Does vitamin C have an effect on dark circles?

Dark circles are dark areas under the eyes, often perceived as a sign of fatigue or stress. They result from various mechanisms that can combine, such as increased melanin-related pigmentation, poor blood circulation, or the sagging of subcutaneous tissues. The skin around the eye contour being particularly thin, it shows discoloration easily. Depending on their origin, different types of dark circles : the vascular dark circles, or bluish, the pigmentary dark circles, or brownish, and structural dark circles, or hollow.

The vitamin C could act on bluish and brown under-eye circles, but will not affect hollow ones.

With regard to vascular dark circles, it is important to specify that to date no clinical study has assessed the topical efficacy of vitamin C. The hypothesis of potential benefits relies on its mechanism of action and its ability to act on vasodilation. Indeed, the vitamin C recycles the BH4 cofactor, essential for the function of the eNOS enzyme, which itself is responsible for producing nitric oxide that promotes capillary opening. Another interesting aspect of vitamin C is its antioxidant activity, protecting vascular walls and thereby contributing to the maintenance of smooth microcirculation. These mechanisms could theoretically be relevant for alleviating vascular-origin dark circles.

However, these effects of vitamin C have not been demonstrated with topical application to the skin. The available data come from studies involving oral administration or mechanistic research in vitro. Thus, the effect of vitamin C on bluish under-eye circles remains hypothetical.

There is, however, stronger evidence supporting the potential of vitamin C to reduce brown under-eye circles, which stem from hyperpigmentation of the periocular region. Ascorbic acid indeed acts on several steps of melanogenesis : it inhibits tyrosinase activity, the enzyme responsible for oxidizing tyrosine into melanin, and reduces oxidation intermediates, thereby limiting pigment formation. Its ability to neutralize reactive oxygen species also decreases oxidative stress, a factor that can stimulate melanin production.

Several studies have investigated the effects of vitamin C on pigmented under-eye circles, including a clinical trial that examined the use of vitamin C via mesotherapy, comparing it to platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections and CO₂ carboxytherapy. Thirty participants with pigmented dark circles were randomly assigned to three groups: PRP injections, CO₂ injections, and mesotherapy with vitamin C. Each patient underwent four sessions spaced two weeks apart. Although the small sample size represents a limitation, this study demonstrated that vitamin C could significantly improve periorbital pigmentation, at least when administered via mesotherapy.

To complement this overview of the available data, another study investigated the use of vitamin C in combination with tranexamic acid in the context of mesotherapy, compared with PRP injections. In this trial, 18 patients with periorbital hyperpigmentation received, over three sessions spaced three weeks apart, an intradermal injection of PRP on one side of the face and an injection of tranexamic acid combined with vitamin C on the other side. The results show that both protocols achieved a comparable improvement in brown under-eye circles.

In conclusion, mesotherapy combining tranexamic acid and vitamin C appears to be as effective as PRP injections in reducing under-eye hyperpigmentation, but the study cannot isolate the specific effect of vitamin C in this combination, especially since the tranexamic acid is known for its depigmenting effects.

These studies, while informative, nonetheless make it difficult to conclude on the efficacy of topical vitamin C for dark circles, since they assess vitamin C injections. To date, there are no clinical studies evaluating the effect of a topical formulation containing this active ingredient on dark circles, whether bluish or pigmentary. vitamin C in the management of hyperpigmentation more generally, which allows for extrapolating its potential to brown under-eye circles.

Among these studies, an open-label trial evaluated the efficacy of a 25% L-ascorbic acid formulation in 40 patients with melasma. They applied the treatment daily for 16 weeks. The results showed a significant decrease in the MASI score, which assesses hyperpigmentation (a 22.88% reduction, from 15.60 to 12.03). Indeed, the photos below, although in black and white, illustrate the reduction of pigmented spots achieved with vitamin C.

• ITOH M. & al. Effects of vitamin C on dark circles of the lower eyelids: Quantitative evaluation using image analysis and echogram. Skin Research & Technology (2009).

• PARK S. W. & al. Clinical efficacy of 25% L-ascorbic acid (C'ensil) in the treatment of melasma. Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery (2009).

• HARRISSON F. E. & al. Role of vitamin C in the function of the vascular endothelium. Antioxidants and Redox Signaling (2013).

• GHALY N. & al. Comparison between efficacy of carboxytherapy, plasma gel injection and mesotherapy in treatment of periorbital dark circles. Journal of Advances in Medicine and Medical Research (2023).

• KAVEH R. & al. Comparison of the effectiveness of platelet-rich plasma versus tranexamic acid plus vitamin C mesotherapy in the treatment of periorbital hyperpigmentation: A split-site, randomized clinical trial. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology (2024).