GET UNDER YOUR SKIN

Sure, probiotics are good for your gut, but did you know they can benefit your face, too?

- INGRIE WILLIAMS

That’s because they can help your skin microbiome, which is an entire ecosystem that’s been getting a lot of attention lately, with dedicated products taking over shelves. A healthy microbiome equals a healthy skin, says Jennifer Brodeur, a Quebec-based celebrity facialist and the founder of JB Skin Sävvi. Propelled by a global pandemic that has fuelled a fixation on germs and increased occurrences of stressed-out skin, the science of skin health has never been buzzier. “Through recent developments in microbiology we can obtain very specific, genetic-based information about the skin,” says Dr. Nazli Ghiasi, a dermatologist, the owner of MapleDerm, and an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Toronto. “This has advanced our understanding of what constitutes a healthy vs. unhealthy skin microbiome.” While Brodeur has kept tabs on the bubbling topic for over a decade, she expects the conversation to blow up in the future. “The power of the microbiome on skin health is big,” she says, citing The Beauty of Dirty Skin: The Surprising Science of Looking and Feeling Radiant from the Inside Out written by Dr. Whitney Bowe in 2018. “Bowe’s patients with the most severe skin conditions had gastrointestinal challenges as well,” Brodeur says. “Microbial inhabitants can influence how your skin behaves.” Sounds like important information for anyone who wants to advocate for their own health. But first, what exactly is the skin microbiome?