The health of your skin can radically affect your appearance, your comfort, and your confidence. People who struggle with skin issues may report a substantial change to their quality of life, whether their skin health is interfering with their ability to get through a day without pain or discomfort, their enjoyment of social activities, or their discomfort with how others perceive them. Even for those with no significant skin health issues, the elasticity and tone of the skin decrease as we age.
Environmental exposure, toxins, gravity, genetics, and other factors can have major implications on our skin’s health - many of these factors are outside of our control. However, there are substantial steps you can take to improve the appearance and health of your skin from lifestyle changes to supplements. Let’s look at some of the most important steps you can take for your skin, as well as the best probiotic for your skin.
Your skin is the barrier that protects all your vital organs. While the skin is as thin as half a millimeter, it is critical for the skin to remain healthy and effective against the elements. You need your skin to keep moisture in your body, and harmful elements (like the sun and toxins) out. If your skin’s health is not at its best, it cannot protect you as well as you’d like. There are many lifestyle choices you can make to boost the skin’s health. These include:
But what about probiotics for skin health? Absolutely. As an extension of optimizing your diet, probiotics can be an important part of skin health.
At Natren, we’ve seen many people who have had positive changes in their skin from improving their gut health. Additionally, research backs up the idea that there is an important connection between the gut and the skin. For example, a review of multiple skin-gut studies said that in a “human study, Probiotic bacterial supplementation was shown to have a positive effect on skin barrier function.” In that study, participants who took Lactobacillus supplements for 2 months were found to have lower skin sensitivity (which may have multiple benefits). Another study found a link between improved gut health and faster wound healing.
According to the National Eczema Association, there are more than thirty million people in American who have eczema. Eczema is very common in babies and kids, but also affects many adults. The good news is that eczema is not contagious and is often manageable. According to Healthline, “Skin conditions like eczema may be related to a damaged gut. Inflammation in the gut caused by a poor diet or food allergies may cause increased “leaking” of certain proteins into the body, which can, in turn, irritate the skin and cause conditions such as eczema.” Another common skin condition is called psoriasis, and is also linked to the gut. In fact, one clear piece of evidence of this connection is the fact that those who have psoriasis are about 150% more likely to develop Crohn’s disease.
While the purpose of probiotics is not for curing skin conditions, they can play a strong role in keeping your gut healthy. By maintaining and optimizing gut health, many people find their overall health is boosted. This can include their immune systems, digestive functions, energy levels, and more.
It’s not just your own skin health that can benefit from probiotics, even your unborn child may get some benefits. Some research suggests that expectant moms have the potential to lessen their baby’s chances of having certain skin irritations by taking the right supplements when they are pregnant. The skin health boost can continue after birth, with probiotics benefitting breastfeeding moms and their infants. To learn more about the options for probiotics that may help the skin health of expectant moms and infants, read more here.
One of our best probiotics for skin health for your child is Natren’s Life Start. Life Start supports a healthy GI system in kids, whether or not they were, or are, breastfed. This supplement also promotes a healthy digestive system. As we have discussed, immune over-reactions and skin irritations may be lessened through a healthy gut - no matter what your age. When improved skin health is the goal, remember that topical solutions are not always the best choice. Probiotics allow you to improve gut health, along with its many connections, from the inside out.
Natren has earned its reputation as the leader in probiotics. Our mission statement reflects our commitment to your health through:
To choose the best probiotic for skin health, visit Natren’s online store. You can learn more about each one of our products, and can pick the best product for your gut - and skin - health.