Most Replayed Moment: No.1 Eye Doctor Reveals The Truth About Dark Circles, Diet and Blue Light!

Steven Bartlett (0:03)

I want to talk to you about bags under my eyes, a subject that I know a lot of people are interested in. And there's a lot of misconceptions around how we get bags under our eyes. I think most people think bags under their eyes are because they're tired or something. And is there a difference between having bags under my eyes and having sort of dark circles under my eyes?

Joseph Allen (0:24)

So when it comes to having dark circles under eye bags, dark circles is something that people are definitely concerned about. It's a huge topic online. I see all the time people ask about it in the eye clinic. Having dark circles under the eyes is technically different than having under eye bags. But if you have under eye bags, it'll make the appearance of dark circles worse.

Steven Bartlett (0:46)

Okay.

Joseph Allen (0:47)

So dark circles in the clinic, we think, first, what's somebody's skin pigmentation like? Is the dark circle just because they have more pigmentation? And if you're somebody who spends a lot of time in the sunlight, you are more likely to develop darker skin complexion around the eyelids. The eyelids are some of the thinnest, most delicate tissue of skin on your body. And in fact, a lot of people who don't know this, but under having skin cancer on your lower eyelids is actually pretty high. So it's good to be wearing either a wide-brim hat or sunglasses to protect the eyes from sunlight damage.

The other kind of components is that if you have vascular changes, so myself, I have a really pale complexion. If I have bad allergies, that can cause the blood vessels around my eyelids to dilate. And so you'll see that color of just the blood vessels coming through the skin a lot easier. And then there's orbital shadow effects. Because some people's orbits, they have more prominent brow. It may kind of cast a shadow onto the lower eyelid. And that's where having under-eye bags can also make the eyelids seem like they're, have kind of dark circles. Because the eyelids are puffy. And you can have puffiness of the eyelids for multiple reasons. Allergies are a big one. Salt content of the cheer film. And even in your body can make some of those changes. I know for myself, if I have a cheat day and I eat a bunch of greasy, delicious pizza, the next morning, I can feel that my skin in my face is maybe a little bit more puffy. Thankfully, that goes away within a few hours. But that's why a lot of times, even just doing cold compresses, right? You see people put cucumbers on their eyes. A lot of that is more have to do with just the cooling temperature. Doing a cold compress for 10 at max 15 minutes can bring some of that puffiness down. And that can at least help improve the appearance.

Steven Bartlett (2:47)

So if I have a really salty diet the night before, there's a greater probability I'll wake up with bags under my eyes?

Joseph Allen (2:55)

Possibly.

Steven Bartlett (2:56)

Okay.

Joseph Allen (2:56)

I've tried to research this to find any real publications to see if it's really there. And I couldn't find anything. But I know from just my own anecdotal experience that if I eat a really high salt diet, and I've done over the last eight years, I've really done a better job. I know you have too of thinking about my diet, how that affects me, how my body feels after I eat something. And so I've noticed if I have a cheat day, that sort of thing can happen.

Steven Bartlett (3:23)

And what's the sort of physiological rationale for salt playing a role?

Joseph Allen (3:28)

So your tear film, for example, your tear, like I know some people will say, hey, if I watch a sad movie and I cry at night time, the next morning, my eyes are super puffy. So your tears have salt in them. And because if you ever cried and tasted your tears, they taste salty, right? So the challenge is that when you have salt, it'll draw fluid into the tissues. And so if people cry the night before, the salt remaining in the tears basically get into the tear ducts and sit on the surface of the eye and the eyelids, and then that can draw fluid into those tissues.

Steven Bartlett (4:03)

Does hydration play a role?

Joseph Allen (4:05)

That's also something that's been looked at in research. It's not really conclusive. I think hydration is still something we need to, I do encourage people to at least be aware of their hydration. For dry eye, there is some research that indicates that people who are, drink more water, tend to have less severe symptoms of dry eye.