Lifestyle

What the ESPA Experts Say

Just as nurturing our mental and physical wellbeing has become an imperative, so too a healthy appearance has become our chosen signifier of youth. As the next frontier in scientific discovery, understanding the skin’s microbiome holds the key to stronger, healthier-looking skin that is resilient to the challenges of modern life.

Pre and probiotic skincare to balance the skins microbiome is a new wave of scientific skincare. We spoke to our ESPA Experts to tell you more information on why probiotic skincare is latest skincare trend, and why it really works.

To clarify these astounding claims, we also spoke to Barbara Brockway, Dr of BioChemistry to discuss the trend of microbiome skincare and how beneficial probiotics really are.

Is probiotic skincare the future of skincare?

Barbara – This is more than a trend; a whole new area of research is opening up to us. The presence of microflora on the skin has been known for decades but due to the advances in DNA technology we are now able to see more detail so we now know more than ever before, about what is actually happening. 

ESPA Expert – Arguably anything used on the skin will have an impact on the microbiome. For example, using prebiotics after using anti-bacterial products may prove beneficial to help ‘re-boot’ and rebalance the skin’s microbiome.

Are topical probiotics the best? 

Barbara – Generally, leave-on products will exert more influence. As we are looking to nurture and support the skin’s microbiome with prebiotics, building this into the different layers of a skincare regime including serums, moisturisers and eye creams etc. allows for maximum flexibility and performance.

Once you’ve rebalanced the microbiome can you revert back to non-probiotic products?

ESPA Expert – Our skincare products are designed to be used as part of an ongoing skincare regime, in keeping with a more holistic approach and embracing a slow ageing philosophy. A simple analogy would be that probiotic products are like watering your lawn to keep it lush and green rather than treating the grass with intense fertiliser and weed killer.

Can you still use SPF while using probiotic skincare?

ESPA Expert – Yes. SPF is now accepted as a fundamental part of a skincare regime and ESPA believe that it will soon become the same with products that support the skin’s microbiome. 

What do you think will be next in probiotic and prebiotic beauty – are there any developments or new research that you are excited about?

 Barbara – After years of only partially considering skin’s microbiome, thanks to new next generation RNA and DNA sequencing methods, suddenly we are learning increasing amounts about its complex ecology.

From the mounting evidence, I feel we will see today’s microbiome protecting products being formulated to also encourage greater biodiversity in this microworld. Further advances in sequencing methods mean that very soon scientists will see the microbiome in real time. It will be like moving from still photographs to the movies. We will be able to ‘watch’ the effects of the probiotics and prebiotics in cosmetic formulas, as they happen and so design even better formulas that are in-tuned with the dynamic needs of the skin’s microbiome….. and who knows, managing the microbiome could lead to the end of blemishes. 

Shop ESPA Tri-Active™ Advanced ProBiome range now.

 

Thank you for reading.



Writer and expert