Topical Caffeine For Eyes
Posted: Thursday, October 14, 2010
by Ananda Mahony
Vitale Natural Skin Care
Instead of drinking your daily caffeine hit, you could try applying it to the delicate skin around your eyes.
Dehydration and other skin problems can be worsened by drinking too much coffee, tea or caffeine-containing soft drink. A diuretic, caffeine will increase water loss from the body. A high caffeine intake coupled with a low water intake will lead to both body and skin dehydration.
Producing no sebum, the eye area can be drier that skin on the rest of the face. It is much thinner than other facial skin making it more sensitive and prone to reactions. It has a dense capillary network and has limited fat padding, making the area prone to puffiness.
When applied to the tissue around the eye area the stimulating effect of caffeine helps to tighten the skin by reducing capillary permeability (leaky blood micro-vessels) and increases constriction thereby moving the fluid away from the eye area. This effect has been shown to help with puffy bags which are characterised by fluid build up and leaky micro-vessels. Puffy eyes, skin sag and fatty deposits below the eye are individual issues and as such should be managed differently. Puffy eyes will be most prominent in the mornings and clear up towards the afternoon and evening. For clarity, caffeine is unlikely to have a positive effect on saggy skin. At this stage there isn't enough research to show if it will assist with fat deposits under the eyes despite the stimulating effect it has on lipolysis.
Eye care products that contain caffeine may also help with dark circles due to their ability to reduce capillary permeability however dark circles are notoriously difficult to treat topically and can often be the result of other health issues. Green tea is a rich source of caffeine however for best effects pure caffeine sourced from coffee or coffee itself should be used. Look for products that utilise organic caffeine from coffee and Fair Trade organic green tea to ensure a stimulating effect.
Your organic skin expert http://vitaleblog.org. As a naturopath Ananda Mahony ND has been involved in the natural skin care industry for many years both developing and sourcing specialist products. She specialises in the treatment of skin disorders such as acne, eczema, rosacea and dermatitis as well as anti-aging
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