Why Your Microbiome is Your Most Powerful Skincare Tool
Ever heard the statement, 'we are not alone'? The truth is, we aren't alone. In fact, trillions of microscopic organisms call our bodies home. We've been taught to fear germs and bacteria, but what if some of them are not only beneficial to us but also essential for our overall health and well-being? Our skin, far from being sterile, is home to a complex ecosystem called the skin microbiome. While the thought of "an entire alien race camping out on my face" might sound less than desirable, as author Jenny Lawson wrote, these microbes are, in fact, essential partners in keeping our skin health glowing, strong and clear.
Think of your skin's microbiome as your own personal rainforest, a vibrant and thriving community of bacteria, fungi, and viruses that live on its surface and within its deeper layers. This thriving rainforest is an essential part of your body's first line of defence—a living shield that protects your skin as it, in turn, protects you from the outside world. That is, without a doubt, our main reason for using raw fermented papaya as our active ingredient in all of AYA Natural Skin range, and in our all-round hero AYA Balm.
Just as a magnificent rainforest is a sign of a healthy ecosystem, keeping your own magical rainforest balanced and intact creates the foundation for healthy, glowing skin. But what exactly is it, and why does it matter so much? I am so here for it, so let's dive into this fascinating world and explore the role of natural skincare in maintaining a healthy skin microbiome.
So you're saying I have “dreaded” bacteria on my FACE?
That's a definite yes and no. Let's start with the "no"—not all bacteria are "dreaded." In fact, some are essential for our skin health. The "yes" part is that bacteria are a type of microorganism, and millions of different types are found on your skin. The microbiome is the entire community of microorganisms that live on a particular part of the body. This includes not only bacteria, but also fungi, viruses, and even mites. So, bacteria are just one component of the larger, more complex skin microbiome.
Think of it like this: If a single bacterium is like a wolf, the microbiome is the entire ecosystem—the forest with its wolves, bears, deer, and plants—all of which make up the beautiful rainforest thriving on your skin.
In its simplest form, the skin microbiome is the collection of microorganisms that
reside on your skin. It's a carefully balanced ecosystem where different species interact with each other and with your skin cells. This community is as unique as your fingerprint, with its composition influenced by everything from your genetics and lifestyle to the specific environment of different body parts. For example, the oily areas of your face, like your forehead and nose, host different types of microbes than the moist areas under your arms or the drier skin on your legs.
The microorganisms that make up your microbiome can be categorised into three main types: commensals, mutualistic, and pathogenic. If you think of microbes as personalities, the commensals are the easy-going, peace-loving, happy-to-coexist personalities. The mutualistic are the superheroes living in a symbiotic relationship with us so that we all benefit from the arrangement. Now, for those pathogenic personalities, they're the potential bad guys. When they are present on healthy skin, they are not necessarily a problem, but if their numbers increase exponentially or if the skin's barrier is compromised, then it's a whole different story. Think of pathogens in a skin microbiome as nuanced and needing to be contextualised!
What it all boils down to is that your skin microbiome, like any natural rainforest, is all about balance. The key to your skin's health is ensuring the "good" bacteria and other microorganisms work to protect you by competing with and even killing harmful pathogens. They act as a security team, making it difficult for invaders to set up shop and cause infections. This delicate balance is key to maintaining your skin's health.
What is the actual function of the Skin Microbiome?
Our skin microbiome plays multiple essential roles in maintaining healthy and comfortable skin. To start with, it is the first line of defence, just for one minute imagine a world where we wouldnt have a layer of skin and wonder to yourself what kind of separation would be available to us to delineate us as individuals let alone as species, but that sounds like a bad script for a Dr Who series, so lets just stick the known world. Our skin is what contains us and creates us as a separate species and individuals. The skin's primary function is to serve as a protective barrier, creating a biological boundary that establishes a clear separation between an organism and its environment. Needless to say, without it, we are up the creek with no paddle in sight.
More Than a Shield: Your Skin's Protective Layers
As a protective barrier, the skin not only keeps essential bodily components, like organs, tissues, and fluids, in and external threats, out. And the threats are actual physical damage, harmful microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses, and environmental stressors like UV radiation. Just think of it as Captain America's Shield saving the day, every second. We wrote a blog about how the skin is the most important part of skincare, something I think is easily forgotten in the big boardrooms of profit-driven beauty companies. (1)
The skin, while being our Captain America’s shield, is also an actual physical barrier, aka the stratum corneum. This is an actual layer of dead skin cells and lipids that creates the "brick and mortar" structure that protects and prevents moisture loss. The stratum corneum is part of the natural acidic pH level of our skin, our acid mantle, that helps to stop the growth of harmful bacteria.
And finally, the skin's role in regulating its own condition is tantamount to healthy skin. And this is where our microbiome plays a major role. An unbalanced or compromised microbiome can lead to a host of skin issues. When the population of beneficial microbes declines, it allows pathogenic microbes to flourish, which can trigger inflammatory skin conditions. For example, acne, eczema, rosacea and psoriasis.
The Microbiome Food Chain: Probiotics, Prebiotics & Your Skin's Ecosystem.
You've probably heard the terms probiotics and prebiotics. I still get them confused and need a lovely health care practitioner to help me break it down when at one of my essential health shop explorations. The best explanation I found is to think of it this way: probiotics are the live, beneficial bacteria themselves. Applying them to your skin is like stocking a garden with new, helpful species. They can help rebalance a disrupted microbiome by introducing good bugs to outcompete the bad ones. In contrast, prebiotics are not bacteria at all. Instead, they're the specialised plant fibres that act as food for the beneficial bacteria already living on your skin. They're like fertiliser, helping your skin's unique rainforest thrive and strengthening its natural defence system. Our skincare philosophy at AYA Natural Skin is all about using potent, plant-based ingredients that act as prebiotics for your skin. Instead of introducing foreign bacteria, we focus on nourishing your skin's unique ecosystem with the right ingredients, so it can do the job of protecting and healing itself in harmony with nature.
Nuts and Bolts:
How to Tell If Your Microbiome Is Out of Balance
When your skin's delicate ecosystem is under stress, it has a way of telling you. And of course, we wrote a blog about it, Skin Deep, and how understanding our skin signals can not only transform our skincare routine but also the health of our skin. An unbalanced microbiome might show up in a number of ways. You could notice persistent dryness or flakiness that no amount of moisturising seems to fix. Your skin might become more sensitive and prone to redness, or you could experience an increase in acne, eczema, or rosacea flare-ups. Other skin signals include itchy skin, slower wound healing, and possibly an accelerated appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
How to Achieve and Maintain a Healthy Microbiome
And here is the crux of it all, with the million other things suggested to us to keep Captain America's shield glowing, how do we keep it simple? The best way to do it is to work with your skin's natural processes, not against it. And a crucial first step is simplifying your routine, avoiding harsh, stripping cleansers and products with high concentrations of alcohol or strong surfactants, going natural, and I mean really natural all the way. Work out what that means to you (8), find your own guidelines that resonate with you, you guessed it, another pet peeve of mine.
Beyond your product choices, you can feed your skin from the inside out by making conscious lifestyle choices that suit you and support you. Proper hydration and a diet that incorporates probiotic-rich foods like yoghurt and kefir can help balance both your gut and skin microbiomes. Managing stress and protecting your skin from environmental pollutants with antioxidant-rich products are also vital steps. The goal isn't to become a superwoman with endless time, but to simply make small, consistent choices that add up to a big difference for your skin and overall well-being.
AYA Balm: Your Skin's Hard-Working Ally
Making small, consistent choices is where AYA Natural Skin comes in. Our philosophy is rooted in this very idea: supporting your skin's natural functions with a simple, honest approach.
Just as Captain America's shield is a hard-working, multi-tasking defence that protects, AYA Balm is an essential ally for your skin. It's a plant-based, hard-working, multi-tasking balm that does it all—soothing and protecting your skin's most vital components. By choosing products that are in tune with your skin, you're not just applying a topical solution; you're actively contributing to its long-term health and resilience, ensuring that your skin's inner shield is as strong and vibrant as you are.