Disco Eye Stick is a skincare product used for anti-aging effects and dark circle reduction. The brand claims it’s as simple as shaking the stick and applying it under the eyes once a day.

But can a cosmetic stick really reduce undereye bags? Does this product contain ingredients proven to work? Does it contain any unhealthy ingredients? And is Disco Eye Stick better or worse than popular eye creams like CeraVe Eye Repair Cream?

In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in Disco Eye Stick to give our take on whether or not it's likely to have anti-aging effects, and whether or not it's healthy.

We'll also feature a video showing how to properly apply it, and compare Disco Eye Stick to other popular anti-aging eye creams to pick our winners (and losers).

Key takeaways:

• Contains active ingredients with anti-aging effects
• Contains inactive ingredients we consider unhealthy
• We do not currently recommend Disco Eye Stick

Ingredient Analysis

The ingredients in Disco Eye Stick are shown below:

The ingredients in Disco Eye Stick are shown above. There are some research-backed ingredients in this formulation.

Caffeine is the ingredient that the brand claims “reduces puffiness.”

A 2019 medical review found that caffeine slows down the photoaging process in skin. However, we cannot identify any studies suggesting that it reduces puffiness or is particularly effective around the eyes.

Pinus pineaster bark extract contains a compound called pycnogenol that Disco Eye Stick claims “minimizes dark circles.”

While a medical review published in the Phytotherapy Research journal describes  pycnogenol as a “potent antioxidant,” we can't find any evidence that it minimizes dark circles around the eyes.

Niacinamide is the ingredient that the brand claims “reduces fine lines and crows feet.”

We agree with this claim, and we consider niacinamide to be an effective anti-aging ingredient. As we referenced in our review of personalized skincare brand Curology, there are multiple clinical trials showing that topical niacinamide reduces the appearance of wrinkles.

Sodium hyaluronate is the sodium salt of hyaluronic acid, one of the most well-studied and effective anti-aging skincare ingredients.

Medical research shows that hyaluronic acid “relieves” wrinkles, and sodium hyaluronate has a smaller molecular size which allows it to penetrate deeper into the skin and potentially be more effective.

Camellia sinensis (green tea) leaf extract was shown in a 2013 clinical trial to have “pronounced moisturizing effects.”

Unfortunately, while Disco Eye Stick contains a number of effective ingredients, it also contains two preservatives that may be questionable from a health perspective.

Phenoxyethanol may be an eye irritant according to a 2019 meta-study, and ethylhexylglycerin is clinically shown to have a negative synergistic effect with phenoxyethanol, "enhancing the lethal effect."

It's important to note that the trial on ethylhexylglycerin was in vitro, meaning it's a test tube study, but we consider this information to be worth sharing with consumers, given that there are cosmetic formulations that are free of these two preservatives in combination.

While we consider Disco Eye Stick somewhat likely to be likely effective for improving skin quality and reducing wrinkles, we do not recommend the product overall due to the inclusion of the two preservatives highlighted above.

How to Use Disco Eye Stick

Disco published a product demonstration video on YouTube that may be useful to individuals considering this product:

Disco Eye Stick vs. Popular Eye Creams

Here's how Disco Eye Stick compares to other popular anti-aging eye creams in terms of potential effectiveness and healthiness, in our opinion:

Rufolia Periorbital Eyemulsion

Contains naturally-derived active ingredients like rose oil, which is clinically shown to hydrate the skin and have anti-inflammatory effects.

Free from any unhealthy ingredients.

Winner: Rufolia Periorbital Eyemulsion

CeraVe Eye Repair Cream

Contains many research-backed anti-aging ingredients, as we documented in our CeraVe Eye Repair Cream review article.

Only contains one inactive ingredient we consider unhealthy (versus two in Disco Eye Stick), so we give CeraVe the edge from a health perspective.

Winner: CeraVe Eye Repair Cream

Thrive Causemetics Defying Gravity Eye Lifting Cream

This cream contains four synthetic compounds which we consider to be unhealthy, so Disco Eye Stick wins from a healthiness perspective.

Winner: Disco Eye Stick

Our Clean Skincare Pick

MindBodyGreen Best Skin+ is our top anti-aging skin supplement.

It contains orange extract which is clinically shown to increase skin moisturization, skin elasticity and skin radiance.

This supplement also contains astaxanthin which is clinically shown to cause "wrinkle formation reduction."

This supplement is free of ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.

Disco Eye Stick Pros and Cons

Pros:

• May reduce wrinkles
• Should hydrate skin
• May have an anti-aging effect
• Affordable
  

Cons:

• Contains phenoxyethanol & ethylhexylglycerin
• Doesn't appear to be clinically tested
  
• Brand makes uncited health claims on their website
• Less healthy than some competitors

Conclusion

We do not currently recommend Disco Eye Stick because it contains two preservative ingredients that we believe are best avoided around the eyes.

Disco Eye Stick is likely to be effective for reducing wrinkles and for improving skin quality generally, because it contains several research-backed active ingredients.

In this article we featured a video that shows a product demonstration of Disco Eye Stick.

We consider Disco Eye Stick to be a healthier anti-aging eye cream than Thrive Causemetics Defying Gravity Eye Lifting Cream, but a less healthy option than Rufolia Periorbital Eyemulsion and CeraVe Eye Repair Cream.