Skincare brands increasingly adopt probiotics

Bacteria—once shunned from skincare products—are increasingly welcome in facial creams, serums and cleansers thanks to new thinking that “friendly” probiotics help to increase the skin’s natural defenses against ultraviolet rays, pollution, and stress.

In Phoenix, skincare brand Glowbiotics is using probiotics that support the skin’s immune system. “[This] barrier, comprised of the stratum corneum, acid mantle and microbiome, is the skin’s first line of defense against environmental aggressors,” says Glowbiotics founder Christine Watson. “If this structure is not supported at all times, inflammatory pathways become activated. Inflammation is the skin’s enemy. Chronic inflammation will negate any benefits the skin gets from any ingredient it is exposed to.”

In London, Aurelia Probiotic Skincare is using non-live probiotic from bifidio bacteria combined with milk proteins to “protect and restore… skin from within.” The probiotic calms natural immune triggers that are overstimulated by pollution and stress.