Does vitamin C have an effect on dark circles?

Dark circles are the dark areas under the eyes, often seen as a sign of tiredness or stress. They arise from multiple mechanisms that may combine, such as increased melanin pigmentation, poor blood circulation or sagging of the subcutaneous tissues. The skin of the eye contour is particularly thin, making it prone to show these marks. Depending on their origin, various types of dark circles can be identified: vascular dark circles, or bluish, pigmentary dark circles, or brown, and structural dark circles, or hollow.

The vitamin C could act on bluish and brown dark circles, but will have no effect on hollow ones.

With regard to vascular dark circles, it is important to specify that to date no clinical study has evaluated the topical efficacy of vitamin C. The hypothesis of potential benefits relies on its mode of action and its ability to act on vasodilation. Indeed, the vitamin C recycles the BH4 cofactor, which is essential for the activity of the eNOS enzyme, itself responsible for the production of nitric oxide and favouring capillary dilation. Another noteworthy aspect of vitamin C is its antioxidant activity, which protects the vascular walls, thereby contributing to the maintenance of smooth microcirculation. These mechanisms could theoretically be relevant for attenuating vascular dark circles.

However, these effects of vitamin C have not been demonstrated when applied topically to the skin. The available data derive from studies involving oral administration or from mechanistic in vitro research in vitro. The effect of vitamin C on bluish under-eye circles therefore remains hypothetical.

There is, however, growing evidence to support the efficacy of vitamin C in reducing brown under-eye circles, which originate from hyperpigmentation of the periocular area. Ascorbic acid acts at several stages of melanogenesis : it inhibits tyrosinase activity, the enzyme responsible for oxidising tyrosine to melanin, and reduces oxidation intermediates, thereby limiting pigment formation. Its ability to neutralise reactive oxygen species also helps to decrease 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 examining the use of vitamin C via mesotherapy, comparing it with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections and CO₂ carboxytherapy. Thirty participants with pigmented under-eye circles were randomly assigned into three groups: PRP injections, CO₂ carboxytherapy and mesotherapy with vitamin C. Each patient underwent four sessions at two-week intervals. Although the small sample size represents a limitation, this study demonstrated that vitamin C could significantly improve the pigmentation around the eye, at least when administered by mesotherapy.

To complete this overview of the available data, another study focused on 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 PRP injection on one side of the face and an injection of tranexamic acid combined with vitamin C on the other. The results show that both protocols produced a comparable improvement in brown under-eye circles.

In conclusion, mesotherapy combining tranexamic acid and vitamin C appears as effective as PRP injections in reducing under-eye hyperpigmentation, but the study does not permit isolating the specific effect of vitamin C in this combination, especially given that the tranexamic acid is known for its depigmenting effects.

These studies, although informative, nevertheless make it difficult to draw firm conclusions about the efficacy of topical vitamin C on dark circles, since they assess vitamin C injections. To date, there is no clinical trial evaluating the effect of a topical preparation containing this active ingredient on dark circles, whether bluish or pigmentary. However, several investigations have examined the role of the vitamin C in the management of hyperpigmentation more generally, which makes it possible to extrapolate its potential to brown dark circles.

Among these studies, an open-label trial evaluated the efficacy of a formulation containing 25 per cent L-ascorbic acid in forty participants with melasma. The participants applied this treatment daily for 16 weeks. The results showed a significant reduction in the MASI score, which assesses hyperpigmentation (a decrease of 22.88 per cent, from 15.60 to 12.03). Indeed, the photographs 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).