Dark Eye Circles

Dark circles under your eyes generally means darkening below both eyes. This is different from bruising caused by injury or redness caused by infection around only one eye.

Fatigue is the most common cause of dark circles under your eyes. Sometimes, what appear to be dark circles under your eyes may merely be shadows cast by puffy eyelids or hollows under your eyes that develop as a normal part of aging.

Common Causes

• Allergy
• Anemia
• Fatigue
• Heredity — dark under-eye circles can run in families
• Pigmentation irregularities — tend to occur in Africa-Americans and Asians
• Rubbing or scratching your eyes
• Sun exposure, which prompts your body to produce more melanin or pigment
• Thinning skin and loss of fat and collagen — common as you age — can make the reddish-blue blood vessels under your eyes more obvious

What can be done to improve dark under eye circles?

• Laser – can shrink the reddish-blue blood vessels under your eyes to fade the dark circles
• Chemical peel – can minimize the melanin as the skin exfoliate
• Filler injectibles – hollows that cause shadows can be smoothed
• Surgery – eyebag removal and eyelid lift can eliminate puffy lids to create a smooth contour around your eyes