Probiotics and your skin

Your body is actually crawling with bacteria, good and bad. In fact your intestinal tract hosts over 100 trillion friendly bacteria, that’s 10 times more than the number of cells in your body.

You’ve likely taken a probiotic supplement or eaten foods like miso, tempeh, kimchi, sauerkraut, and kefir to stabilise the intestinal wall lining and ward off inflammation-inducing bacteria. So it makes sense that what’s benefiting you internally will have an external effect too, often resulting in a blemish-free healthy glow.

Related: Power foods for energy and immunity

In addition to feeding and nourishing the already healthy bacteria living on your skin, The American Academy of Dermatology claims topical probiotics work as a protective shield against the skin’s natural inflammatory reactions, like acne and rosacea.

Related: How to overcome your fitness fears

Probiotic skincare stops the skin cells from sending an ‘attack’ message when is senses unwelcome bacteria, in turn keeping the skin calm and blemish free. The ultimate result is the strengthening of natural skin defences, lowering of skin stress levels in skin and pH re-balancing.

“Stress in the skin comes from local skin irritants such as harsh, chemical-based products or internal irritants such as dehydration, poor nutrition and oxygenation so in theory anything that’s proven to support the skin’s health gets a tick,” says dermatologist Marian Rubock of Innovative Acne & Skin Solution, citing an active probiotic cream as a nurturing topical treatment that, when combined with the right lifestyle choices, may reduce skin inflammation and improve acne.

Related: Super screen smoothie recipes

“A dairy-based probiotic such as lactic acid from milk reduces the redness. Lactic acid is an alpha hydroxy acid and AHAs are acids derived from foods that are safe to apply to skin in small quantities,” explains Rubock.

“AHAs applied topically and regularly to your skin help reduce the appearance of aging, and they can be an especially good remedy against fine lines, wrinkles and other signs of premature aging from sun damage.”

Carla Oates, creator of the world’s first living skincare range, The Beauty Chef, agrees. “Studies show that a lack of hydrochloric acid in the gut may contribute to rosacea and acne. What increases levels of this acid is lactic acid bacteria found in lacto-fermented foods.”

Carla’s been experimenting with lacto-fermented foods (which produce natural probiotics) for over 10 years and agrees there’s a link between gut inflammation and skin inflammation, as well as the gut influencing the fatty acid profile of the skin.

Related: Four ways anger is good for your health

“How moisturised and hydrated your skin is may be a direct result of your gut health, which is very important for people suffering from dermatitis, prematurely aged skin and eczema,” she says.

So while it’s still an exciting area of research, results show that by supporting the flora on the skin topically, you can boost your beauty routine and uncover a radiant new you.