In my opinion, one of the promising effects of attending college is the formation of new habits. Many of these new habits may have to do with a students’ change in sleeping patterns and behaviors. Between “going to bed early”, at around 1:30 AM, and studying for that 8 AM exam the morning of, there would clearly be consequences. For example, your daily hours of sleep would decrease, and the need for caffeine and naps throughout the day would increase (there can even a decline in grades due to tiredness and procrastinating).
These new habits may even have a noticeable effect on your physical appearance. Suddenly, there may be giant dark circles puffing up just for the whole world to see whenever 
they make eye contact with you. With this dramatic description, the new habits formed may create under eye bags. But what else may cause the formation of under eye bags?
According to the Mayo Clinic, the mild swelling or puffiness of your under eyes occurs when the muscles surrounding your eyelid begin to weaken. The fat and tissue that supports the muscles slowly move into your lower eyelid, causing the appearance that they are getting puffy. Sometimes you eyes may look puffier than usual. This is because addition fluid is being accumulated in the already puffy eyelid.
Now that we know what under eye bags are, what causes them? Some people may believe that the cause of these dark, puffy, circles is tiredness from lacking a good night sleep. But, Dr. Diane Berson, an assistant professor of dermatology at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University, believes otherwise. She explains that dark circles are results of heredity and genetics. In addition, under eye bags can be a result of aging. Aging may make skin thin, causing dilate blood vessels.
One of the most relatable and interesting causes, in my opinion, is something as simple 
as the changing of seasons. A group of beauty scientists studied the eyes of 5,000 women throughout the seasons. They analyzed factors such as increases and decreases in puffiness and darkness. The scientists found that under eye bags of the women were, “significantly darker during the colder months”. With this data they concluded that there is a link between sunlight and bags. This relationship is correlation not causation since there is most likely a third variable involved. The confounding variables that the scientists predict include a lack of sunlight bringing about paler skin, therefore emphasizing the bags and a lower level of Vitamin D.
With these causes in mind there are still many more. Eye puffiness may increase during allergy season or well you are very stressed out. When it comes to stress, parts of your body weaken and may even swell, one body part being your eyes. Also, consuming large amount of alcohol and sodium before going to bed may cause puffy eyes 
when you wake up. This is due to water retention, or as many people call it, “bloating”. Puffy eyes may also be a result of medical conditions to the eye, such as blepharitis. Blepharitis is inflammation of the eyelids due to bacteria, clogging of the eyelids, and allergies. Clearly, there are many causing of under eye bags and it is up to us to keep good hygiene in order to prevent them.
I found this to be very interesting! I have small under eye bags as well. And if anyone has them we all know we always get the “Oh, you look really tired.” Usually 9 out of the 10 times I feel just fine 🙂 I think sleeping obviously plays a part in them from time to time but I really do agree that genetics is the biggest factor. Some of my sisters have them and some of them have bigger or darker ones than the other. I’ve definitely noticed that the nights I go out and then wake up in the mornings my bags are much more present from drinking and dehydration.
I thought this post was very interesting. People always hear that bags under your eyes form from not getting enough sleep so I like how you included other reasons why they form. What stood out to me most is that they can be formed just by the seasons changing. I never would have thought about that until you mentioned it and I found that very interesting. I was curious as what you can do to prevent under eye bags so I decided to look at some ways that you can. Click here
to see how you can prevent/reduce under eye bags.
I found this very interesting because I have always had under eye bags and creases while a lot of my friends have not. I’ve always been told you get them from a lack of sleep but that never made sense for me because I have always been one to go to bed fairly early. I believe the genetics reasoning because, now that I think about it, my mom and dad both have had slight bags under their eyes too. I think it could be an interesting topic to write about how to reduce, or avoid, under-eye bags if at all possible. I would definitely read that. Or maybe it isn’t possible to avoid them if it’s in your genes or allergies or a medical condition.