Beauty Clinic: Advice for tired and droopy eyes

Q. My eyes feel and look very tired and droopy at the end of the day – especially after a lot of working at a screen. Is there anything that will help to lift the skin and brighten my eyes? I am terrified of plastic surgery. A. Many screen workers find their eyes suffer. We get lots of questions about eye problems, from tired sore sometimes red peepers to puffy eyebags and dark circles. So much so that we devote a whole chapter to the subject of keeping your eyes happy in our book The Ultimate Natural Beauty Bible.

Here are our top tips:

• Take a break from your screen at least every hour, preferably more often. Set an alarm to remind you.

• Also don't forget to blink: blinking helps keep your eyes lubricated. There are various free bits of software to remind you. (Google ‘eye blink reminder software’.)

• Have your eyesight checked. You may need spectacles, or if you already wear them perhaps you need the prescription tweaked.

• If your eyes are sore, lie down for a few moments with a flannel rung out in warm water over your eyes. Chamomile tea bags, soaked, slightly cooled and squeezed, also help many.

Our Beauty Bible consumer panels trialled Eye Refreshers for The Ultimate Natural Beauty Bible and voted A’kin White Tea & Cornflower Eye Day Gel the highest score. One tester commented: ‘eyes felt alert, bright, more wide-awake; very refreshed and revitalised.’

Scoring almost as highly, Liz Earle Eyebright Soothing Eye Lotion gained the following accolade: ‘working with computers all day every day, in a badly air-conditioned office with artificial lighting contribute to my tired, puffy, old-before-my-time peppers, but this product sorts that out so simply that I now take it to work to give my eyes a bit of a pick-me-up at lunchtime – it does wonders.’

Sarah finds that Trilogy Very Gentle Calming Serum, formulated with chamomile and calendula for intolerant easily irritated skin, is a godsend for sore eyes.

NB Just to be clear, these measures should help to calm and brighten your tired sore eyes and help the skin look softer and smoother but nothing except surgery will actually lift sagging droopy skin.

A’kin White Tea & Cornflower Eye Day Gel/£22 for 15 ml at www.bathandunwind.com - buy here

Liz Earle Eyebright Soothing Eye Lotion/£10.75 for 150 ml at www.uk.lizearle.com - buy here

Trilogy Very Gentle Calming Serum/£28.50 for 30 ml at www.victoriahealth.com - buy here