Both probiotics and prebiotics have recently gained popularity for how they support a healthy gut and digestive system. At your last supermarket or health store visit, you may have even seen probiotic and prebiotic-infused drinks, like kefir or kombucha bottles, on the shelves. But, their benefits go beyond gut health. Probiotics and prebiotics are also great for your skin. As you continue to embrace your oasis on your journey towards healthy skin, come take a deep dive with us into the world of probiotic and prebiotic skincare.
What are probiotics and prebiotics?
Probiotics
According to the Cleveland Clinic, “probiotics are a combination of live beneficial bacteria and/or yeasts that naturally live in your body”. While bacteria often has a negative connotation, that is certainly not always the case. They explain, “you have two kinds of bacteria constantly in and on your body — good bacteria and bad bacteria. Probiotics are made up of good bacteria that helps keep your body healthy and working well.” Probiotics are essential for keeping bodies balanced and healthy from the inside out. Today, probiotics can be found in fermented foods, dietary supplements, and of course beauty products like skincare.
Prebiotics
SCL Health describes prebiotics as “specialized plant fiber that acts as food for the good bacteria. This stimulates growth among the preexisting good bacteria.” In other words, prebiotics is the “food” or “fuel” given to the probiotics so they can grow and thrive. While probiotics is what keeps the body healthy and functioning, it’s the prebiotics that gives them the energy to do so. Probiotics and prebiotics go hand-in-hand together for the best results.
Probiotic and prebiotic skincare
Now that you’ve learned what probiotics and prebiotics are, it’s time to explore the role they play in skincare. Let’s start with probiotic skincare. Medical News Today describes probiotic skincare as skincare that “involves using products that contain live microorganisms to improve the health of the skin. The idea behind this is that it helps maintain a beneficial balance of microbes, helping to reduce the symptoms of skin conditions.” By restoring the delicate balance of microbes, good bacteria can flourish, skin can reach optimal health, and skin conditions can visibly improve.
Prebiotic skincare is skincare that uses prebiotics to feed the good bacteria on the skin’s surface. This helps the good bacteria continue to develop and grow, so the probiotic skincare can reach its full potential. Holistic doctor and author Jame Heskett explains that “if you take the probiotic (the bacteria), but do not take the prebiotic (the food source), chances are that you will have a difficult time keeping beneficial microorganisms around and may think that your probiotics don’t work . . . without a food source, probiotics can’t thrive.” Probiotics and prebiotics work best if you’re looking for your best skincare results.
What is the skin microbiome?
Probiotic and prebiotic skincare significantly affects the skin microbiome for the better. But, before we go any further, let’s talk about the skin microbiome. What is it? Web MD says that “your skin is your largest organ. And it’s teeming with trillions of microorganisms, like bacteria, fungi, and viruses. These invisible life-forms are known as the skin microbiome. They’re an important part of your overall health.” Remember, the skin is the body’s first line of defense. Board-certified dermatologist Dr. Keira Barr, M.D. explains “the skin microbiome is constantly interacting with our environment and works to support our health by protecting against infection, influencing the immune response, protecting against UV radiation, and helping provide nourishment to the skin cells.” For more information on the skin microbiome, you can check out our “skin microbiome 101: everything you need to know” blog post here.
How does probiotic and prebiotic skincare affect the skin microbiome?
Help balance, strengthen, and protect the skin barrier
Biotech scientist Dr. Suzanne Saffie-Siebert says “a combination of prebiotics and probiotics in skincare can be outstanding for improving skin’s surface protection, ensuring skin has what it needs to keep its barrier intact, smooth, and healthy.” With probiotic and prebiotic skincare, the skin microbiome is guarded against irritants while retaining much-needed moisture.
Improve certain skin conditions
It’s been shown that probiotic and prebiotic skincare can also help improve certain skin conditions. Cosmetic chemist Kelly Dobos states that “microbes are known to be involved in various skin conditions like acne and psoriasis, so we have new opportunities for treating these skin conditions with prebiotic and probiotic skincare.” In fact, this paper published in 2018 outlines the incredible healing power of good bacteria. Through decades of clinical studies, the paper details what happens when probiotics, or healthy bacteria, are introduced to adults with acne. The studies found that 80% of these adults experienced clear skin from the probiotics with a noticeable decrease in visible lesions. These results speak for themselves.
Help minimize the signs of premature aging
Probiotic and prebiotic skincare also helps minimize visible signs of aging and prevents premature aging skin. Cosmetic dermatologist Nick Lowe M.D. explains “probiotics stimulate the skin’s immune system repairing natural defenses, preventing collagen damage, and hydrating the skin, thereby slowing the aging process.” Probiotics and prebiotics contribute to a healthy, balanced microbiome, which, in turn, diminish the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Restoring the skin’s balance can also improve skin elasticity. This leaves the skin looking firmer and more youthful. With all these skin benefits, probiotic and prebiotic skincare is the most direct and effective way to positively affect the skin’s microbiome.
glowoasis’ proprietary vegan probiotics
Here at glowoasis, we consider our proprietary vegan probiotics the magic behind our formulas. They are infused into each and every one of our products. To bring our proprietary vegan probiotics to life, we’ve developed our own fermentation and agro-extraction process. This process retains the key ingredients of our signature napa cabbage — which is what our proprietary vegan probiotics are made from.
Our proprietary vegan probiotics help balance and strengthen the skin barrier and are non-irritating, unlike dairy-based probiotics. Plus, since they’re dairy free probiotics, our proprietary vegan probiotics have no additives added. This makes them safer than animal-based ingredients and eliminates the potential for further skin issues like acne or redness. Our proprietary vegan probiotics are more responsible than dairy-based probiotics, too, because they produce fewer carbon emissions.
We believe it’s important to address the root cause of skin concerns, and the truth is most skin issues surface because the skin’s microbiome is imbalanced. In fact, most skincare products don’t even penetrate the epidermis. This is exactly why we’ve worked tirelessly to develop our own liposome technology for deeper and better product absorption. As part of this process, our proprietary vegan probiotics are encapsulated by a shield of protective micro-bubbles. The protective shield carries the vegan probiotics deep down into the dermis and then releases them to absorb directly into the skin. With our proprietary vegan probiotics, healthy skin glows deep!
Strive for healthy, not perfect, skin
We want to inspire you to love your skin because there’s truly nothing more powerful than accepting yourself just the way you are. Our proprietary vegan probiotics will always nurture your glow best for fresh, healthy skin.
Glow for it! Shop our full assortment of vegan probiotic skincare here.