Brief Answer:
Measures to reduce dark circles, acne and lack of glow

Detailed Answer:
Hello. Thank you for writing to us at healthcaremagic

I have gone through your query and I have understood it.

You have mentioned 3 concerns over here i.e dark circles, acne and dull skin.

Diet alone would not be enough to address these issues completely. However, paying attention to what you eat would definitely help in addition to specific treatment.
There is no particular dietary advice to follow, however, in general I would suggest a diet that is home cooked, includes lots of fresh fruits, vegetables, salads.
Avoid junk foods like pizzas, pastas, burgers etc. These contain refined floor (maida) and is not good for the skin.
Eat less of sugar. e.g chocolates, sweets, coffee, tea and coke etc.
Drink at least 8-10 glasses of water daily.
Take regular 8 hours sleep daily.
Physical activity like walking for 30 minutes and jogging is good for skin health.

Your first concern is dark circles.
It is a difficult proposition to treat dark circles because the darkening is actually not always due to excess pigment as is commonly believed. However, skin lightening agents do seem to help in some.

Hereditary seems to play a significant role in dark circles. In allergy prone individuals, a condition or state of 'atopy' exists & these atopic individuals more often than not manifest with 'dark circles' under the eyes.

Other factors that may be responsible for dark circles are subcutaneous vasculature shinning through thin under eye skin, sagging of skin.

Dark circles also depends a lot on your lifestyle pattern--diet, sleep, computer / TV use and stress.
Stressors/ Eyestrain due to working for long hours on computers & lack of sleep play a major role too as do Lack of regular and adequate sleep (6-8 hours).

In some individuals dark circles may be due to thin under eye skin as I have already mentioned; thin skin makes the blood in the blood vessels shine through and hence this appears dark.

Another important cause of undereye dark circles is Iron deficiency Anemia.

pigment reducing creams containing glycolic acid, kojic acid, Vit C can be helpful in reducing the appearance of dark circles. The same creams would also work for Post-inflammatory Hyperpigmentation on face.

Glycolic acid and Arginine peels are the two commonly used peels by dermatologists for undereye dark circles. You can try a few peeling sessions (6-8 sessions).

As can be judged from some of the reasons cited, good hydration, regular 6-8 hours of sleep, addressing stressors and a multivitamin and Iron supplement by themselves will go a long way in correcting this issue

Regarding the issue of lack of glow, it could be because of tanning, pigmentation, dry skin and certain other factors like open pores/ oily skin etc.

However there are various treatments which you can undergo to address these e.g the most simple and commonly used is glycolic peel.

You can take glycolic acid peel session from a dermatologist which has various advantages like: pigment reduction, reduces pore size, reduces acne, evens out tone and reduces oiliness.

You can take glycolic peel session from a dermatologist.

Sun avoidance by using a broad spectrum sunscreen through out the day is also essential.

Acne is a chronic and recurring problem. Therefore it is important to take adequate care and not allow them to turn aggressive.

Treatment of acne may stretch to months or even years and need to be modified at regular intervals according to severity of acne.

Treatment of acne is guided by the severity.
Topical treatment is usually enough for mild acne whereas for severe acne Oral treatment is usually combined with topical treatment.

Topical treatment mainly comprises topical antibacterials like clindamycin; topical benzoyl peroxide and topical retinoids like adapalene. These topical treatments may be combined to produce additive results.

Oral treatment comprises either Oral antibiotic e.g Doxycycline Or Oral retinoids like Isotretinoin.

Once you acne activity is well controlled, it is still advisable to use a topical retinoid e.g adapalene gel as a maintenance treatment for acne till at a certain age when acne activity naturally dies down.
Topical retinoids are antiinflammatory and comedolytic in action & therefore ideal for maintenance.

Topical retinoids also hep to lighten pigmentation resulting from acne.

I suggest you to visit a dermatologist. Your dermatologist will assess the severity of your acne and other skin problems and advice accordingly.

Regards
Take care

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