This informal CPD article, ‘Supporting skin barrier by including probiotic in skincare products designed for inflammatory skin conditions’, was provided by Zahraa O. Hamzah, Senior lecturer and Skincare specialist at Iraqi Pharmacy Academy, who seeks to prepare sound scientific pharmaceutical cadres capable of providing the highest levels of pharmaceutical and medical services.
What’s a skin barrier?
The skin barrier is the main physical defense against any threats from the outer atmosphere such as bacteria, viruses or any pathogen, even environmental pollution. A healthy skin barrier means a healthy skin which can absorb active ingredients in the right way without irritation (Cui et al., 2023).
With skin care specialists, their goal is directed through prescribing a daily routine which helps in strengthening the skin barrier and minimizing skin problems like acne, hyperpigmentation, and premature aging. When the barrier is disrupted, inflammation is activated, this is quietly noticeable in patients with acne, rosacea, eczema and psoriasis during flare ups (Dapkevicius et al., 2023).
What’s the role of probiotic in skin?
Our human body consists of normal flora or a good bacteria which can work in harmony to maintain health. The skin is no different from this concept (De Almeida et al., 2023).
Skin probiotics have many benefits to skin including:
1. Increasing hydration which can help in skin moisturizing and soothing effect.
2. Reduce inflammation and minimize redness. This is important in inflammatory diseases like acne, rosacea, eczema and psoriasis.
3. Boosting collagen through production of peptides which have a valuable role in moisturizing the skin and reduction of wrinkles.
These all can help in supporting and strengthening the skin barrier which as a result lead to a healthy glowing skin with minimum number of skin problems (Gao et al., 2023).
How to incorporate skin probiotics in skincare formulations?
Skin probiotics can be formulated in many skincare products such as serums, moisturizers, cleansers and even sunscreens. Recently, many brands are focusing on adding skin probiotics in their products which are intended for patients with sensitive skin to reduce inflammation and redness which are the major concerns for those categories.
Are there any potential side effects?
As with many ingredients in skin care, the key is the right ingredients and the compatibility in the product formulation. Also, skin probiotics have different types according to the type of bacterium used in fermentation process. Special care should be taken in clinical trials to avoid any serious side effects that will affect the treatment process. Further studies should be investigated to discover the mechanism and full effects of skin probiotics (Kakarla et al., 2024).
Recommendations to improve the efficacy of skin probiotics
Active ingredients in skincare are always under development and study since there are many brands and companies interested in producing distinct products with maximum efficacy. Skin probiotics have the potential to be one of the major ingredients in anti-inflammatory and soothing products.
Choosing the right fragrance-free formula is the number one step when dealing with patients having eczema or psoriasis. Skin probiotics can help in reduction of the flare ups, but also other synergistic ingredients can play an important role in the formulation. Incorporation of ceramides and nutritive oils with other anti-inflammatory ingredients can support the skin barrier along with the skin probiotics.
Conclusion
Skin probiotics are interesting ingredients in supporting the skin barrier in patients having sensitive skin with inflammation such as acne, rosacea, eczema and psoriasis. Those patients require special care when choosing the formula and active ingredients in their daily routine.
Furthermore, studies must be taken from skincare brands when formulated a product with skin probiotics, since these are still under investigation, to choose the right type of bacterium with the right dose and dosage forms. The participation of other soothing and anti-inflammatory ingredients is something worth adding, focusing on the probiotics as a single therapy is not enough. The whole formulation should be assessed carefully during manufacturing a product intended for inflammatory skin conditions.
We hope this article was helpful. For more information from Iraqi Pharmacy Academy, please visit their CPD Member Directory page. Alternatively, you can go to the CPD Industry Hubs for more articles, courses and events relevant to your Continuing Professional Development requirements.
References
1. Samantha Herbert, Reneé Haughton. A review of topical probiotic therapy for atopic dermatitis, 2023 Jan, 48 (4) 319–324.
2. Kakarla S, Herrick G, Frasier K, Mukarram M, Skemp E, Coleman M, et al. Microbiome-Based Therapies for Pediatric Eczema: Probiotics and Prebiotics. 2024;
3. Gao T, Wang X, Li Y, Ren F. The Role of Probiotics in Skin Health and Related Gut–Skin Axis: A Review. Nutrients. 2023 Jul 13;15(14):3123.
4. De Almeida CV, Antiga E, Lulli M. Oral and Topical Probiotics and Postbiotics in Skincare and Dermatological Therapy: A Concise Review. Microorganisms. 2023 May 27;11(6):1420.
5. Dapkevicius I, Romualdo V, Marques AC, Lopes CM, Amaral MH. Acne Vulgaris Topical Therapies: Application of Probiotics as a New Prevention Strategy. Cosmetics. 2023 May 11;10(3):77.
6. Cui H, Feng C, Zhang T, MartÃnez-RÃos V, Martorell P, Tortajada M, et al. Effects of a lotion containing probiotic ferment lysate as the main functional ingredient on enhancing skin barrier: a randomized, self-control study. Sci Rep. 2023 Oct 6;13(1):16879.
