Getting rid of eye bags without surgery, is it possible?

I was struck by the number of questions I received in the office on how to remove bags under the eyes. And the truth is that this is a topic that has been repeated a lot lately in my group of friends. I don’t know if it’s because we’re getting older, but it’s clear that it worries us (a lot). The most repeated question is whether there is the possibility of get rid of them without having to resort to surgery and the answer is clear: no. Paloma Borregón, doctor of medicine, dermatologist and medical director of the Kalosia Clinic in Madrid, has confirmed it to me emphatically: “People ask us a lot about this topic, it is something very common in consultations.” With your help, I answer all your questions about bags under the eyes.

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Many of our readers have asked us if it is possible to get rid of eye bags without surgery. What would you tell them?

I would say no, you can’t get rid of them without surgery. The most important thing here is the proper diagnosis. Sometimes patients come to our office because they look tired, but it is us, the doctors, who have to diagnose whether what they have are fat bags or dark circles, which can be pigmented (brown) dark circles. bluish because the veins underneath are visible, or sunken circles under the eyes. It may be the case that we have both, but if we focus on the bags, the bags are surgical. We can do a little camouflage with some aesthetic medicine techniques. That is, we can make them less noticeable, but the treatment is really surgical.

Why do they appear?

The eye bags are fat compartments that when we are younger are well attached to the skin because they are held by a ligament. Over the years we have more lax ligaments and that pocket of fat herniates through that ligament that is less tense. For this reason, each year they become more and more noticeable, due to the effect of gravity that makes that bag heavy and, as the ligament no longer holds it, it becomes noticeable below the eyes. That’s why it’s surgical, because it really is a bag of fat that weighs and if we don’t remove it, it will get heavier every year.

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Are there people with more tendencies than others?

Indeed. In fact, it is known that there is a certain genetic predisposition and it is inherited from parents to children. On the other hand, the loss of collagen also plays a role, which causes the ligaments to relax and then, of course, the effect of gravity. But above all it is that genetic predisposition.

Can eye bags be prevented? as?

I would really say no, they cannot be prevented. What we can do is act soon, that is, not wait for the stock market to be super marked to operate it, because really every year it is going to be worse.

If we already have them, what type of routines and treatments do you recommend?

Aside from the fact that surgery is ideal, if we do not want surgery we can use creams that contain some components that improve fluid retention, such as eye contours that contain caffeine and we can also add contours with retinol, which stimulates the eye a little. collagen. But, I insist, the treatment must be surgical.

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Can short-term results be achieved?

Surgery is very short-term because it is immediate, and the rest of the options can help us camouflage them in the medium/long term. If we do not operate on them, what we can do is fill the area under the dark circle so that the subsidence is not noticeable. It would be a medical treatment, but it is nothing more than putting a patch on the problem.

Is there any cabin treatment that can help us?

I would say no, but hey, anything that promotes lymphatic drainage and makes the skin smoother is going to make it improve. This is the case, for example, of radiofrequency and, above all, radiofrequency with needles, because it will make that skin tighten.

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Another problem in this sense are miliums, why do they appear?

These cysts are punctured and removed. That does have a solution. They normally appear because the skin in that area is thinner and the accumulated keratin tends to stay there, that is, the content of the sebaceous gland gets stuck there and that is why you see those white balls.

Is there anything that favors its reproduction?

Creams that are very occlusive Anything that causes the follicle to become clogged

Can its appearance be prevented?

We can use retinol but with great care, because we are talking about the area near the eyelids and caution must be taken. They have to be retinols at very very low concentrations, so we can retinize, exfoliate… but with very mild retinols.

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Are there any products that we should include in our routine?

The products with retinoids that I mentioned, but always adapted to the eye contour. This is the proximity of the eyelids, which, since the skin is so thin, any retinol can irritate us.

In this sense, the doctor recommends these four products. “I love Colorescience contour because it’s a ‘3-in-1’ product that’s also a highlighter and concealer.” I have not tried the intensive depigmentation treatment for the eye contour from Cantabria Labs, but I totally agree with her about the other two.

One of my favorites for years is the ISDIN eye contour and its wonderful cold effect ceramic applicator. It reduces the appearance of bags and dark circles, restores skin elasticity and greatly decongests the area. I recommend you sign up for the SkinCeuticals anti-wrinkle cream, which improves the skin around the eyes thanks to its formula with caffeine and which also provides immediate luminosity hiding tiredness or dull skin tone.