Aging Around the Eyes - Signs of Aging and Treatment Options

As a person ages, there are signs of aging that start to show around the eyes that can give a person an older appearance. In order to combat the aging process, some patients seek out plastic surgery to address the signs of aging as well as rejuvenate their appearance. However, there are some people who are not sure how to spot specific signs of aging around the eyes. If they do not know how to stop signs of aging, they will also not know how to identify the correct treatment to address signs of aging. In this article, we will discuss some of the common signs of aging and a popular treatment option.

Aging Around the Eyes – Why It Happens and Common Signs

As people continue to age, the skin will start to undergo changes such as the formation of sagging skin around the eyes. The skin that is located in this area is generally thin and delicate which means it is more likely to start to showing signs of aging. In addition, the area of skin around the eyes will often show signs of fatigue in a quicker manner.

Some of the most common signs of aging that can appear around the eyes can include:

• Wrinkles and fine lines can start to appear around the eyes as a person starts to lose elastin and collagen in the skin.
• Undereye bags develop because the fat under the eyes can start to shift as a person ages. Once the fat shifts, it can become prominent in appearance which results in the development of undereye bags.
• Crow’s feet are fine lines around the eyes that start to form around the outer corners of the eyes. Like fine lines and wrinkles, they can start to appear due to the loss of collagen and elastin in the skin as well as smoking and too much exposure to the sun. When a person continually squints or frowns, the skin is being squeezed constantly which can cause the formation of fine lines and wrinkles.
• Sagging skin around the eyes occurs when there is a loss of skin elasticity along with repeated facial expressions (such as frowning) and gravity.
• Dark circles that are located under the eyes can be the result of a lack of sleep, too much exposure to the sun, genetics, and dehydration. They can also become more noticeable as a person continues to age thanks to a loss of fat under the eyes and thinning skin.
• The skin around the eyes can start to become dry as it produces less oil. In addition to dryness, the skin can also be itchy and irritated.
• Puffiness around the eyes happens due to a lack of sleep, allergies, and fluid retention. The look pf puffy eyes start to become more noticeable thanks to a loss of fat under the eyes as a person ages.
• Age spots are dark skin patches that form due to an abundance of sun exposure. These age spots start to become more noticeable in the area of the eyes when the skin becomes thinner and more translucent.

Aging Around the Eyes – Popular Procedure to Gain a Younger Look

Patients who want to reduce signs of aging around the eyes can turn to eyelid surgery, AKA blepharoplasty, if the aging issue is related to the muscle or skin that is located below the eyes. Blepharoplasty can also remove excess skin from the upper eyes of the person.

Blepharoplasty is able to reposition bags under the eyes and place them in a position that gives the patient a less tired look. In addition, removing skin that is excess and sagging under the eyes helps to improve the vision of the patient. Aging skin starts to lose its elasticity. When the less elastic skin is combined with the pull of gravity, there will start to be a collection of excess skin on the lower and upper eyelids. Blepharoplasty gives the eyes a look that is younger and more alert and it can be performed as either upper blepharoplasty or lower blepharoplasty.

Upper blepharoplasty can be necessary if the upper eyelids start to gain a heavier feeling due to excess eyelid skin that starts to descend because of the pull of gravity. Upper blepharoplasty can make functional changes that improve the vision of a person by reducing the blocked vision caused by overhanging skin. The changes can also be cosmetic in nature thanks to the reduction of signs of aging.

Lower blepharoplasty addresses issues with “bags” of fat that are protruding under the eyes. In addition, this procedure can treat wrinkles and fine lines that make a person look older along with sagging skin that causes the lower eyelid to move away from the eyeball which shows more of the white section below the iris. The overall goal of lower blepharoplasty is to rejuvenate the look of tired or puffy eyes by tightening skin located around the eyes.

Patients who want to maintain a young look to the eyes need to start caring for their appearance at an early age by applying eye cream, limiting time in the sun, and getting plenty of sleep each night.

- MA