Sure probiotics are popular for digestion and gastrointestinal health (GI), and claims on immunity are also popping up; but their most recent stake in health is on skin care.
NutraIngredients.com interviewed Christine Lang, managing director, OrganoBalance, from its show in Paris—Beauty From Within 2010—on the recent advancements in probiotics research and how they may work advantageously on skin via the gut.
Although most of the research on probiotics is based on their role in the gut, emerging science is showing signals coming from the microorganisms in the gut and going into the skin and mucosa, according to Lang. Probiotics have an extra step when it comes to skin health, i.e., they have to send their message via the gut and into the skin.
Lang said most of the research has been focused on topical application of probiotics and their benefits on the skin—which include promise in collagen and dryness—but they are also planning to investigate oral application of probiotics. OrganoBalance has been looking specifically at what probiotics do to the microflora of the skin and are in search of probiotics that can stabilize skin microflora, and in turn, create an end product and something a consumer can understand. Lang said product launches are projected for one to two years, for OrganoBalance.
This is an exciting new area for the beauty and skin care industry. Companies such as OrganoBalance are conducting ongoing studies and research to uncover the full benefits of probiotics on skin, and how to take those benefits and turn them into an effective consumer skin care product.