Your Skin Microbiome, and Why Is It Beneficial to Your Skin?

Your Skin Microbiome (Part 1)

Microbiome sounds like something out of biology textbooks, not even remotely related to beauty.

Yet, insiders and industry experts will tell you that microbiome is now the hottest topic in skincare in recent months.

Microbiome is not something new. However, its importance in skincare has only been discovered.

So what exactly is skin microbiome?

Like our digestive tract, our skin has its own unique set of micro bacteria or microbiome.  In other words, microbiome is our skin’s ecosystem made up of good and bad bacteria.  Naturally, to stay healthy, we want the good bacteria to dominate our skin.

Our skin microbiome changes throughout our lifetime as factors such as diet, lifestyle, environment, age, etc will have influence on its composition and make-up. Most of us are born with perfectly balanced microbiome, which is why babies and children tend to have beautiful, flawless skin.

How has discovery of skin microbiome change the way skincare is approached?

Previously, bacteria are often perceived as something that must be removed from the skin. Therefore, the concept of ant-bacteria was very popular in skincare, in particular for acne skin care. Question is, is indiscriminate removal of bacteria from the skin really a good thing? Or a viable solution in the long run? Would it do more harm than good?

With the discovery of the importance of skin microbiome, we are now looking at strategies on how to create a healthy environment for the skin so that the good bacteria can thrive. Our approach becomes more wholistic and integrative. Instead of just removing bacteria, we sought to nurture the good bacteria in order to achieve skin that is healthy, resilient and naturally radiant.