Anyone have dark circles?

[iry]

Hi,

I wonder if anyone has dark circles and how dark circles have affect your lifestyle. And what are the methods that you have try to “combat” dark circles and how's the results?

Most of the methods that I found online are listed as following:

• Put cucumber/potatoes under your eyes
• Use eye cream
• Sleep more
• Make up
• Reduce intake vitamin A, sugar and salt
• Apply vitamin K
• Detoxify ( due to kidney or liver malfunction )
• Exercise regulary

The dark circles mentioned here are not refering to dark circles that appear due to late night sleep, but dark circles that appear even you have a good night sleep, drink enough water and etc.

Please share you story. Thanks.

[Alvin]

I have really bad dark circles. The reason I've heard why even sleeping well doesn't get rid of them is that once they're there, they're there, sleeping more doesn't reduce them although other methods might.

[Jm4362]

I have dark circles... they aren't very pronounced excpt right near the lower inside corners of my eyes. I cover them up with makeup and you can still see them but they don't bother me all that much.

[michael.shearer]

I was recommended for mine to put temporarily steeped black tea teabags on them. Haven't done it, yet, but it was offered up by someone studying aruyvedic medicine.

[Dating Specialist]

I'm a victim too. And mine gets really worse when I sleep late (like now it's 2:21 am local time!) or when I get a bad night's sleep.

Ok, my friend told me his girlfriend tested this product and it really works wonderfully. I haven't use it yet. It's an eye cream from Chanel. Can't remember the name of the product though, but should be easy to found out through the counter.

[YouseffTheSheep]

I have circles under my eye. How dark are you talking about?

Mine can vary in darkness depending on how little or how much sleep I get, and are mostly some-what, or not noticeable. If you look like you have black eyes all the time, maybe you do need to change something. But if you just get them sometimes and they vary like mine... Well, It doesn't matter too much. It's like a defining mark, or a badge of courage!

[jpletting]

I have always had dark circles under my eyes--you can even see them in pictures of me as a child. My father also had dark circles, and I have been told it's genetic, the result of thin skin around the eye, which makes the subcutaneous blood vessels more visible. They have always bothered me, and I tried many things to get rid of them or cover them up before I learned there was no way I could literally make my skin "fatter" without cosmetic surgery (fat injections under the eye do exist!). I've had to learn to live with them and cover them up the best I can, which is difficult as they are really too dark to hide; makeup only makes them look worse. I'm going to try a couple of the remedies others have tried here and see if it might make any temporary improvement.

[The Yarnist]

Sometimes dark circles are caused by food allergies. My son gets them when he's exposed to gluten.

[iry]

Originally Posted by jpletting

I have always had dark circles under my eyes--you can even see them in pictures of me as a child. My father also had dark circles, and I have been told it's genetic, the result of thin skin around the eye, which makes the subcutaneous blood vessels more visible. They have always bothered me, and I tried many things to get rid of them or cover them up before I learned there was no way I could literally make my skin "fatter" without cosmetic surgery (fat injections under the eye do exist!). I've had to learn to live with them and cover them up the best I can, which is difficult as they are really too dark to hide; makeup only makes them look worse. I'm going to try a couple of the remedies others have tried here and see if it might make any temporary improvement.

hey same here .. and i also notice that my dark circles become worse after i start wearing glasses ( already wearing glasses more than 10 years now ). I've not plan changing my glasses to contact lenses because i think i've "contact lenses" phobia haha.. as i'm not used to putting some external object "on" my eyes.

[dsmoke]

I've been dairy-free for about 2 weeks as I try to work out some digestive issues. The dark circles under my eyes slowly went away, but I thought perhaps it was the vitamin K cream I used. Last night I had a bowl of ice cream before bed. When I woke up this morning, the dark circles were back, so I'm pretty sure that dairy consumption causes my dark circles. Today I did some research and discovered that dark circles are very common indicators of food allergies, particularly dairy allergies. Maybe you could try excluding dairy for a couple of weeks and see if that helps.

[barbesj]

According to Chinese Medicine, dark undereye circles are result of Kidney problems (the energy centers not necessarily the physical organs in your body)

I've developed them bad too recently and I know its because of recent allergy problems.... Getting acupuncture treatments would be great, but I haven't gotten to manifest that happening quite yet.

I"ve heard Hyxelin cream works great but its SOOO expensive, about $100 a bottle!

[Dave Kaminski]

Use Arbonne Eye Cream. It's costly but you wouldn't believe a.) how long it lasts and b.) how well it works. It's made from botanical stuff and was formulated in Switzerland, which I guess translates into high quality.

There's a review @ Erin's site, vegfamily.com They're vegan too, apparently!

[andrew]

I have had them since forever, and told they were genetic too.

Cow's milk eh? Milk is like my number one body import. I have it with everything and I love it. How can I have cereal without milk? Ahhhh! That almost seems unbarable.

Don't worry, I AM willing to try it, but that's like a total life style change. I'm almost hoping it wont work so I'd still be able to drink milk

[andrew]

Also, does this include like, all dairy products? Like cakes, and pudding, and sour cream, and cheese, and good god like my whole life?

Is there a test you can get done to see if you're allergic, instead of just changing your whole lifestyle for a month? I mean if it's just cutting out milk, okay, but not every single dairy product?! All the foods with cheese, like tacos, and lasagne, and cakes made with milk and brownies, oh man this is scary. I had no idea there was so much dairy in my life besides milk.

[Alvin]

Originally Posted by andrew

Also, does this include like, all dairy products? Like cakes, and pudding, and sour cream, and cheese, and good god like my whole life?

Is there a test you can get done to see if you're allergic, instead of just changing your whole lifestyle for a month? I mean if it's just cutting out milk, okay, but not every single dairy product?! All the foods with cheese, like tacos, and lasagne, and cakes made with milk and brownies, oh man this is scary. I had no idea there was so much dairy in my life besides milk.

Ouch Andrew, I feel you, I'm a desert lover and me loves my cakes and ice-cream!

But there's a ton of research that suggests that diary milk can be very bad for you, I suggest you do some reading and judge for yourself. I got my info offline but a quick search on Google turned up some links like this one: No Milk Page

[shesaboutspirit]

My daughter has them...and they look just like her Dad's. I had her treated with a natural technique for allergies many years ago...an acupressure technique. It helped with the sever dark circles and puffiness...and that sort of tired look. Though she looks great now, there does always seem to be that tendency to have permanent darkness under her eyes. She's twelve now, and playing with wearing make-up. I can easily see how the wrong color accentuates the circles...as well as wearing mascara on the bottom. I thought that was interesting.

good luck!

Pam

[Dharma]

Originally Posted by iry

Hi,

I wonder if anyone has dark circles and how dark circles have affect your lifestyle. And what are the methods that you have try to “combat” dark circles and how's the results?

Iry, what happens inside you when you notice the dark circles? What thoughts come to mind about the circles or about yourself?

[andrew]

Originally Posted by shesaboutspirit

My daughter has them...and they look just like her Dad's. I had her treated with a natural technique for allergies many years ago...an acupressure technique. It helped with the sever dark circles and puffiness...and that sort of tired look. Though she looks great now, there does always seem to be that tendency to have permanent darkness under her eyes. She's twelve now, and playing with wearing make-up. I can easily see how the wrong color accentuates the circles...as well as wearing mascara on the bottom. I thought that was interesting.

good luck!

Pam

Can you elaborate a bit more on this please? Thanks.

[andrew]

Also, is this an all or nothing deal? Like if I have some cheese or butter here and there, but that's it, will the effects still go way down, or will any trace of dairy cause the allergies?

[ReallyGoodIdeas]

I don't have the dark circles (off topic), but my daughter and i stopped dairy when she was very ill as a toddler (pneumonia, croup, constant conjunctivitis and tonsillitis). The allopathic doctors reckoned it was rubbish, but the naturopath suggested going off ALL dairy. It means checking the ingredients list on all packaged food. She was perfectly well again after the dairy had left her system, all up about 3 months later. But she had been VERY sick. It wouldn't surprise me that dark circles would be related.

The dairy sensitivity we have doesn't show up on the usual tests, you can only tell by going off it. I'm told its the cow's milk protein that causes it with us, ours is a sort of overstimulation of mucous problem, but I'd agree with purplepower and Alvin about the downside of milk. Just think about it, it's for baby cows, not grown humans! Hard to imagine it could be good for us...

Joy to you
Hazel

[iry]

Originally Posted by Dharma

Iry, what happens inside you when you notice the dark circles? What thoughts come to mind about the circles or about yourself?

My mood will sink every time I see my dark circles. Sometime a beautiful morning or event would just be ruined because of my down emotions due to dark circles.

[iry]

purplepower : Yea, I’ve done some research few days ago and I found out that dairy and gluten could be the factors also. My diets consist very little of dairy, probably 8-10% and I wonder if dairy really could be one of the causes of my dark circles.

Dave Kaminski: Thanks for the link. I’d heard a lot of good reviews about Arbonne eye cream and it definitely would be my next “to buy” item after my 30 trials on a DIY formula (if the formula shows no improvement on my dark circles)

[shesaboutspirit]

The technique I used for my daughter is called NAET. You can learn about it here NAET - Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Techniques

It worked for her. If I were to do this today...I might use EFT instead, only because I believe it's the same deal. Tapping on the bodies meridian points, while holding the offending substance close to your body. If you know how to muscle test, you can even verify that you're clear. Let me know if you want more info on that...

The best part of going in for treatment is knowing it will cover all of the odd little suspected allergens. But it is costly...and that bugs me. I believe good health is for everyone, not just people who can afford it.

EFT will also clear up the emotional feelings about the circles...which can alleviate a whole lot of the problem right there. If I didn't know EFT, I would go in for a session to learn how it works first hand...then I'd continue on my own...but that's just me, and a bit too independent most of the time.

Pam

[Iamsuperman]

Great post "purplepower"
I've made the switch to soy milk about 2 months ago, and i feel MUCH better.
The transition from cows milk to soy was relatively easy because there was simply a substitute. Are there any good substitutes for cheese?

I've tried processed soy cheese, i can't stand it but i might perhaps get used to it if there were no alternatives. Does anyone know any other substitutes?

[ReallyGoodIdeas]

Purplepower - I'd be interested! Since we're in the same boat...

Joy to you
Hazel

[hindweb]

you can soak cotton made wet with rose water (you get that in India or Indian stores) and leave it on the eye for some time.

[cela]

Food Intolerance Network

This is Sue Dengate's website that purplepower mentioned - heaps of great info there!

Cheers,
Claire

[Aiox]

Dark circles under the eyes is usually caused by sinus problems - "chronic nasal obstruction".

Go to a MD who specializes in allergies. Proper medical evaluation—done best by an allergist—will include careful review of your history and skin testing with food extracts (using a prick or puncture technique) to see whether an allergic mechanism is involved in your symptoms.

I have to disagree with the above ref NAET. NAET is an offshoot of Applied Kinesiology (AK), a very dubious pseudo-science.

I've looked into NAET throughly, and there are no systematic clinical trials or studies, none, that support it, and several that discount it entirely. Nambudripad funded one test herself, and never posted the
results.

The only evidence for NAET comes from testimonials. Not sound medical advice.

The whole idea behind NAET is senseless (bordering on the bizarre) and is virtually certain to "diagnose" nonexistent problems, hence more $$ for the practitioner, sometimes for treatment spanning years.

At best, it's placebo effect (which is a documented and well studied effect) is what accounts for the postive testimonials.

Note AK is not part of the science of kinesiology (the legimate study of the principles of mechanics and anatomy in relation to human movement).

Suggest you read this article on NAET before you shell out any money.

Some reading on Nambudripad's credentials as well as some clinical test results for AK muscle testing here.

Some suggested reading on AK from the National Council Against Health Fraud (NCAHF)
here.
More on AK here.

Sorry to vent, but I feel very strongly that NAET practitioners are misleading folks looking for relief from allergy symptions and profiting by from it. Further, NAET is being suggested for children with autism (nothing like preying on the vulnerable), and even for pets.

As one who suffers from allergies, and have walked the path, I advise you research this topic before spending one dollar of your money. It is very easy to get sucked into the NAET brainwashing machine.


Here's a post (and realize the seriousness of this) on how NAET practitioners work:

"My youngest had an anaphylactic response to cashews about a week and a half ago. I took her to the ER, of course, and got an epipen to carry around, but I wanted to do something more."

"I took her to NAET practitioner today. He checked me instead of her and will treat her through me. "

"What's bothering me is how he came to his conclusions about what to treat her for. He pressed on my arm and if I could not resist then she is allergic to whatever vial I was holding at the time. Sometimes, he pressed really hard and others he pressed hardly at all. I don't get it. He came up with protein (eggs), yeast, minerals, dairy, and organs. Dairy I get, but an allergy to protein, and who's allergic to minerals? And I dont' even know what he means by organs! Liver?"

Be careful folks.

[Lonewolf]

Try haemorroid cream - it's an old gayboy trick (eases swelling around the eyes).
The other thing is that dark circles can sometimes mean liver disease; or possibly you have an Indian ancestor (LOL).

[anow089]

Originally Posted by jpletting

I have always had dark circles under my eyes--you can even see them in pictures of me as a child. My father also had dark circles, and I have been told it's genetic, the result of thin skin around the eye, which makes the subcutaneous blood vessels more visible. They have always bothered me, and I tried many things to get rid of them or cover them up before I learned there was no way I could literally make my skin "fatter" without cosmetic surgery (fat injections under the eye do exist!). I've had to learn to live with them and cover them up the best I can, which is difficult as they are really too dark to hide; makeup only makes them look worse. I'm going to try a couple of the remedies others have tried here and see if it might make any temporary improvement.

me too everyone always thinks i'm on drugs, not sleeping/eating, getting beat up and everything. its horrible. does anyone know a good unnoticeable way to hide them.. i'm going to take my senior pictures for school..