4 things that instantly brighten tired eyes after a long day at work

Coming back from a long day at work may leave us with tired and puffy eyes, red and teary. We have all been there once. Eyes are the most sensitive and delicate organs of the human body and long hours of screen time can be taxing on them. We may wish to shut our laptops or toss that phone and stop doom scrolling, but do we? Work–or entertainment–won’t let us do that. But, to provide instant relief to eyes, we can use 4 awesome ingredients sitting on our kitchen shelf!

Dr Nivedita Dadu, a renowned dermatologist, spoke to Health Shots to roll out 4 superb remedies to soothe redness in eyes post work.

Listed below are 4 ingredients that can provide relief to your tired and puffy eyes:

1. Cucumber

Dr Dadu warns, “Leaving tired eyes untreated may cause dark circles with time. This risk can be eradicated by simply putting sliced cucumbers in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.” Take them out and place them on your eyes. Place the cucumber under the eye area for about 10 minutes. This will not only soothe your under-eye skin but brighten any pigmentation around the eyes.

2. Cold tea bags

The second best remedy that works effectively is putting used tea bags on eyes. They can also be used to treat dark circles. Many teas like green tea have the added benefit of antioxidants, which have anti-inflammatory properties that help to soothe strained capillaries in the under eye area.

“To use tea bags, firstly soak a tea bag in clean water and then keep it in the refrigerator for around 30 minutes. After this, place the tea bags on the eyes. Keep these tea bags on your tired and puffy eyes for around 10 minutes. Then wash the under eye area with cold water,” says Dr Dadu, who is also the founder and chairman of Dr Nivedita Dadu’s Dermatology Clinic.

3. Rose water

Another coolant we swear by is rose water. Long working hours, poor sleeping habits, and genetics are all leading causes of tired and puffy eyes. To soothe and de-puff them, soak cotton pads or balls in chilled rose water and place them on your eyes for 10 to 20 minutes. And voila! Puffy eyes, who?

4. Aloe vera ice cubes

This DIY is a ‘done once and reap for a week’ project. For this, you need to extract the pulp of a fresh aloe leaf. Once you have the aloe vera gel, pour it into an ice tray and put it into a freezer. These ice cubes can be popped and applied after a long day at work or on a day when you wish to indulge in some self love. And the best part? They can be rubbed on prickly, sunburns, acne and redness on the face and body too!

Dr Dadu says, “To get rid of dark circles and puffy eyes, one can opt for an eye cream that contains retinol, the powerful antioxidant that helps smooth outlines. At night, use anything with brightening agents like vitamin C, liquorice, kojic acid or niacinamide. This will help your under eye skin become radiant and reverse the damage.”