Balance. Equilibrium. Stability. Probiotics are the upholders of the status quo, the conflict negotiators of the bacterial world. Striving for peace and harmony. Who wouldn’t want some of that in their skincare?
What are probiotics?
Probiotics are microorganisms that live in and on the body. Their job is to encourage good bacteria to flourish, balancing out the bad bacteria. You may have come across probiotics in food terms: they are found in fermented foods such as yogurt and kimchi.
When ingested they promote good gut health, balancing levels of bacteria to ensure a healthy digestive system, strengthening the immune system and benefiting the whole body. What happens in the gut doesn’t stay in the gut but has a direct effect on the skin. A healthy gut means a happy complexion.
We are taught to fear bacteria from an early age but in reality, bacteria are an essential part of a healthy human body. Bacteria on the skin act as protection, forming part of the microbiome, also known as the skin’s barrier.
In simple terms, this barrier is the skin’s natural defence system, helping to keep the good stuff in and the bad stuff out. Skin pH can increase with age, causing skin to become drier and allowing more bad bacteria to grow. Probiotics, both in the gut and on the skin, keep the skin’s barrier happy, healthy and in balance. In peak condition to do its job as the skin’s first defence.
Why are people talking about probiotics in skincare?
Modern life can have a detrimental effect on the skin’s barrier via stress, lack of sleep, excess alcohol consumption and environmental damage such as pollution and sun exposure. Recent trends for harsh skincare products that strip the skin can also damage that protective barrier and trigger inflammatory skin conditions such as acne, rosacea and eczema.
This is why the skin’s barrier has become such a hot topic and why people are talking about probiotics as part of the solution.
Topical application of probiotics is thought to help balance the barrier by maintaining the natural bacterial ecosystem that is your microbiome.
What probiotics in skincare can do
By balancing the microbiome and regulating the skin’s immune response, probiotics in skincare can help to:
- Soothe inflammation
- Calm the complexion
- Reduce breakouts and redness
- Build resilience
- Keep skin hydrated by strengthening the barrier to keep moisture in
- Soften and smooth
You will find probiotics in our Willowberry Reviving Eye Cream as part of an active complex of ingredients dedicated to the eye area, along with pomegranate extract, green tea and caffeine. The probiotic we use is Lactobacillus, a bacterium (commonly found in yoghurt) that is stable enough to exist out of the fridge aisle and in our skincare.
We use probiotics in our Eye Cream for their calming, soothing and hydrating properties which is, we’re sure you’ll agree, exactly what you want when it comes to taking care of the skin around your eyes.
Willowberry is nutritious natural skincare for grown-ups, for your best skin.
A favourite with top make-up artists, Willowberry's luxurious award-winning products protect skin’s natural barrier function, to nourish and revive grown-up skin without telling women to be 'anti-ageing'.
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