Be Gentle with the Skin around Your Eyes

The skin around the eyes is medically known as the periocular area – the skin around the eyeball but contained within the limits of the eye socket. This area is not only an extremely sensitive area but also calls attention and adds to the appearance of a person’s face. This area is the reason why long nights without sleep and the accompanying sallow or baggy eyes makes can make an entire face appear drastically sullen. In the same way, sagging skin and wrinkles above the eyes, in the corners of the eyes, and under the eyes can make a person look much older than they are.

The periocular skin is much thinner than facial skin – about 10 times more so – and is has a different anatomy than the rest of the face and the body. As such, it requires unique and tender care and special skincare products. The products that you usually find on cosmetic shelves for the rest of your face and body are not usually made with the special needs of the periocular in mind. Products used in this delicate area should be gentle enough – non-abrasive and without irritants.

There are some commonly espoused lifestyle doctrines that we all know but find so hard to adhere to sometimes. These same doctrines can protect and maintain the health of the periocular area. Drink enough water, get regular exercise, don’t smoke, eat your fruits and vegetables, don’t stay in the sun, and get enough sleep. In addition to these, use gentle but effective topical products, like some of the Obagi skin products made for this area.

Obagi ELASTIderm products are a mixture of gentle ingredients with ingredients effective against wrinkles and premature aging. Obagi ELASTIderm Eye products contain zinc and copper for the restoration of elasticity, malonic acid, which stimulates new growth of skin cells, blueberry extract which acts as an antioxidant, and Penetrating Therapeutics which is a set of Obagi technologies that deepen penetration into the skin. ELASTIderm is available as a cream and a gel.

There is also the Obagi Nu-Derm Eye Cream, which is light in consistency and helps to keep the area around the eye moisturized. Professional C Serum 5% is also for the eye area. L-ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) can be readily absorbed into the skin and supplies antioxidant benefits while preventing signs of aging.