Puffy Eyes

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Puffy Eyes

A Fast-Action Plan for Morning Pouches

For once the popular perception is correct. Crying does cause puffy eyes. So can lack of sleep, says Marianne O'Donoghue, M.D., associate professor of dermatology at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago.

When To See A Doctor If you wake up and one eyelid has swollen to three times the size of the other, call your doctor. It may be a sign of hives, or an allergic reaction to an insect bite, says Marianne O'Donoghue, M.D., associate professor of dermatology at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago. Also, see your doctor if your lids don't close all the way over your eyeballs (a possible sign of thyroid disease).

Crying and lack of sleep aren't the most common cause, though. "Sleeping on your face is probably the easiest way to get puffy eyes," says Dr. O'Donoghue. You're also more likely to wake up with puffy sacks if you're menstruating or pregnant and retaining fluid, say doctors. Ditto if you eat salty foods or drink anything--even fresh filtered water--less than two hours before you go to bed.

The fluid simply has to go somewhere, and sometimes it ends up in temporary pouches under your eyes, says Dr. O'Donoghue.

DO'S AND DON'TS FOR IMMEDIATE RELIEF

If you want to erase puffiness before you start your day, say doctors, here's what you can do.

Don't rub. If you do, says Dr. O'Donoghue, your eyes will get irritated and red--and stay puffy.

Employ a cold compress. Dunk a washcloth in cool water (or wrap ice cubes in a washcloth) and place it on your closed eyes, suggests Dr. O'Donoghue. When the cloth gets warm, wring it out and repeat. Do this three or four times. "This takes just a few minutes, but it will help drain the puffs under your eyes," she says.

Apply a cold tea bag wrapped in tissue. Tea contains tannin, a natural astringent. "The tannin in the tea may help pull the skin taut and reduce puffiness," says Dr. O'Donoghue. Five minutes should be all you need.

It is a good idea to wrap the tea bag in tissue. Otherwise, the tea will stain your skin, creating a raccoon effect. And tannic acid (a derivative of tannin) can sting, explains Dr. O'Donoghue. So keep your eyes shut.

NO MORE PUFFINESS, EVER

So much for deflating puffy eyes today. To prevent future episodes:

Raise your head with pillows. Two or three pillows will help keep fluids from pooling under your eyes, says Monica L. Monica, M.D., Ph.D., an ophthalmologist in New Orleans and spokesperson for the American Academy of Ophthalmology. But it takes hours.

Avoid salty foods and alcohol. Increasing the amount of salty foods (like chips and pickles) that you eat and drinking alcohol make you retain fluids that can collect in the eye area (and elsewhere), says Dr. O'Donoghue.