Tips and Treatments to Get Rid of a Black Eye Naturally
‘Periorbital hematoma’ may sound like an incredibly difficult medical phrase. In layman’s terms, a Periorbital hematoma is known as a Black Eye the damage to the tissue under your skin around your eye. A large proportion of black eye injuries are a misnomer since the black eye is an injury to the face rather than the eye itself.
The black eye gets its name from the dark-blue bruising of the skin tissue around the eye. The majority of the cases are minor bruises, and our body repairs them, but some black eyes can be signs of major issues such as a basilar skull fracture.
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What causes a Black Eye?
Precisely, a black eye is the result of an accumulation of blood leaking from capillaries and blood vessels under the skin. The skin in the perimeter of your eye is loose and fatty, making it conducive for fluid accumulation. As the leaked fluid piles up in the tissue around the eye, the affected person gets bruises, puffy swelled eyes, and in some cases blurred vision. Other possible after-effects include migraine and pain around the eye.
So, how do black eyes usually happen? The common scenario is one where a person gets a ‘shiner’ through a hit on your face, especially the nose, eye, or forehead. Other scenarios that lead to a black eye include facial plastic surgeries, nose, and jaw surgeries.
How to get rid of Black Eye using Natural Remedies:
- Home Remedies
- Foods
- Oil-Based Therapies
Did You Know!
| Basilar skull fractures result in swelling and blackening of both eyes. Such a condition is commonly called “Raccoon’s eyes”. |
How to Treat a Black Eye?
A black eye is ultimately a bruise with swelling and puffiness. Much like normal bruises, a black eye cannot heal instantly. The first step to treat a black eye is to determine the gravity of the injury. In case you feel that the injury is serious, visit a doctor immediately.
In most cases, though, a black eye can be healed through some measures that you can take from the home itself. Broadly speaking, the measures, which can help speed up the healing of a black eye, are classified into three areas: Food-based solutions, home remedies, and oil-based therapies.
CURE 1: Home Remedies for Black Eye
Four popular remedies, to help the treatment of a black eye, are outlined below.
1. Ice Pack
Why does it work?
Ice packs help in reducing the swelling around the eye and slow the leakage of blood from your capillaries and vessels in the early stages(1).
How to use it and how much?
The process is quite simple. You can apply the ice-pack to the bruised areas around your eye for three regular intervals of 5 mins each. This entire process can be carried out twice or thrice daily.
2. White, Mint-Flavoured Toothpaste
Why does it work?
The white mint-flavored toothpaste contains anti-inflammatory compounds, and hence facilitates the healing of bruised skin.
How to use it and how much?
Similar to petroleum jelly, this remedy is ideal for applying before going to bed. You can apply a thin coating of white, mint-flavored toothpaste on the bruised areas around the eye, and then leave the coating on for a couple of hours, or even overnight. This can be done on a daily basis for good results.
3. Green Tea Bags
Why does it work?
Green Tea’s antioxidizing properties are a part of popular culture in our modern world. But, a lot of people are unaware of the different types of applications Green Tea might have. It contains a high level of tannins, which have antimicrobial and antioxidizing properties(2). These properties help tannins keep the bacteria away and fight against free radicals that may cause cell damage. Ultimately, the effect on the black eye is that the pain and swelling become lesser.
How to use it and how much?
Warm and used green tea bags can be placed on each eye for fifteen to twenty minutes. This process should be done twice a day for favorable results.
4. Warm Compress
Why does it work?
While the Ice Pack works on reducing the swelling and stemming the leakage, applying a warm compress on the affected area helps decrease the pain, facilitates removal of any blood clots that may have cropped up, and enhances the overall blood circulation in the area(3).
How to use it and how much?
You can apply a warm compress on the bruised area for 5 to 10 minutes for two regular intervals. This process can be repeated 2-3 times in a day to facilitate recovery.
CURE 2: Foods
Some foods are known to catalyze the black eye healing process. However, to apply these solutions, you must be of the application and the healing benefits of each solution. Four of the most popular food-based solutions are outlined below:
1. Raw Potato
Why does it work?
Black eyes can sometimes result in blood clots around the eye. Raw potatoes have the appropriate enzymes to help dissolve such clots. They also help reduce the inflammation(4) around the eye.
How to use it and how much?
Raw potatoes, like a black eye healing solution, are not for oral consumption. They can, however, be applied conveniently in the form of slices on the eye. The process is simple. You can place a sliced piece of raw potato on the eye for about twenty mins and then remove it. Ideally, you should do it three to four times a day for optimum results.
2. Pineapple
Why does it work?
Pineapples can help you reduce the pain and inflammation from a black eye, while also accelerating your recovery. Pineapples happen to be rich in Vitamin C and have an enzyme named bromelain. Vitamin C accelerates the recovery of the black eye, while bromelain facilitates the reduction in the inflammation and aches.
How to use it and how much?
Pineapple can be applied to the eye and also consumed orally. The application of pineapple on the eye helps the Bromelain enzyme do its work of reducing inflammation and pain. Oral consumption of pineapples gives you Vitamin C to aid recovery.
In terms of specifics of how to apply the pineapple on the eye, you can cut the pineapple into thin, circular slices. After that, the slices can be placed on each eye for a duration of ten minutes. Doing this three to four times a day has the potential to get good results for reducing the pain and inflammation.
4. Cucumber
Why does it work?
Cucumber helps the healing process by soothing the black eye, cooling it down, and reducing the pain and swelling. The vegetable has unique characteristics(5) that help in the healing process. Besides high water-content, cucumber has a very convenient shape for the purposes of healing a black eye.
How to use it and how much?
You can cut a refrigerated cucumber into thin and circular slices, cool them even further, and then place one slice on each eye. This solution should be applied at least once or twice daily. The slices must be replaced at least twice or thrice after fifteen to twenty mins to ensure that you refresh the cooling and soothing effect is retained.
5. Cayenne Pepper
Why does it work?
Cayenne Pepper is not just any kind of pepper. It is known to have strong pain-alleviating and anti-inflammatory characteristics. It contains a neuropeptide releasing agent known as capsaicin, which if applied topically, is highly potent in treating the bruising and inflammation around the eye.
How to use it and how much?
Powdered, Cayenne Pepper should not be applied alone. You need to mix teaspoons of powdered Cayenne Pepper and vaseline in the ratio of 1:5. Once this paste is ready, you need to apply it softly and equally around the black eye. Leave the paste around your eye for an hour and a half to a couple of hours and then wash it off carefully with water. Remember not to let the pepper get into your eyes while you are washing it off. You can do use Cayenne Pepper twice a day.
Cayenne Peppers are supposedly named after a place in French Guinea. However, it is popularly theorized that the place was named after the peppers rather than the other way round.
CURE 3: Oil-based Therapies
Certain oils have strong analgesic properties, which make them effective solutions for black eye treatment. Popular ones include carrier oils such as coconut oil and essential oils such as lavender oil.
1. Virgin Coconut Oil
Why does it work?
Virgin Coconut oil produces a soothing effect on the black eye due to its anti-inflammatory and analgesic characteristics(6). The medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil have antimicrobial characteristics that can protect the affected area from harmful bacteria. Furthermore, massaging with the oil can also clear blood clots, if present.
How to use it and how much?
Apply a thin, even layer of virgin coconut oil on the bruised areas around the eye, and then leave the coating on overnight. Do it daily for optimum results.
Also Read: 13 benefits of coconut oil for babies
2. Lavender Oil
Why does it work?
Much like coconut oil, lavender oil also has strong analgesic and anti-inflammatory characteristics. In addition, it also facilitates cleansing.
How to use it and how much?
Lavender oil produces similar effects as coconut oil, but you should not directly apply it to your skin since its an essential oil. Instead, you can mix six drops of lavender oil with about 15 milliliters of carrier oil such as coconut. The mixture can then be applied uniformly on the bruised area along with a gentle massage. The applied mixture can be left on overnight on a daily basis.
Prevention
Once you have gotten a black eye, it is not just about the remedies to accelerate the healing process. You will need to take a few precautions as well. Firstly, you will need to take as much care as possible to avoid injuries. Anticipate potential for injury from home objects and protect your eye when you go out. Secondly, you need to ensure that the affected area does not get infected.
To avoid infections, you might need to forgo make-up, wear appropriate protective eye-gear when you go out, especially if you are going to a place where there might be dust. Thirdly, as with any other injury, you will have to do some basics, like keeping your body hydrated, not rubbing the injured area, and keeping your head elevated to reduce the swelling.
However, the best precaution is preventing a black eye from happening altogether. The aforementioned precautions are not only valid for healing black eyes, but most of them will also help you avoid a black eye in the first place.
When to see a doctor?
In most cases, a black eye is nothing major to worry about. If you apply some of the remedies, solutions, and therapies mentioned above, the healing process is accelerated. However, in a few cases, a black eye may turn into something more serious. In such cases, it is always better to visit a doctor and get some active medical treatment.
Cases in which you should exercise the prudence of calling a doctor can include changes in your vision, prolonged exacerbated pain, infection of the affected area (especially if there is pus), and lack of improvement in the condition of the eye even after a few days have elapsed.
The human tendency towards heroism and neuroticism means that we either ignore things such as a black eye or worry too much about them. Ignoring or worrying too much are two ends of the action spectrum, neither of which provide an answer. It is always better to be armed with the knowledge to apply solutions and take care of our own body.
In the modern age, we are so engrossed with technology and progress that we often forget to use the age-old ingenious solutions that can help us ensure we heal from injuries such as a black eye. We hope that this short write-up enables us to understand and apply some of that ingenious knowledge.
FAQs
1. How long does it take for a black eye to heal?
If it’s a normal black eye and not a symptom of something more serious, then the time to heal without any treatment or remedy is two weeks. If you treat it, then it heals even faster in a few days.
2. Can a black eye affect your vision?
Usually, no. If it is indeed affecting your vision, then a visit to the doctor may be called for.
3. What if my black eye is not healing even after applying all the remedies?
A typical case of a black eye should heal in two weeks even without any remedies. In case your eye is not healing within a fortnight, it’s better to see a doctor.
