Are Your Eyes Giving Away your Age?
What is it about our eyes that gives away any slipups like lack of sleep, whether we had a little too much to drink, consumed too much salt or worse yet, our age? Sadly, most of the time fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes make us look "older" than we really are - not younger.
There are life style changes that can immediately help to reduce chronic puffiness or dark circles. Don't over or under sleep - both of these poor habits can cause dark circles. 7-8 hours of sleep is sufficient, any less or more than that and expect to see those pesky dark circles. Think twice the next time you think about sleeping in on the weekend. Sleeping on your stomach causes puffiness. The best way to prevent puffiness is to sleep on 2-3 elevated pillows.
Eating foods high in salt or following a high sodium diet in general contributes to puffiness. This is not just limited to fast-food or fried dishes. Foods typically high in sodium that you may not be aware of include salad dressings, lox, soup mixes and canned soup, spaghetti sauce, olives, canned vegetables, canned soup, cheese, cold cuts/lunch meat, pepperoni/sausage, and pickles. As well as the usual suspects chips, pork, bacon, frozen dinners, MSG laced takeout. That so-called healthy Subway sandwich you consume will probably impact your eyes the same way that slice of pepperoni pizza will. Limit consumption of both, and enjoy with plenty of water instead of the soda.
Too much alcohol causes water retention, especially around the eyes. To make matters worse, most alcoholic beverages are consumed with foods high in salt- think Wine and Cheese, Beer and Chips/pretzels...Try a healthy salad with low sodium dressing the next time you want to drink and stay hydrated with plenty of water. For every six (6) ounces of an alcoholic beverage you consume (glass of wine or a martini) drink one large (8) ounce glass of water to minimize the negative impact to your eye area. The old adage applies, drink in moderation - alcohol is your body's worst enemy for water retention, especially around your eyes.
Now what about the fine lines and wrinkles that seem to creep-up on us overnight? I am often asked why wrinkles are so much more prominent around the eyes in comparison to the cheeks and forehead.
The epidermis (top layer of skin) is a lot thinner around the eyes than it is in other areas such as the forehead or cheeks. Thinner skin tends to form wrinkles a lot easier than thicker skin. The sun, environmental pollutants, and facial expressions impact the eye area more so than other parts of the face.
Most people do not apply sunscreen around the eyes nor do they where sunglasses with proper UVA/UVB protection. Couple this with the fact that smiling and facial expressions most impacts the skin around the eyes and you have the perfect recipe for premature aging.
Diet, facial expressions, sleeping habits, and the sun - these all contribute to the fact that on average people with fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes can look 5 to 7 years older than they truly are.
There are immediate "instant gratification" solutions to this problem such as, Botox®, but this is NOT a long-term solution. Botox® is not going to address the underlying source of premature aging NOR prevent this problem from getting worse.
A good eye cream is your NBF....your new best friend. Whether you're on a daily regimen to treat your skin, maintenance, or preparing to have procedures. A "functional" eye cream - one that goes beyond just "hydrating skin" will correct and prevent fine lines and wrinkles.
ElastiDerm Eye Cream is one of the most effective on the market to reduce the appearance of visible lines and wrinkles and dramatically change the way you look. It effectively restores the elasticity around your eyes with gentle, yet powerful active ingredients.
46% increase in elasticity
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Elastiderm is documented to give you a 46% increase in elasticity and reduce the number of visible wrinkles by 16% in 9 weeks (documented of course by medical studies performed by Obagi Medical Products)
- Bi-mineral Complex: Includes zinc and copper to help restore elasticity and build collagen
- Malonic Acid: Patent-pending Obagi formulation that helps stimulate the production of healthy skin cells
- Blueberry Extract: Provides antioxidants that help eliminate free radicals which deprive skin of its youthful glow and reduce dark circles
- Penetrating Therapeutics™: An Obagi technology that helps drive the ingredients deep into the skin.
Reduce visible wrinkles by 16%
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ELASTIderm will change the way you think about eye treatments and the way you look and feel. It is used twice daily. In the morning apply before your sunscreen and at night apply as your last step.
Feel free to call our office or speak directly to me if you have any additional questions or concerns.
Thank You for Reading!
Sandra Obagi
Medical Esthetician
