About a year and a half ago, as I was brushing my teeth in front of the bathroom mirror, I noticed fist-sized black circles under my eyes. “Oh, great,” I thought. Sick again.” But I never developed a cold or sinus infection. Still, I had been feeling run down for quite some time, so I chalked it up to the stress of being self-employed in a lousy economy and kept plugging along.
I honestly tried to start eating better, figuring my age forty-something body was finally telling me that it needed some tender love and care after years of neglect. However, I found myself eating less and less red meat, at first because I couldn’t afford it anymore (yes, things were that TIGHT). But then, I gradually developed a dislike for red meat anyway, finding it harder to digest than poultry and fish.
Even though I began eating better (or so I thought), my energy levels continued to diminish. Secretly, I wondered if something really wrong was happening inside my body. I started a high potency, immune system-building supplement recommended for athletes and cancer survivors.
My energy levels returned to normal after about four months of the supplement. But the huge black circles under my eyes remained, no matter how good I felt. Perhaps something was still going on inside my body. I stuffed my fears deep inside and told myself I was being a hypochondriac. After all, plenty of women start seeing dark circles under their eyes in their forties. I had joined the club.
On a whim at the supermarket one day, I bought a bag of frozen spinach, even though I have never liked it. I figured it was good for me and I needed to start putting more foods like spinach down the hatch. It might have been a fluke, but the next morning after a large helping of spinach at dinner the night before, the fist-sized black circles under my eyes seemed less noticeable.
I cooked spinach every night for dinner that week until the bag was gone. The circles under my eyes did seem a bit smaller afterwards. I was happy but I just couldn’t see myself forcing spinach down at every meal from then on. In that week, I had already eaten more than I had in the last ten years! I just don’t like spinach.
In the back of my mind, however, I kept remembering how, when my sister and I were little girls, my grandmother made us take Geritol. It’s a strange tasting tonic that contains a high potency dose of iron. I didn’t even know if they still made it after all these years. I decided to search for it and was elated when I found it at the local CVS. After just two days of a tablespoon of the tonic per day, I noticed my dark circles were no longer fist-sized. After two weeks, they completely disappeared.
I did some research in hindsight and found out that those who give up red meat and vegans can be susceptible to iron deficiency anemia. They recommend vegans eat plenty of dark green vegetables (yuck), nuts and beans. I don’t like any of those foods! So I guess I will have to stick to my Geritol. I can’t tell you what a relief it is to know that I just lacked iron in my diet and I’m not harboring some latent disease. I realize that dark circles can be caused by many things but if your situation is anything like mine, check out the iron deficiency angle. You just might be pleasantly surprised!
Note: The author is not paid to endorse any of the products or stores mentioned in this article.
