The Best Eye Creams for Tired Eyes, According to Med Students
Asking a beauty professional—whether it’s a celebrity hairstylist, makeup artist, or Instagram influencer (hi, 2019)—for advice is always a safe bet. But dig a little deeper, and you’ll find there are plenty of other women out there who are legitimate authorities in their own right. In our column Unlikely Experts, they’ll give real reviews and recommendations. Whether it’s surfers on the best conditioners, bikers on the best cleansers, or ballerinas on the best foot creams, it’s fair to say these women know best.
In addition to 10-plus years of education learning how to save lives, medical students also master how to stay up late. They go from clocking hours in the library to grueling residency hours to the always on-call life of a practicing doctor. It’s a career that’s guaranteed to make your parents proud…and your skin looking tired.
“Get some sleep” is sound advice for a reason: As dermatologists explain, a lack of sleep means your body overreacts to everyday things like hormonal changes, which can lead to puffy eyes, dark circles, and breakouts. Sleep deprivation amps up the levels of cortisol—the stress hormone—in your body, something that’s already spiking for students who are attempting to memorize textbooks and pass exams. Plus, all that fluorescent hospital lighting can really zombify anyone’s complexion.
Still, no one wants a doctor who looks like they’ve been up all night. In addition to experimenting with power naps and espresso drinks, med school is the time to find an effective eye cream. Anyone who manages to stay up all night and help patients all day must know a thing or two.
With that in mind, we spoke with medical students and residents across the country about the eye cream they rely on to trick their friends, professors, and patients into thinking they got a full night’s sleep. Keep scrolling for their depuffing, nourishing, line-smoothing undereye picks.