New eyelid soothing creams and ointments

The issue

A common question we are asked here at Butterflies Eyecare hear is; 

‘What can I use for my dry, flaky and sore eyelids?

Traditional eye ointments

A lot of people tried Vaseline but as it is a greasy ointment, it’s quite messy, spreads as it melts and leaves the lids shiny. It doesn’t always help to deeply hydrate and calm irritated eyelids. For women, they are unable to wear makeup on top of eye ointments as it simply slides off and will not hold.

For a long time, there were not many options available and previously, working as an optician and pharmacist, we would suggest Lacri-lube or Simple eye ointment. Eye ointments are made from mixtures of white or yellow soft paraffin, liquid paraffin and lanolin. However, these were really designed to be applied to into the eye and were unavailable for a few years.

Eye Care Cosmetics

Luckily, our Eye Care Cosmetics range that we sourced from France after our optician found it in-store, came to the rescue. 
In fact, we decided to stock this range after our pharmacist developed sensitive skin herself.

Their Eye Contour Anti-Wrinkle Cream was a saviour for many – as a rich, soothing eye cream for treating dryness and soreness around sensitive eyes and lids, with anti-ageing natural oils and collagen to smooth fine lines. It is rich in marine collagen for a lifting effect, lipo-amino acid enhancing the suppleness of the skin and rice bran oil to hydrate.
As a light cream, it is absorbed well into the skin and does not leave a greasy residue afterwards as we found with the eye ointments.

Being both dermatologically and clinically tested, 88% of testers reported their skin felt smoother. Some of our customers have told us in their online reviews that this can help in the prevention and treatment of their blepharitis as well as managing their mild dry skin or eczema around the eye area. In fact, we decided to stock this range after our pharmacist developed sore, sensitive skin herself.

Although a larger 15ml pot, the downside to this was that men and younger women could be slightly put off by purchasing an anti-wrinkle cream.

Xailin to the rescue

Then came Xailin eye ointment to save the day but again, the packaging describes how to use it in the eye and this can be confusing if you are expecting to apply it to your eyelids.

Also, the tube sizes (5g) of all the previously mentioned ointments are too small to last very long for daily application and as ointments they had some of the same messiness issues as Vaseline.

Epimax - a dedicated solution

As a result, the team at Aspire developed Epimax eyelid ointment as a gentle, soothing moisturiser for sensitive, irritated eyelids or for those with eyelid eczema. It was designed soothe, hydrate and comfort dry skin around the delicate eye area or on the eyelids that may be dry, itchy, red, and flaky.

This is an extension of the popular Epimax cream and ointment range for the face and entire body, commonly prescribed on the NHS to treat eczema, psoriasis and long-term skin conditions. Many of our customers were familiar with the Epimax range and it immediately became a best-seller as it filled a gap in the eyecare market and we received many excellent reviews that you can view on our website.

However, it is an ointment base in a 4g tube and for some of our customers, there was a need for a more acceptable skincare cream-based moisturiser.

The sweetness of soothing honey

Next to come onto the market was Optimel Manuka Honey, made with 16.5% pharmaceutical-grade honey. It exploits the natural antibacterial property of honey to relieve dry eye symptoms and it is the only treatment to lower the acidity of the skin. This makes it unsuitable for microbes and mites to grow and cause blepharitis and meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD). These are commonly diagnosed from inflamed, sore, itchy eyelids, clogged with skin flakes and dry feeling or overwatering eyes.
The skin’s acidity gives it a barrier to damage from microbes, UV rays, harsh cosmetics and skincare, irritation and pollution. Skin acidity in eczema and dermatitis patients is often high and contributes to the dryness and inflammation.

The role of blepharitis

Blepharitis is frequently present with various skin conditions, including seborrheic dermatitis, rosacea and eczema. Seborrheic dermatitis has been associated with up to 46% of patients with MGD. Optimel Manuka Honey eyelid cream helps to protect and prevent dry, flaky skin caused by common eye problems. With a low acidity and high levels of emollient (jojoba oil), this cream helps restore the skin’s acidity which is crucial to maintain it’s barrier function and antimicrobial activity. It can be a bit sticky.

New kid on the block

Finally the recent launch of BlephaDerm 5-in-1 eye contour cream has been a huge success, with many of our customers placing an order within hours of receiving our launch email.

In the same way as our Eye Care Cosmetics range, it has been developed by an established French eyecare company from their pharmaceutical and optical laboratories. Historically French cosmetics and skincare brands have lead the way in innovation and producing high quality and premium products and BlephaDerm is no exception.

We did a deep dive into this exciting new addition to the established Blepha eye health range and were impressed to find that it combines not one but two tried-and-tested moisture-holding ingredients (trehalose and sodium hyaluronate) with three soothing, calming, natural oils and extracts and vitamin E.

As expected from this highly regarded brand, Blephaderm 5-in-1 eyelid and eye contour cream is an expertly enriched yet sterile cream for the delicate eye contour area. In actual fact, it is so versatile, it can be used over the entire face or even as a make-up base as it is non-greasy, perfume and preservative-free for allergy-prone skin.

The 5-in-1 formula has been developed and tested by ophthalmologists and dermatologists to:

• Soothe
• Hydrate
• Repair
• Protect
• Reduce puffiness

In conclusion, if you have sensitive, dry, irritated and allergy-prone skin that flares up around your eyes or on your face, we strive to source new and recommend our existing and products.

These now include more advanced treatment formulations with enhanced soothing benefits to really help to treat this irritating and painful condition.