The first place on our face that shows our age is our eyes, directly underneath and the outer sides of the eyes to be exact. Bags and grey shadows can make a twenty year old look aged, but there are a few simple steps that can keep both crows feet and dark circles or bags at bay.

Sleep with an extra pillow so your head is slightly elevated to prevent fluid from settling under the skin around your eyes.

Find sunglasses labeled UV 400, and choose large frames for maximum coverage (you’re already using sunscreen, right?).

Every morning use an anti-oxidant eye cream to prevent damage from free radicals found in pollution and the sun’s rays. Some of the best ones prevent puffiness with Coffee Berry or green tea. Our choice: Elizabeth Arden Allergan Prevage Eye Anti-Aging Treatment.

Use Retinol at night if your skin can tolerate it. It's the one ingredient proven to stimulate collagen production and reduce wrinkles. The retinol eye creams that contain vitamin K work especially well on dark circles. Our choice: emergenC multi-vitamin + retinol serum.

Don’t over-do eye creams or moisturizers at night, they can make your eyes retain water and look even puffier in the morning.

In the morning apply a skin tightener for immediate results. Find one that contains argireline, GABA, or DMAE—the most effective ingredients. Our choice: Dr. Brandt Time Arrest Laser Tight

Fill in your crows feet with a primer containing silicone. Our choice: Jane Iredale Abscence Oil Control Primer

Use a creamy concealer to disguise dark circles. Pick a yellow based shade for light skin and a peachy shade for darker skin tones. Our choice: Jane Iredale Active Light Under Eye Concealer

Skip on shimmery make up or eye shadows. The metallic particles can get into the wrinkles and emphasize them. Instead choose a matte shade that is slightly darker than your skin and sweep it across the upper lids and along the lower lashes. It will make puffiness less obvious.

I have tried every eye cream on the market, spending $15 to $250, and guess what? They only work if the bags under your eyes are retaining water, not fat.

A few months ago I went to a plastic surgeon, wanting to get his opinion on my under eye bags and what I could do about them. He said that as we age, the skin under the eye loosens, and the natural fat that protects the eye starts to protrude, creating the bags. The only thing that gets rid of these bags is removing the fat through surgery. Some creams will tighten the skin under the eye and diminish the appearance of bags, but not treat the problem. Some good tightening eye creams are Derma e's new Pycnogenol Eye gel, Kinerase Extreme Eye Lift, and Kinerase Under Eye Rescue. The sad reality is if you are +40 and have under eye bags that won't go away even after using these products, the only thing that will fix the problem is surgery. The plastic surgeon I spoke to told me it cost about $3,000 for the procedure.

If your under eye bags are from retained water, you have plenty of options. First of all, drink lots of water, and sleep with your head slightly elevated. Exuviance Brightening Bionic Eye Cream, Kinerase Extreme Lift Eye, and Neostrata Bionic Eye Cream are good eye creams for treating the type of under eye bags.

The bad news about under eye bags of either kind is as we get older and our skin loosens, retained water or fat will make us look tired and worn. While the water bags are treatable, they will still creep up on us every now and then. I asked the plastic surgeon about non surgical treatments and he named the above creams, but he also talked about lasers. Lasers are the newest treatment options for aging, saggy skin. He said there are powerful lasers for the entire face that tighten everything, including the under eyes. I saw the pictures...they were amazing. The laser tightens the skin, but also promotes collagen growth to improve skin elasticity and fill wrinkles. Sadly these new laser treatments are as expensive as surgery, about $3000.

The bottom line, certain creams work to cover up, or temporarily solve the problem. Permanent solutions require the big bucks.

Resources:

http://women.webmd.com/features/banish-the-bags-under-your-eyes

http://saveyourface.com/whatsnew/2007/03/27/eye-bags-how-to-remove-eye-bags-puffy-eyes-and-dark-circles-under-the-eyes/

http://www.eyecarebasics.com/eye-care-articles/dark-circles-under-eyes.htm