The Best Treatments To Reduce And Prevent Crow’s Feet

Aging is an exciting part of life with many upsides, like more financial security, self-care, and wisdom from life experiences. Even with all of these benefits, physical signs of aging can make some people less excited about the process. The eyes can tell more than words can say, and they are often the first to reveal some of the less exciting parts of aging, like eye wrinkles, and we tend to notice crow's feet first. Keep reading to discover different treatments to help reduce and prevent crow's feet without surgery or injections.

What Are Crow's Feet?

Crow's feet are those tiny lines near the outer corners of your eyes that start to appear as early as your 20s. There are two types of crow's feet depending on when you can see them. They can be dynamic, when you can only see them when you make certain facial expressions, or static, when you can see them all of the time. There are many options to help treat both types of crow's feet.

What Causes Crow's Feet?

• Static Crow's Feet

These are the deeper crow's feet wrinkles and fine lines that form over time as a natural part of aging. Over time, your skin gradually loses collagen and elastin, which help keep your skin firm and bouncy. The skin around your eyes is already very thin and fragile, so it starts to sag and form wrinkles with less collagen and elastin. Sun damage and smoking also accelerate wrinkle formation.

• Dynamic Crow's Feet

These are the more temporary crow's feet wrinkles that show up when you squint your eyes or smile. However, they can turn into static wrinkles over time. Repeated facial movements like smiling, laughing, frowning, and even blinking cause the muscles to contract. After years of this, it gets more difficult for the skin to bounce back, and long-term wrinkles start to show up.

Best Treatments For Crow's Feet

Everyone gets eye wrinkles, but there are many non-invasive ways to reduce and prevent crow's feet.

Avoid Excessive Eye Movements

Avoiding smiling or laughing would be impossible, and we would never recommend it. However, there are ways to reduce excessive eye movements that don't involve becoming an emotionless robot.

Squinting is a sure way to develop crow's feet. An undiagnosed eyesight problem might cause excessive squinting, so make sure to keep your eye prescriptions updated so you can see fine without squinting. You should also wear sunglasses if you're going to be spending time in the sun to avoid squinting.

Be Kind To Your Eyes

The skin around the eyes is thinner and more sensitive than other facial skin, so you have to treat it gently. Don't rub, scratch, or pull on your eyes. Be extra careful when applying or removing makeup. Pat your face dry rather than rubbing your towel across your face.

Exfoliating around your eyes can help reduce crow's feet because it removes dead skin cells and stimulates cell turnover to rejuvenate skin, but only when done right. Don't over-exfoliate or use harsh products, or you could risk damaging the skin. Use gentle, circular motions with light pressure, rinse, dry, and apply your skincare products right after.

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Skincare Products For Crow's Feet

Incorporate serums, moisturizers, and eye creams into your skincare routine with ingredients that can minimize the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. Don't skip the SPF around your eyes, and look for skincare products that include it.

Vitamin C and Retinol may help collagen production to minimize wrinkles, fine lines, hyperpigmentation, and roughness.

Peptides are amino acids that may aid in collagen process in the skin, repair damaged skin, build elasticity, and calm inflammation.

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Lifestyle Factors

Eat foods rich in antioxidants, which fight off damaging free radicals, like blueberries, strawberries, walnuts, spinach, and red beans. Avoid sun exposure and smoking so you don't age prematurely.

Get your beauty rest! A good night's sleep allows your skin to heal. Try to sleep on your back to avoid wrinkles that form by pressing your face against your pillow as you sleep. If you can't sleep on your back, use a silk pillowcase to reduce tugging and pulling.

Microneedling for crow's feet

Microneedling involves using tiny needles to slightly penetrate the skin to create "microchannels," allowing your skin to absorb active ingredients with 90% more efficiency. It stimulates blood circulation, so microneedling around the eyes can help reduce crow's feet and brighten dark circles.

You can try microneedling at home using microneedle patches, which you can place yourself to target the eyes and treat crow's feet.

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