Sliced Cucumbers are considered to be a traditional way of treating puffy eyes or tired eyes. 90% of the time my skin cannot tolerate the wet seedy fluids of the cucumbers that irritates my sensitive skin. I’ll end up with a bright red bumpy eye patch where I had applied the cucumber slices.
Funny how I wasn’t allergic to cucumbers but yet my skin reacted to this vegetable. I really like the nice cooling sensation the cucumbers give off, but it’s not worth the embarrassment of having red bumps. If you are in a similar situation and looking for an eye treatment to reduce redness and want more skin radiance, then this is worth a read.
Potatoes as a solution for Puffy Eyes and Irritated Skin?
Instead of using cucumbers, try potatoes! Potatoes is just as beneficial and has some strong antioxidant components located in its starches that can also reduce skin inflammation. Many people have tried it with success. I find it great especially if you are having skin issues or allergic reaction with cucumbers.
Recently on a popular talk show, a 42 year old who appeared to look 10 years younger has been religiously applying cold slices of sweet potatoes around her eyes due to its high vitamin A content which help prevent wrinkles. She looks 10 years younger! I will be testing the true effects of sweet potatoes on on my eczema prone skin in my next article. For now, I will discuss the use of regular potatoes that can be easily found in your own kitchen!
Maximize benefits with Green Tea
Another interesting recipe is sliced potatoes soaked in green tea. Green tea is highly caffeinated and is a key ingredient in reducing puffy eyes. I decided to try this approach as I already have these at home!
Ingredients needed
As you may guess it, you only need two ingredients: Green Tea and two thinly slices of potato.
You want to cut the potato into slices thin enough where you can lightly bend it. This is important as you want it to be flexible so it can conform easily onto your eyes. For the Green tea, I use tea bags that are available at any market.
Note: You may substitute the Green tea with Chamomile (anti-irritant) if you want to focus in reducing redness. I’ve used Green tea and it worked fine on me.
Putting ingredients together
First step is to make some Green Tea. You can either brew or soak the tea bag in hot water. After the brewing or soaking process, wait until the Green Tea is cool enough to be poured into a container, jar or sealable cup and store it in the fridge. Once the green tea chills further after 30 minutes, you are ready to toss in the potato slices.
Let the potato slices soak overnight or for half a day.
Application
Remove the potato slices out of the green tea and let it dry a bit on top of a towel or a paper napkin.
Then lay yourself down on a couch or on your bed and carefully apply the slices over your clean eyelids.
How long to leave on
I would usually leave it for at least 10 minutes (as I hardly have problems with puffy eyes) but you may leave it on up to 15-20 minutes if you like.
Remove and wash your face and follow it with your cleanser, toner (optional) before using any moisturizer.
My results
After a few tries, I had no skin irritations compared to when I used the cucumbers. It is nice to know that I can finally relax while also having applied my homemade yogurt & turmeric mask for Eczema. It is a nice complement to my face mask if you decide to do a whole facial treatment. Add honey to the facial mask for added moisture benefit. Your eyes will feel refreshed and awake! 🙂
