The appearance of puffy eyes can make us look more tired and more aged than we actually are. Thankfully, there are several options for improving the appearance of puffy eyes, including bags under the eyes and general eyelid puffiness. At 8 West Clinic in Vancouver BC, Facial Plastic Surgeon Dr. Thomas Buonassisi works alongside an experienced team of skin specialists. We've been helping patients achieve their goals for 15 years, and offer the comprehensive set of both surgical and non surgical treatments for improving puffy eyes and eyelid bags.
Why Do You Have Puffy Eyes or Eye Bags?
As we age, the tissues and muscles supporting your eyelids weaken. This usually happens at around the same time that we start to lose elasticity in our skin, which is a natural part of the aging process. Sun exposure is particularly evident in the fragile eyelid skin area, and this is often one of the first parts of the face to show the signs of aging. A natural loss of collagen over time contributes to lax and sagging skin, which becomes unable to hold back the area around the eyelid orbit. Fat and other structures that were previously confined by the surrounding tissues start to sag and bulge, giving the appearance of bags under the eyes. The upper eye area ages in a similar way, causing the appearance of extra skin to accumulate above the lash line, making it more difficult for women to apply makeup. Some people with lower eyelid hollowness will also notice dark circles under the eyes, which can be caused by shadowing or vascular conditions. Large pockets of loose and puffy skin lower down on the cheekbone area are called malar bags and require a different approach. There are several factors that contribute to puffy eyelids, and a consultation with a skin and eyelid specialist is essential for proper diagnosis:
- Fluid retention: changes in skin due to changes in weather (for example, hot, humid days),
- Salty foods: you might notice that your eye bags are worse after salt consumption
- Lack of sleep: can make puffy eyelids look worse
- Allergies or dermatitis: if your puffiness is accompanied by redness and itching
- Heredity: eyelid puffiness and under eye bags often runs in families
- Sun damage: The eyelid skin is particularly fragile and one of the first parts of the face to age - as evidenced by changes in skin color (hyper pigmentation), skin laxity and fine lines and wrinkles
Preventing Aging in the Eyelid Area
The fragile skin of the eye area is often the first to show the signs of aging. Many of us will notice changes in skin tone and texture, fine lines and wrinkles as early as our late 20s. Wrinkles around the eyes are dramatically improved with Botox or Dysport, and youthful cheek and eye contours can often be restored with dermal fillers. For patients who wish to proactively prevent eyelid aging, there are many options available. There is no question that sun exposure contributes significantly to eyelid aging. Medical grade skin care products use age appropriate combinations of ingredients that protect and strengthen the skin. Advances in medical technologies now mean that we can actually stop and reverse the signs of aging with treatments like BBL Forever Young™, which in Stanford research studies has been shown to suppress the genes that cause aging. Schedule a consultation today if you would like to find out more about the anti aging treatments that we specialize in.
How to Get Rid of Puffy Eyes
There are a range of surgical and non surgical treatments for helping you get rid of puffy eyes, or removing eyelid bags. Of course, a consultation with a specialist is key to properly determining the cause of your eyelids bags and recommending treatments that are effective and appropriate given your tolerance for downtime and budget. Possible treatments include:
- Blepharoplasty or eyelid surgery: if your eyelid bags are caused by lax skin and herniated pockets of fat and you have extra skin, the gold standard is blepharoplasty surgery, which can be performed on the upper or lower eyelids.
- Skin tightening: lax skin can be tightened and thickened with non surgical treatments such as SkinTyte™, which over a course of several treatments stimulates the production of collagen.
- Eyelid laser resurfacing: advances in technology mean that medical grade laser resurfacing can be highly effective in improving the appearance of the eyelid area. Deep laser resurfacing treatments such as the Contour TRL™ have a longer downtime but produce dramatic improvements. Lighter or less invasive laser resurfacing treatments such as the MicroLaserPeel have a shorter downtime and are usually done in a series to improve the eyelids.
- Eye creams: medical grade skin care products can't fix your eyelid puffiness but can help to stop them from getting worse. Protecting your eyelids from sun damage and using age appropriate combinations of ingredients in your eye products can subtly improve skin laxity.
- Dermal fillers: depending on the specifics of your eyelid puffiness, dermal fillers can be very effective at camouflaging eyelid puffiness or hollowness.
What Are You Waiting For?
Our team of skin and eyelid specialists are here to help assess your eyelid puffiness and recommend a treatment plan that is appropriate given your budget and tolerance for downtime. Contact us today, or call (604) 733-1669 and take one step closer to loving your skin.
