is easily revealed on the upper and lower eyelids, resulting in the appearance of a layer of dark circles.

4. Inflammation

Genetic atopy or allergic contact dermatitis may cause dark circles around the eye sockets.

5. Others

For example, dark circles under the eyes may be caused by excessive use of cosmetics, smoking, aging, irregular menstruation, late pregnancy, excessive sexual intercourse, and certain liver and kidney diseases.

Clinical manifestations

Dark circles caused by different reasons have different manifestations, common examples include:

1. Congenital increased eye skin pigmentation

The orbicularis oculi muscle is congenitally thicker, or the skin around the eyes is darker or deeper than the skin around the eyes. Such dark circles are mostly dark gray.

2. Blood flow stagnation in eyelid blood vessels

Staying up late, increased stress, excessive thinking, lack of sleep, etc. can cause the skin around the eyes to darken, mostly bluish-black. Things can return to normal after removing the above-mentioned causes.

3. Pigmentation

If you often use cosmetics, often draw eyeliner and mascara, and do not remove makeup thoroughly, some dark cosmetic particles may penetrate into the eyelids, which may cause dark circles.

4. Unbalanced nutrition

Abnormal diet and iron deficiency can lead to anemia, which can also cause dark circles under the eyes, often accompanied by pale lips and conjunctiva.

5. Allergic rhinitis

Patients with allergic rhinitis may also experience dark circles under their eyes. Because the eyes and nose are connected through the nasolacrimal duct, allergic inflammatory reactions in the nose and even pathogens such as nasal bacteria can spread to the eyes through the nasolacrimal duct, causing redness, tearing, and swelling of the eyes. In severe cases, it can cause bags under the eyes.

6. Eyelid aging and sagging

It occurs in the elderly when the skin becomes wrinkled and becomes darker than the surrounding skin.

7. Eye shadow

Shadows caused by eye bags or depressions in the lower inner side of the eye sockets forming tear troughs.