Should I Really Use an Eye Serum in My Skincare Routine? By NUME-Lab
The eye serum debate has divided opinions among beauty and skincare lovers. Do we really need to use an eye serum in our skincare routines? Or is our daily moisturizer more than enough?
Although we here at NUME-Lab Switzerland always stand behind skinimalism and a clean beauty routine, even we have to admit that sometimes an eye serum is necessary to deliver a certain active ingredient better than a moisturizer ever could through the eye area of delicate skin.
So, let’s dive in and take a look at who needs to use an eye serum and how to choose the best one for your skin concern!
Table of Contents
What is an Eye Serum?
An eye serum is a potent concentrated liquid containing different actives that we apply on the skin around the eyes to achieve a certain effect. Eye serums are designed to be potent and absorb easily while remaining gentle enough for the thin skin in that area.
Is there a difference between eye serums and eye creams?
Unlike eye creams which often tend to be a bit too thick, eye serums are thinner and have a greater absorption rate.
Aside from the better absorption of actives, eye serums are also easier to apply by gently tapping. Like this, you won’t have to stretch out the thin skin around your eyes trying to smudge around a thick product.
So, in our opinion, eye serums win the battle – they’re great for moisturization yet gentle enough for your skin. Indeed at NUME-Lab Switzerland, we have created an Eye Serum which has the function of a cream but penetrates deeper like a serum. Check out Absolute Radiance Eye Serum.
How is eye skin different than face skin?
Here are the key differences between skin around the eyes and the rest of your facial skin:
- Eye skin is thinner (0.6mm)
- Veins peek through the skin, causing a darker color
- No oil glands
- A slower cell turnover
- Weaker skin barrier
Due to the above differences, eye skin needs much gentler and sensitive care, especially if we consider the proximity to the actual eye.
Did you know?
While the skin on your body is around 2 mm thick, the skin around your eyes is only about 0.6 mm thick.
What are the benefits of eye serums?
Here are some of the advantages of including a quality eye serum in your skincare routine:
1
Decrease dark circles
The dark circles around your eyes are usually caused by the veins under the skin changing the color of the thin skin on top of them. This bluish tint is either discoloration or the color of the blood in your veins underneath.
To reduce the dark circles, search for an eye serum with Niacinamide, Eyeliss, Vitamin C, or Caffeine.
2
Help with eye bags and puffiness
Another common skincare problem caused by bad habits, a lack of quality sleep, and aging is eye bags and puffiness.
To de-puff your eye bags and reduce their volume, have you ever heard of this natural skincare ingredient? White Truffle Extract, otherwise search for Chlorella Vulgaris, Caffeine, or Buckwheat.
3
Prevent fine lines and wrinkles
Using eye serums with retinol as an active ingredient can boost collagen production and improve skin elasticity. As a result, they can minimize fine lines and wrinkles. Be careful when using retinol in eye serums as it can irritate your sensitive skin in higher concentrations.
Peptides and hyaluronic acid are also great actives for reducing fine lines and wrinkles.
4
Revitalize aging skin
To revitalize aging skin, we recommend choosing a multi-functional eye serum that contains different nourishing actives.
For instance, choose an eye serum with Vitamin C, Caffeine, Peptides, or Ceramides. Don’t forget SPF as part of your daily skin protection routine.
5
Moisturize and hydrate
The skin around our eyes is thinner and it loses moisture faster. To avoid dry skin in that area, your eye serum has to contain moisturizing ingredients.
Some great choices are Hyaluronic Acid, Ceramides, Squalane, and Peptides.
6
Improve skin thickness
Due to collagen and moisture loss, the skin around our eyes tends to be much thinner than the rest of our facial skin. So, we have to target this concern with actives that regenerate the skin texture and promote skin thickness.
You can choose between White Truffle Extract, Chlorella Vulgaris, Peptides, or the appropriate concentration of Retinol for collagen production.
When to start using an eye serum?
As long as it doesn’t contain too much of an abrasive like Retinol, an eye serum is safe to start using at any age – as a prevention or a treatment. Usually, we start noticing aging skin signs around the age of 25.
Of course, this is ultimately individual and depends on the issue that needs to be treated. But, generally speaking, 25 is a good age to add an eye serum to your clean beauty skincare routine.
What ingredients to look for in eye serums?
The active ingredients in your eye serum should match the concern you want to target. Often, you can find rich formulas that target multiple concerns at once.
Here’s a visual representation of some great eye serum ingredients:
Ingredient | Action |
Niacinamide (Vitamin B3) | skin brightening properties |
White Truffle Extract | improves skin thickness, reduces eye bags |
Caffeine | reduces puffiness, tightens, and brightens |
Squalane | moisturizes and improves the skin barrier |
Buckwheat | depuffs and decreases eye bags volume |
Eyeliss | reduces the tint and visibility of dark circles |
Chlorella Vulgaris | decreases the size and puffiness of eye bags |
Vitamin C | brightens the skin, antioxidative protection |
Hyaluronic Acid | moisturizes and fills wrinkles and fine lines |
Peptides | improve skin texture, support collagen |
Ceramides | hydrate your under-eye skin |
Retinol | boosts collagen production, reduces wrinkles |
SPF | UV-ray protection, prevents discoloration |
What ingredients to avoid in eye serums?
We recommend avoiding all types of harsh and toxic ingredients that could harm the skin or your eyes.
For instance, avoid parabens, sulfates, phthalates, mineral oils, formaldehyde, DEA, TEA, MEA, methylisothiazolinone, alumina, or derivatives in your eye serum and if you still feel eye serum is too harsh, than choose fragrance-free products or products with natural fragrance.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
So, now, to answer the question “do you really need an eye serum”, our conclusion is YES – you do.
However the eye treatments may not be necessary for everyone, but recommended for those who have concerns about their undereye area or who are noticing changes in the undereye area, want to treat puffiness, dark circles and aging.
Why? Let’s sum up:
- Less danger of irritation
- Specialized gentle formulas
- A better absorption rate
- A targeted way of treating a concern
- Easier application
- Great for improving the texture of thin skin
Have you ever used an eye serum? We’d love to hear your experiences below.
