The Background Story

We’ve all experienced the frustration of skin problems and the sometimes tricky path to mitigating them. And we’re pretty sure we’ve all heard the saying “You are what you eat,” never realizing the true complexity and implications of that statement due to a lack of familiarity with our gut microbiome.

We now know that our gut microbiome affects much more than our digestive system, including our skin. The gut and skin barrier share a surprising number of features, including purpose and functionality.

While exactly how skin diseases are triggered by an impaired relationship between the gut microbiome and the immune system is still unclear, we do know that this disturbance can potentially cause acne, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, rosacea, alopecia areata, and other skin issues. Gaining a better understanding of this connection will allow for the development of new medications to treat these diseases.

The Gut-Skin Axis

Skin plays a critical role in regulating the body’s water balance and temperature, which  is influenced by the gut microbiome. Skin is the human body’s largest organ, with healthy skin harboring more than 1,000 bacterial species. Its size provides multiple nooks and crannies for microbial colonization, including hair follicles, sebaceous glands, and the stratum corneum.

The gut and skin contain a substantial volume of the body’s immune cells, and the primary purpose of their interaction is to manage systemic and local issues. Studies indicate that the gut and skin interact through diet, metabolites, neuroendocrine pathways, and the central nervous system. The direct effects of antibiotics may be the best example of the link between gut and skin microbiota, as evidenced by their usefulness in treating noninfectious skin conditions.

The Gut Microbiome/Diet Implications in Wound Healing

It has been theorized that alterations in the commensal skin microbiome may contribute to the formation of chronic wounds. Recent animal model research suggests that probiotics may inhibit and cure treatment-resistant wounds, including burns and ultraviolet injuries.

Gut Microbiome Disruptors

There’s no shortage of things that can disrupt the gut microbiota. A disturbance to gut integrity can cause an imbalance within microbial communities and significantly impact overall skin homeostasis. Antibiotics, prebiotics, probiotics, illness, lifestyle, aging, and long-term diets can affect the balance of the gut microbiome. Even minute changes can lead to skin challenges or other unwanted skin effects.

Exert Some Control – Techniques to Reset Your Gut Biome

Important elements in balancing the gut microbiome include incorporating prebiotics and probiotics into your diet, which refresh and revitalize the gut microbiota. Some suggestions for restoring the microbiome balance include:

• Remove inflammatory foods from your diet that feed harmful bacteria, such as high quantities of red meat, processed lunch meat, commercial baked goods, and deep-fried foods
• Include an abundance of prebiotic foods in your daily meals that encourage beneficial bacteria, i.e., almonds, bananas, kale, spinach, arugula, cabbage, soy, and flax
• Follow healthy lifestyle practices, including getting sufficient sleep and exercise and staying well-hydrated throughout the day

Healthy Gut, Healthy Skin

There is still much to be learned and validated regarding the gut/skin microbiome connection, but based on what we know so far, we can each take steps on our own to achieve and maintain a balanced gut microbiome and good general and skin health, like skipping the fast food and high sugar temptations and eating our leafy greens!