Reveal a Wide-Awake Gaze With Vitamin C Whitening Eye Cream

Reveal a wide-awake gaze with this velvety eye cream. It smoothes crow’s feet and blurs fine lines around the eyes with vitamin C ester, chaga mushroom, and red algae.

Featuring 5% THD Vitamin C and awakening caffeine, this eye cream visibly depuffs and brightens dark circles over time. It also contains antioxidant-rich turmeric and hydrating shea butter.

1. Vitamin C

This is a classic vitamin C serum for the eye area that brightens and improves the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles over time. It also helps reduce the appearance of dark circles and puffiness while hydrating the delicate skin under the eyes. Its key ingredients are ferulic acid (which promotes skin health) and licorice root extract, which calms and soothes skin. This formula is gentle enough to be used around the eyes, but if you have sensitive skin, I suggest performing a spot test first.

Its formula is infused with ferulic acid (an anti-oxidant that improves skin’s elasticity) and vitamin C (which promotes collagen production and brightens). It’s also supercharged with licorice root extract to smooth the look of fine lines and wrinkles, as well as hyaluronic acid to hydrate the delicate undereye area. This serum is ideal for those with mature or drier skin.

If you want to try a high-strength vitamin C serum, this one from Peter Thomas Roth delivers. It Vitamin C Whitening Eye Cream uses a stabilized form of the ingredient (L-ascorbic acid) that’s less likely to degrade before it penetrates the skin. It’s also paired with retinol, which boosts the results of vitamin C and helps reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

This serum features an innovative gold-complexed delivery system that enhances its potency and enables it to penetrate deeper into the epidermis, where it works best. It’s enriched with vitamin C, but the brand also added lemon peel oil and a patented signal tri-peptide that help reduce dark spots and hyperpigmentation over time.

2. Niacinamide

Niacinamide (also known as vitamin B3) is a powerful skin care ingredient that works to reduce the daily assault of environmental factors that can leave your complexion dull and tired. It is a water-soluble vitamin that has been shown to improve a range of skin concerns, including visibly minimizing enlarged pores, tightening lax or stretched out pores, improving uneven skin tone, softening fine lines and wrinkles, diminishing dullness, and strengthening a weakened surface (1,2).

Niacnamide also helps treat acne by helping to regulate sebum production, which can help prevent breakouts, reduce redness, and improve the appearance of existing spots (2,3). It is particularly effective in treating inflammatory acne, such as papules and pustules. It also reduces the appearance of discoloration and sun damage caused by aging and exposure to UV rays (3,4).

While niacinamide is truly multi-tasking, we recommend that you incorporate it into your routine in tandem with other powerhouse ingredients like AHAs and BHAs, peptides, hyaluronic acid, and all types of antioxidants. Just as you need a variety of healthy foods in your diet to maintain optimal health, so too does your skin. Adding in additional products with other ingredients can maximize their impact and make them more effective at treating your individual concerns (5,6).

3. Hyaluronic Acid

Hyaluronic acid is a naturally occurring molecule in the body that helps keep tissues and joints hydrated. It’s also a key ingredient in a variety of skincare products, especially those that help reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It’s a long, complex chain-like molecule that has plenty of “latch points” for water to latch onto. A quarter teaspoon of hyaluronic acid can hold up to 1,000 times its own weight in water, which makes it a super effective moisturizing agent.

Besides its skin-repair properties, hyaluronic acid also stimulates collagen production and improves skin elasticity. It’s also an important component of joint fluid, and it can prevent or reduce knee pain in those who suffer from osteoarthritis. Hyaluronic acid is a common ingredient in many products that are applied to the skin, including gels, creams, eye drops and personal lubricants for vaginal dryness. It’s often injected into the skin by trained healthcare professionals, such as plastic surgeons and rheumatologists, for the treatment of facial lines and wrinkles.

Look for hyaluronic acid in products labeled as “anti-aging.” However, it’s important to note that many over-the-counter products with a high hyaluronic acid concentration can be misleading. They often contain sodium hyaluronate, which is a salt form of the compound. While this is still an excellent moisturizer, it doesn’t have the same rejuvenating properties as hyaluronic acid that’s actually derived from the human body.

4. Caffeine

Caffeine is a common ingredient in vitamin C eye creams because it works to depuff the area and brighten under-eye bags. It also works to reduce hyperpigmentation around the eyes by decreasing redness and limiting production of melanin. This is an ideal combo for treating dark circles around the eyes that are caused by inflammation.

A recent addition to the beauty industry, this eye cream is a light and creamy serum that works to smooth and hydrate the delicate skin. It contains a high dose of Vitamin C and a blend of other antioxidants to fight against environmental stressors that cause hyperpigmentation. Its peptides and caffeine work to depuff the area and brighten it for a wide-awake look. This product is a must-have for anyone who struggles with dark circles, fine lines, and puffiness around the eyes.

While this is not the most affordable option on our list, it has a lot of great reviews and is Beauty and skin care product manufacturer recommended by many dermatologists. It has a velvety, non-greasy texture that feels like your favorite cream in the morning. It also contains a retinol and niacinamide combo that helps to combat fine lines and wrinkles, while the copper peptides and hyaluronic acid keep the eye area plump and firm.

A favorite of Miranda Kerr, this eye cream is jam packed with Vitamin C from superfruits Kakadu plum and cloudberry, along with a gentle yet powerful Ascorbyl Glucoside to combat dullness. It’s also infused with citrus bioflavonoids and hardy orange extract to deliver potent antioxidants to the delicate eye area. Plus, it’s clean and cruelty-free with no beeswax or synthetic fragrances. This product also comes in a reusable, refillable container to minimize waste and looks beautiful on any vanity.