By Dr. Chau Phan, Pharmacist and owner of Humaniti Beauty
It seems I am hearing the words “probiotics”, “prebiotics”, “antibiotics” and “microbiome” in TV ads these days. Before this, these words come up only at scientific conferences for doctors who work to cure skin disease in their professional capacity.
I thought it would be helpful to my blog readers to define these terms so that you can understand how they affect your skin’s health.
Bio: This Greek root word is the common base in all four words in my intro paragraph. It means “life”. You probably took biology in high school, which is the study of living organisms.
Microbiome: The root word “micro” means “small”, and “biome” means “community of living organisms”. Did you know that you have microbiomes living on your skin and in your body? The organisms in a microbiome are bacteria and / or yeasts, and the microbiomes on your skin and in your body “talk” to each other. Some microorganisms are good for you and some are bad, and the good and bad often exist together.
Probiotics, prebiotics and antibiotics:The prefix “pro” means “for” or “in favor of”. “Pre” means “before”. “Anti” means “against”. These three prefixes work differently when they are combined with the root word “biotics”.
Probiotics are live organisms that, when taken internally or applied to the skin in adequate amounts, are good for you, so they are “in favor” of promoting a healthy life.
Prebiotics are dietary substances that favor or promote the growth of beneficial microorganisms in or on the body. (So, “before” the prebiotics interact with microorganisms, they “decide” which ones are good for you – or not.)
Antibiotics are medicines that prevent the growth of or destroy microorganisms (good and bad).
5 tips to promote beautiful, healthy skin
These practical tips can help you use pro-, pre- and anti-biotics in a skin-healthy way:
- Partner with your doctor: Remember that glowing skin is a sign of healthy living. Talk to medical professionals about how you can be “pro” (“for”) beauty by being “pro” healthy living. (Hint: What you put into your body or on it, as well as what you do with it [exercise!] matters.)
- Read and understand product labels: For example, if you are trying to avoid getting (or attempting to get rid of) acne, you should know that “CFU” stands for “colony-forming unit” and is a way of measuring how many living bacteria or fungal cells in a probiotic are capable of multiplying. According to Raja Sivamani, MD MS AP, of the University of California, Davis, and Cal State University, Sacramento, the appropriate balance of CFUs of the three types of “good bacteria” in probiotic capsules had been found to be beneficial in reducing acne flare-ups.
- Reduce the use of antibiotics: Take antibiotics only as needed. Because they kill off good and bad bacteria, they can affect your skin and gut health negatively even as they eliminate the bad bacteria that cause infection and disease. Use soap (not anti-bacterial gel) to cleanse your skin. Use probiotics in conjunction with antibiotics so that the probiotics can restore the good bacteria the antibiotics are killing off. For acne treatment, ask your dermatologist about reducing the number of months you use antibiotics and “weaning” you off antibiotics so that, eventually, probiotics are the treatment of choice.
- Remember that your skin is your immune system’s primary defense: Especially if you have a chronic skin condition such as eczema, psoriasis or acne, be vigilant about what you apply to your skin to avoid flare-ups. A paper titled “Host-microbiome interactions and recent progress into understanding the biology of acne vulgaris” published by the National Institutes of Health on the site of the U.S. National Library of Medicine says that your skin’s microbiome is intimately connected to the body’s immune response. Creams containing probiotics help shield you from the microbes your broken immune system sees as harmful and the antimicrobial peptides in these creams act like natural antibiotics to kill the truly harmful bugs.
- Maintain balance among your body’s “little worlds”: According to that same research I talked about in tip no. 4, many scientists recognize what’s called “the gut-brain-skin axis…[which] connects gastrointestinal health to skin [health]…[and] recent studies have shown that orally consumed pre and probiotics reduce…oxidative stress, inflammation, and insulin resistance and also…[improve] skin barrier function and hydration.”
So, we’re back to tip no. 1 – work with medical professionals to know what to put in and on your body to be both healthy and beautiful. Your body will thank you.
Several of the products I offer on the humanitibeauty.com site may be just what you need to follow my recommendations in this article. If you would like more information about Humaniti Beauty’s products or about me, you can contact me at info@humanitibeauty.com or call me at 510.200.9984.
Sources for this article:
Hair, Marilyn and Sharpe, John. “What is the microbiome?” Published on the site of The Center for Ecogenetics and Environmental Health, University of Washington, January 2014. Available online: https://depts.washington.edu/ceeh/downloads/FF_Microbiome.pdf
Hermarajata, Peera and Versalovic, James. “Effects of probiotics on gut microbiota: mechanisms of intestinal immunomodulation and neuromodulation”. Originally published by SAGE Publications in Therapeutic Advances in Gastroenterology, January 2013; Vol. 6(1): 39 – 51. Published subsequently on the site of the National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Behesda, MD. Available online: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3539293/
O’Neill, Alan M. and Gallo, Richard L. “Host-microbiome interactions and recent progress into understanding the biology of acne vulgaris”. Published by BioMed Central, the Open Access Publisher, online in Volume 6: 177, on Oct. 2, 2018, on the site of the National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD. Available online: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6169095/
“Probiotics: In Depth”. Published by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) on the site of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, National Institutes of Health, USA.gov. Available online: https://nccih.nih.gov/health/probiotics/introduction.htm
Sanders, Mary Ellen. “Probiotics: Definition, Sources, Selections and Uses”. Originally published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, February 1, 2008, pages S58 – S61. Vol. 46, Issue_Supplement 2 (https://doi.org/10.1086/523341). Subsequently published on the site of Oxford University Press. Available online: https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/46/Supplement_2/S58/277369
Shatzman, Celia. “Why Probiotic Beauty Products Are Great for Your Skin”. Forbes, January 8, 2018. Published by Forbes Media LLC. Available online: https://www.forbes.com/sites/celiashatzman/2018/01/08/why-probiotic-beauty-products-are-great-for-your-skin/#296fd5d95ec2
Sivamani, Raja, MD MS AP, of Pacific Skin Institute, University of California, Davis, and California State University, Sacramento. “Probiotics and Prebiotics in Dermatology”. Session 1, Day 2, Integrative Dermatology Symposium, October 19, 20 and 21, 2018, Sacramento, California.
“What Are Probiotics?” Published on the site of WebMD LLC. Available online: https://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/what-are-probiotics#1
“What is the definition of antibiotics?” Published on the site of WebMD LLC. Available online: https://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/qa/what-is-the-definition-of-antibiotics