How to Treat Thin Skin Under Eyes?

By now, you’ve probably noticed that the skin under your eyes is thinner than the skin on the rest of your face. That’s why this delicate skin puffs up more easily, is prone to dryness and fine lines, and displays dark circles.

If you’re dealing with thin skin under the eyes and want to take the best possible care of it and thicken it up a bit, here’s everything you need to know.

Causes of thin skin under eyes

Since the eye area is more delicate than the skin on the rest of our face, most people have thin — or at least thinner — skin around their eyes. “Your under eyes don’t have many oil glands and collagen, which makes it prone to dryness, fine lines, and early signs of aging,” explains cosmeti c dermatologist Michele Green.

If you’re wondering if you’re dealing with especially thin skin under the eyes, Dr. Green notes that some of the top symptoms include wrinkles, sunken eyes, unusually dark circles, and dry skin.

“Some people also have tear troughs, or deep creases in the under-eye area that casts a shadow and leads to the appearance of dark circles,” she adds. “There are both unchangeable and adjustable factors that can exacerbate thin skin or the appearance of it under the eyes and these include genetics, skin tone, aging, sleep deprivation, sun damage, tanning, smoking, and the use of certain medications.”

How to thicken up skin under the eyes

It’s not always possible to thicken up skin under the eyes. Dr. Green says that for many people, having thicker or thinner skin in this area is genetic. That being said, there are a handful of action steps you can take and lifestyle tweaks you can make that might help. These include:

Apply eye cream

Eye Creams are specially formulated treatment products with specific ingredients to target under eye concerns such as puffiness, under eye bags, and hollowness. “These creams may be formulated with a special delivery system to increase the efficacy of the ingredients,” Dr. Green explains.

Use retinol serum

When shopping for eye creams and thinking about the best possible eye care treatment plan, Dr. Green recommends looking for eye creams with retinol. “Eye creams with retinoids are great for tightening up the undereye area,” she says. “Retinoids are a form of vitamin A that stimulates skin cell turnover and collagen production. This helps with evening out the skin and reduces the appearance of fine lines.”

Protect from sun damage

SPF is everything when it comes to protecting the delicate skin around the eye area, and many of us don’t think to apply it. “It’s important to use a sunscreen with an SPF of 30+ on a daily basis in order to protect your skin from ultraviolet radiation, which causes premature aging and the prominence of wrinkles and fine lines,” Dr. Green says.

Have enough sleep

The Sleep Foundation recommends that adults get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep a night, but many of us aren’t getting nearly enough shuteye — and this is detrimental to the delicate skin under our eye area.

“Sleep allows the body to repair, therefore inadequate sleep will deprive the body of its regenerative cycle,” Dr. Green says. “While you sleep, your body goes through the natural cycle of cellular repair, replacing dead cells and restoring new ones. Inadequate sleep prevents the body from going through this natural process, which causes oxidative stress and leaves the skin looking sallow and your body and brain functioning ineffectively.”

Eat a healthy diet

As they say, you are what you eat — and your diet can have a significant impact on the skin under your eyes.

“Nutrition is very important, and an antioxidant-rich diet can give you the benefits of younger-looking skin,” Dr. Green says. “In addition to antioxidants, eating foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids will help cellular turnover and increase collagen production, giving you radiant and smoother-looking skin. Fatty fish such as salmon is a great source of omega-3 fatty acids, in addition to fruits such as berries and cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower, cabbage, and kale.”

Other techniques

In addition to the tips listed above, Dr. Green says it’s important to be extra gentle with your eyes. “Excessive eye rubbing can cause tiny blood vessels under your eyes to break, leading to wrinkles and dark circles,” she explains. “For that same reason, you have to be extra cautious when removing makeup from your eyes. Do not try to rub the makeup off. Instead, apply makeup remover to a cotton pad and leave it on your eye for 20 seconds before gently getting it off through dabbing and circular movements. Always make sure your hands are clean before touching your face, especially your eyes.”

While the skin around your eye area will always be thinner than the skin on the rest of your face, there are quite a few changes you can make if you’re looking to thicken up and take the best possible care of your under eye area. So don’t forget to get enough sleep, stock up on antioxidants and omega-3s, and apply that SPF.