Dark circles: vascular, pigmented, or hollow? How to tell them apart

The eyes instantly communicate emotions and vitality, but they are also the area most vulnerable to daily stress. The skin around the eyes is structurally unique: much thinner than the rest of the face, almost devoid of sebaceous glands, and with a reduced amount of collagen and elastin fibers. This fragility makes it an ideal target for premature aging, lymphatic stagnation, and changes in the microcirculation.

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There is no single solution, but there is a strategy. In this article, we distinguish between the different concerns affecting the eye area and explore where cosmetics can help and where aesthetic medicine begins — a distinction that saves time and money.

Here is the key point: dark circles and bags are not a single cosmetic concern, but at least four different conditions, with different causes and different active ingredients. Anyone who buys a cream “for dark circles” without knowing which type they have is very likely to buy the wrong cream.

If you are instead looking for a practical guide to choosing a product by age group, you can find it in the complete eye contour guide; for a specific focus on morning puffiness, see the article on how to reduce under-eye bags.

How many types of dark circles are there?

The classification most widely used in dermatology recognizes four types: pigmented, vascular, structural, and mixed. It is the result of a study of 65 people assessed using a Wood’s lamp and skin ultrasound, not a commercial subdivision: the three mechanisms are visible with different instruments because they lie in different layers of the skin.

The fourth category is the most common and the least discussed. Most people have a mixed form: a pigmented base with a vascular component on top, or a structural shadow that accentuates an existing color. This explains why a product that “works” improves only part of the problem, and why talking about a single miracle cream is a promise that no formula can keep.

Bags and structural sagging

The puffiness is caused by two factors: water retention and herniation of fatty tissue. Over the years, the supporting tissues relax and the orbital fat, which normally protects the eye, slips forward and accumulates in the lower eyelid. This is compounded by fluid retention, often worsened by a salty dinner, dehydration, or insufficient rest.

Bags are not all the same either, and the difference is crucial: fluid-retention bags change throughout the day, are more noticeable upon waking, and decrease after a few hours upright. Bags caused by protruding periorbital fat are always there, looking the same in the evening and in the morning. The former respond to drainage and decongestant ingredients; the latter are an anatomical issue, and no cosmetic can remove them.

Vascular and pigmented dark circles

• Vascular dark circles (blue-purple): caused by sluggish microcirculation. Poorly oxygenated blood pools in the capillaries and, given the thinness of the skin, shows through, creating a cool-toned halo. Typical of chronic fatigue and stress.
• Pigmented dark circles (brown): caused by an accumulation of melanin. Often genetic and common in olive skin tones, they become more pronounced with unprotected sun exposure.

How to tell them apart in ten seconds: gently pull the skin beneath the eye. If the halo fades, it is vascular; if it remains, it is pigmented. In the first case, you need ingredients that act on the microcirculation, such as caffeine; in the second, brightening ingredients such as niacinamide and vitamin C.

Hollow dark circles and the tear trough

They are a problem of volume, not color. Age-related loss of subcutaneous fat and bone resorption create a depression under the eye that casts a shadow, making the eyes look tired regardless of how many hours you sleep.

Purple, purplish, reddish, or dark circles: what the color tells you

Color is not merely an aesthetic detail: it is the most useful information available to you without tools. Anyone searching for “purplish dark circles” or “reddish dark circles” is already doing the right thing—observing before buying.

Purple, purplish, and bluish

They are the hallmark of a vascular component. The color comes from poorly oxygenated hemoglobin pooling in the venous plexus beneath skin that is too thin to conceal it: it is not a pigment, but a blood vessel showing through. They become worse with fatigue, cold, prolonged lying down, and anything that slows venous return. This is the type that responds best to microcirculation-targeted ingredients and drainage techniques.

Reddish or pinkish

The same vascular family, but with a more arterial and superficial component, and often some inflammation as well. They frequently appear on reactive skin, in people who rub their eyes due to allergies or habit, and in those prone to widespread facial redness. Here, before using drainage-promoting active ingredients, the irritant stimulus must be reduced: rubbing the eye is one of the actions that most worsens this area.

Brown and dark

They are pigmented. Brown indicates melanin, so they have the same biology as facial hyperpigmentation: genetic predisposition, sun exposure, and repeated inflammation. In this form, the sun is not a secondary factor but the main accelerator, and daily protection matters more than any serum.

When color makes no difference

If the dark circle is skin-colored and visible only because of the shadow it casts, the problem is not color but contours. No brightening or vascular-protective active ingredient can change a shadow: it changes the light that creates it. In this case, cosmetics improve the quality of the skin and nothing more, and this should be made clear before purchase, not afterward.

What makes dark circles worse

Before adding a product, it is worth removing the causes. The documented factors are few and almost all modifiable: insufficient or irregular sleep, which accentuates both stagnation and the pallor that makes the color stand out; smoking and alcohol, which affect microcirculation and dehydration; unprotected sun exposure, the number-one factor in the pigmented form; mechanical rubbing, from allergies to aggressive makeup removal, which triggers inflammation and therefore pigment.

There is also one factor people underestimate: too much salt at dinner and dehydration. They do not cause dark circles, but they visibly worsen the stagnation component—the one that changes from day to day and therefore dominates the perception of "looking worse than usual."

Habits that make a difference

To counteract nighttime stagnation, the simplest and most effective habit is to sleep with your head slightly elevated: gravity helps promote lymphatic drainage and reduces morning puffiness.

Diet also plays a role. Reducing sodium and processed foods prevents water retention, while a steady water intake keeps the skin plump. Foods rich in bioflavonoids—berries and citrus fruits—help strengthen capillary walls.

Finally, UV rays break down this area's already limited collagen reserves and stimulate hyperpigmentation. Targeted sun protection and UV-filtering glasses are the most effective shield.

Eye-area skincare

This area requires dedicated formulas: regular face creams risk weighing down the tissues and encouraging the appearance of milia.

Apply it by gently tapping with the pad of your ring finger — the finger that naturally applies the least pressure — moving from the inside outward to follow lymphatic drainage.

Once you understand what type of dark circles you have, the choice narrows down naturally. You can find formulas dedicated to this area in the eye contour collection.

The serum-cream synergy

The first step is a concentrated serum that reactivates microcirculation, drains fluids, and provides an immediate tightening effect. Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5 targets fluid retention, caffeine addresses the vascular component, and niacinamide the pigmented component: three distinct mechanisms, which is why a multi-peptide formula only makes sense when dark circles are mixed — as they are in most cases.

Once it has been absorbed, a richer formula is needed to support the structure. Vitis Eyes Contour harnesses the antioxidant properties of red grapevine to protect the capillaries and improve uniformity.

If the component is mixed — as it is in most cases — it makes more sense to address all three mechanisms together than to alternate products at random.

The refrigerator trick. Keeping eye serum in the fridge harnesses thermal vasoconstriction: the cold causes superficial microcapillaries to contract, accelerating fluid drainage and enhancing the decongestant effect. It’s free and really works, especially on morning puffiness.

Distinguishing a vascular component from a pigmented one by eye is not always straightforward, and the stretch test provides an indication, not a diagnosis. At LeLang partner pharmacies, someone can examine the area in person, under the right lighting, before recommending a formula.

When cosmetics are not enough

When dark circles are caused by anatomical volume loss or a deep tear trough, cosmetics can improve the skin’s quality and radiance, but they cannot restore lost volume. That is the limit beyond which aesthetic medicine is needed.

The reference treatment is hyaluronic acid-based filler: a specific gel for the eye area, injected with ultra-fine needles or microcannulas, which lifts the tear trough and eliminates the shadow effect. It generally lasts between six and twelve months.

Because this is a highly vascularized area, it is essential to rely exclusively on specialized doctors. Choosing the wrong product or placing it too superficially can cause the Tyndall effect or attract water, worsening under-eye bags.

What is the Tyndall effect?

It is a phenomenon involving light scattering that occurs when filler is injected too superficially or in excessive amounts. The extremely thin skin around the eyes allows the gel to show through; as it refracts light, it projects an artificial bluish color — paradoxically similar to vascular dark circles.

This is one of the reasons why, in this area, the practitioner’s expertise matters more than the product used.

When it is time to talk to a doctor

Dark circles are almost always a constitutional trait, not a symptom. However, there are situations in which the right question is not which cream to use, but whom to consult: a shadow that appears suddenly without changes in sleep or habits; swelling in only one eye, or accompanied by itching, watering, and sneezing that suggest an allergic component; pronounced dark circles in a child; or widespread pallor and persistent fatigue that go beyond the appearance of the face.

Questions about iron or vitamin deficiencies, thyroid function, or kidney or liver function are clinical questions: take them to your family doctor or dermatologist, not to a cosmetic product. An eye contour product can improve the appearance of the skin, but it cannot investigate the cause.

Frequently asked questions

Does eye contour care really work?

It is useful if it addresses a problem you have. For vascular or pigmented dark circles and puffiness caused by fluid retention, a dedicated formula can help; for a structural hollow, it improves the skin but not the shadow. The difference between “working” and “not working” almost always lies not in the product, but in first understanding what type of dark circles you have.

Why can't you use face cream around the eyes?

You can, but it is often not advisable. The skin around the eyes is thinner and lacks sebaceous glands: textures designed for the rest of the face can be occlusive, weigh down the tissues, and encourage milia. In addition, many face creams contain active ingredients at concentrations not intended for this area.

Which comes first, the eye contour product or the face cream?

Apply the eye contour product first, after cleansing and any serum. The general rule is to go from the lightest to the richest texture: apply the eye contour serum to clean skin, then apply face cream, stopping outside the eye socket.

At what age should you start?

There is no specific calendar age; there is an indication. Start when there is something to address: discoloration that does not go away, recurring puffiness upon waking, or the first fine lines that remain visible even when your face is relaxed. On young, unmarked skin, a moisturizing eye contour product will not do any harm, but it will not do much either.

Can dark circles be eliminated completely?

No, and anyone who promises that is selling it dishonestly. A cosmetic product can improve the appearance of the area — even out the color, reduce fluid-related puffiness, and make the skin look firmer — but it cannot erase an anatomical or genetic characteristic. Vascular and pigmented forms respond best; structural forms remain as a shadow.

Do under-eye bags indicate a kidney or liver problem?

It is a widespread belief based on facial maps in which each area corresponds to an organ. It has no anatomical basis: periorbital swelling depends on the structure of that area, fluid retention, and the age of the supporting tissues. Some medical conditions can cause facial swelling, but they are accompanied by other signs and should be assessed by a doctor, not interpreted by looking at your face in the mirror.

Are men's dark circles different?

The mechanisms are the same; the context changes: the skin is generally thicker, there is more sebum, and a vascular component often heightened by irregular sleep and alcohol. We discuss this in detail in the article on men's eye contour.

Sources for this article

01 Huang Y.L., Chang S.L., Ma L., Lee M.C., Hu S., "Clinical analysis and classification of dark eye circle", International Journal of Dermatology, vol. 53 no. 2, 2014, pp. 164-170 — study of 65 cases (8 men and 57 women, mean age 38.9 years) assessed using a Wood's lamp and skin ultrasound, resulting in the classification of pigmented, vascular, structural, and mixed forms.
02 Sarkar R., Ranjan R., Garg S. et al., "Periorbital Hyperpigmentation: A Comprehensive Review", Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, vol. 9 no. 1, 2016, pp. 49-55 — review of the causes, aggravating factors, and mixed subtypes of periorbital hyperpigmentation.
03 Regulation (EC) No. 1223/2009 on cosmetic products and Regulation (EU) No. 655/2013 on common criteria for claims: a cosmetic product can improve the appearance of the skin, but it cannot treat clinical conditions or replace a medical assessment.

On the website: Eye contour: a complete guide by age and treatment · Under-eye bags: causes and how to reduce them · Men's eye contour · Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5 (Eyeseryl) · Peptides in cosmetics · Eye contour collection