10 Home Remedies For Bags Under Eyes
Our eyes are one way that we communicate with others. If someone’s saying one thing, a glance into their eyes can reveal whether they’re telling the truth, whether they’re enthusiastic, or whether they’re thinking about something else. Unfortunately, the skin underneath our eyes also tells a tale. If we’re communicating with someone while we’re boasting a pair of dark, gray bags underneath our eyes, we’re telling them a lot more: maybe we’re sick, maybe we didn’t get enough sleep, or maybe we’re dealing with a lot of stress.
Not everyone wants to walk around advertising the fact that they’re dealing with a lot of stress, however. This can bring on a lot of unwanted comments and questions, and sometimes it’s easier to just cover up the physical symptom until we’re able to deal with the cause ourselves. There are a lot of pharmaceutical products designed to help heal eye bags. However, these products are often expensive, filled with questionable chemicals, and may not be the best to put on our sensitive skin. For this reason, it can be a good idea to seek out some natural remedies for helping to clear out these dreaded eye bags.
In this article, we’re going to talk about some of the best home remedies for treating eye bags. Many of these remedies simply utilize herbs, spices, and foods that are fantastic for our skin in general—so if any of these remedies are able to help enhance the skin under your eyes, you can safely assume that they can help you enhance your skin in other areas.
Home Remedy #1: Cold Spoons
Many people notice that when their eyes are baggy, they also become a bit puffy. One of the best things to quickly manage this is to use a pair of spoons that you’ve been storing in the fridge or freezer (though be careful not to store them in the freezer for too long—if they get too frosty, they might stick to your skin!)
All you need to do is apply these cold spoons to the bags under your eyes. The cold will help to constrict the blood vessels in the area, which should reduce the swelling temporarily.
Home Remedy #2: Sliced Potatoes
Another remedy that has been used for many decades—or possibly centuries—to help heal bags under the eyes is sliced potatoes. Cut a few slices of half-inch thick potato, each being big enough to mask your entire eye. Lie in a comfortable position and cover your eyes with a slice of potato, remaining still for about ten minutes.
Continue repeating this process with fresh slices of potato until you notice that the bags are reducing in size and intensity. The reason that this happens is because potatoes are rich with an anti-inflammatory compound known as catecholase, which helps to ward off inflammation in the skin and other areas.
Home Remedy #3: Egg Whites
Egg whites are known to work as a topical astringent, meaning that they’re able to tighten up swollen or loose skin. For this reason, they can be considered a great addition to anyone’s tool kit if they’re hoping to fight off baggy eyes.
An easy way to use these egg whites is to whisk a couple of them together. It’s best to use refrigerated egg whites—the cool temperature will also help to reduce the eye bags. Apply these under your eyes and let them sit for about ten minutes until you can feel your skin tightening.
Home Remedy #4: Tea Bags
Tea bags, especially green tea bags, are a great way to help you fight off baggy eyes.
Green tea is filled with antioxidants, it’s known to be an anti-inflammatory, and it also works as an astringent. These three factors mean that green tea is a great weapon for fighting eye bags caused by a number of different issues.
Home Remedy #5: Cucumber
You’ve probably seen pictures of people with face masks and cucumber slices covering their eyes. While this might look a bit silly to the inexperienced observer, cucumber slices are certainly a great way to help someone manage their eye bags.
Cucumbers contain a compound known as caffeic acid. This compound works to help restrict blood vessels under the skin; if the cucumbers are fresh out of the fridge then the cool temperature will help as well.
Home Remedy #6: Milk
Some people have reported success in minimizing their eye bags by using milk. Whole milk is reportedly best for this process.
The easiest way to do this is to soak a cotton ball in whole milk, squeeze off any excess, and then hold these cotton balls under your eyes until you notice a reduction in the swelling.
Home Remedy #7: Aloe Vera
Aloe vera is a wonderful herb that can be used to help treat a number of skin-related ailments, including baggy eyes.
Aloe vera can be found in a huge number of over-the-counter products, but your best bet is to get some actual aloe vera if you can find it. You can slice the plant and hold it directly under your eyes to experience immense improvement.
Home Remedy #8: Rose Water
If you grow roses, then you’re not only growing a beautiful flower but a wonderful medicinal plant.
A concoction made of rose petals simmered in water will provide you with a vitamin-rich astringent liquid that can also help to fight inflammation. Soaking a cotton ball in this infusion and holding it under your eyes can help to reduce swelling.
Home Remedy #9: Witch Hazel
Witch hazel is one of the best-known natural antiseptics and can significantly help to reduce eye bags and swelling.
Just as with some of the other remedies here, the easiest way to use witch hazel is to apply a small amount to a cotton ball and hold this under your eyes. Bonus points if the witch hazel is chilled!
Home Remedy #10: Baking Soda
Baking soda has all sorts of interesting uses, and one of them is helping to reduce eye bags. One of the reasons for this is because it works as a natural exfoliant and can help bring a healthy color back to your eye bags.
Mixing baking soda in water and applying with a cotton ball is a great way to experience these benefits.