"Shadows of the dark world" – these words never meant good for anyone. Be it the fiction you see on screen, or the dark shadows camping under your eyes (yes, the dark circles), it's simply a universal struggle. Under-eye hollowness or dark circles are the first to arrive and give away that your body is deprived — maybe of sleep, nutrients, or simply healthy blood flow. And yes, those fancy under-eye patches, DIY hacks, tea bags, and a few home remedies, may or may not have helped either. Therefore, with under-eye concerns becoming one of the fastest-growing complaints, there’s another path to redemption, and it’s called carboxy therapy.
The carboxy mechanism
Carboxy is a minimally invasive beauty treatment where medical-grade CO2 gas is injected beneath the skin to boost a natural “oxygen deficit correction” response. "When the body detects excess CO2, it increases blood flow, oxygen delivery, and tissue repair in that area. This improves microcirculation, boosts collagen production, and enhances cell turnover. It's like resetting the skin’s energy supply, making the under-eye area brighter and firmer," Dr Debraj Shome, co-founder and director, The Esthetic Clinics, tells India Today. Additionally, it can help with fine lines, break down fat pockets, cellulite, and stretch marks. Carboxy therapy offers multiple benefits, but the one most people line up for is its impact on dark circles and under-eye puffiness. "This area is affected by poor circulation, thinning skin, lymphatic congestion, and minor fat herniation, issues that topical products rarely fix. Carboxy therapy directly improves these underlying causes. It also reduces puffiness by improving lymphatic drainage," says Dr Shome. And guess what, it might play quite nicely with Indian skin, especially.
A plus for Indian skin
According to Dr Rupika Singh, dermatologist and founder of Akiya Aesthetics, Indian skin often walks a fine line owing to higher melanin levels, a natural tendency toward pigmentation, and, in many people, under-eyes are thin enough to reveal every tiny vessel beneath. "That’s where carboxy therapy fits in so well. By boosting microcirculation and gently thickening the dermis, it helps dial down the bluish or purplish shadows that are especially common in Indian under-eyes, making it a smart, targeted fix in a country where pigmentation issues are common." In India, the demand for carboxy therapy is climbing steadily each year, as per experts.