By Sarah Kinonen, Allure
Confession time: I've become a bit of an insomniac within the past
year. Every night, the time I creep into bed gets later and later, and
when I do eventually climb into my Casper, I end up tossing and
turning for what feels like hours. Needless to say, come morning, the
lack of sleep is clearly evident on my face: I've got what you'd call
permanent dark under-eye circles. Ugh.
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Believe me, I've tried just about everything to hide them: extra coats of concealer, various shades of color correctors, and, when desperate enough, a deeper BB cream
shade. But I've got to be honest here: Sometimes, the makeup just
doesn't cut it — which is why when I recently heard a rumor that iced coffee
— as in the beverage I should have permanently IV-dripped into my veins
— could help clear up my purple-ish half moons, I was all ears.
Apparently, the idea is that coffee, when frozen into ice trays, can be used to de-puff and de-purple under-eye issues. Curious of the caffeinated drink's efficacy, I asked Elizabeth Tanzi, founder and director of Capital Laser & Skin Care
and associate clinical professor, department of dermatology at the
George Washington University Medical Center in Washington, D.C., about
the science behind the at-home hack. "The caffeine can constrict blood vessels, while the cooling can reduce swelling," she tells Allure.
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Before you start chilling your strongest brew, Tanzi warns that while the trick does
work, it's not an end-all-be-all treatment for under-eye bags. "It can
be somewhat helpful, but don't expect miracles," she says. What might
work better? Altering your diet.
"It may not be 'sexy,' but a low-carb diet can help reduce facial
puffiness, which, in turn, helps under-eye circles," Tanzi says. "It
costs nothing, but does require a bit of discipline."
