Why the microbiome matters for skin health?

Looking after our gut microbiome matters not only for our digestive health but for the health of our whole body including our skin.  You’ve heard of the gut-brain axis but what about the gut-skin axis?  This is an important bi-directional relationship where the health of one influences the health of the other.  This communication occurs via pathways including our immune system and microbial messages that travel through the bloodstream.  Likewise, the skin has to be in optimal health to produce vitamin D effectively from sunlight which is critical for gut health.  From skin conditions such as acne, eczema and psoriasis to general healthy aging and radiance, it really is important to look within for healthy skin.

The Collagen Era

We’ve seen huge trends in recent years towards taking collagen supplements for healthy skin and the market is awash with options from different sources.  This is all well and good but as with everything we consume, the digestive system needs to be in good health to digest this, break it down into its respective parts and then rebuild this into human collagen.  The body needs many cofactors to optimally manufacture this collagen which includes a healthy digestive process but also good levels of nutrients including vitamin C[i] and zinc[ii].  Lifestyle factors are also critical such as optimising sleep, minimising stress and sunlight exposure (at healthy levels).

Nutrients for glowing skin

If only it were as simple as taking collagen or using the latest wonder cream for beauty from within. Yes, these will certainly help but we feel that it is much more important to give the body the raw ingredients to create balance within and nourish the body to flourish.  Our skin is the largest organ in our body but the one that our body will give least priority to as it prioritising keeping our internal organs healthy.  Add to that our modern day lifestyles with stressors that deplete vitamin C and disrupt our microbiome which further affects the health of our skin.  To mitigate this we should focus in on a healthy lifestyle combined with a diet rich in microbiome friendly fibre from a colourful mix of vegetables and fruit. It is the powerful antioxidants in the different colours of the foods that we consume that can help protect against DNA damage and premature aging.  Keeping our blood sugar balanced with healthy protein and fats is also equally important as will be explained further in our top tips for glowing skin from within.

Our top tips for glowing skin from within

1. Aim for 9 plant foods a day – less is more so think variety rather than quantity.  Small amounts of various types of vegetables and fruits give the body different nutrients and different types of fibre which has been shown to create a more diverse and therefore healthy microbiome.  Colour is important here too so an easy way to reach the 9 a day is to spice up your life and use a mix of herbs and spices which can offer nutrient powerhouses for the health of the skin.
2. Keep the balance to vegetables over fruit – aim for around 80:20 on the veg to fruit ratio.  This still provides the important nutrients that fruit overs whilst keeping the blood sugar response to a minimum.
3. Keep it natural with no refined sugar – excess sugar in the system produces something called Advanced Glycation End Products (with the aptly named acronym AGEs).  These create inflexibility and reduce the elasticity of the skin.
4. Start the day with good protein – by ensuring your breakfast contains good protein, your body not only gets the building blocks to repair and nourish, it also helps to balance the blood sugar for the day.
5. Focus on healthy fats – every cell in our body has an outer layer called the phospholipid bilayer which is made up of our healthy fats.  This includes our skin cells and this layer is critical for not only maintaining flexibility and elasticity but also allowing nutrients in and waste out.  Trans fats should be completely avoided which are those manufactured fats in processed foods.  Instead, priority should be given to healthy essential fats such as those from a mixture of seeds, extra virgin olive oil and oily fish.
6. Give your body a rest – By either reducing your eating window or reducing the snacks between meals, this allows a healthy microbiome and glucose reset. We all have routines that mean we can’t always stick to the perfect time restricted eating window whilst at the same time, ensuring that we are meeting our nutrient needs.  But try to do what you can to build in a little of this into your own routine… if you feel breakfast can be a little later or it works to bring your evening meal forward slightly.  Even a half any hour extra can be enough to make a difference.
7. Prioritise lifestyle factors – focus on healthy downtime to nourish the body. This can be as simple as a walk in nature, taking a relaxing bath or reading a book. All of these much better options than scrolling before bed which activates the sympathetic nervous system which is our fight or flight state and thereby slowing the body getting into the rest and regeneration phase when we sleep.

Why we formulated Glow

Some of the more keen eyed amongst you may notice that Glow doesn’t contain collagen.  Of course, you can take collagen alongside Glow and other supportive supplements such as omegas.  However, Glow focuses both on the key nutrients for making our own collagen and keratin such as natural vitamin C, biotin[iii], MSM and zinc alongside our proprietary bespoke probiotic and prebiotic blend to optimise the health of the microbiome for glowing skin from within.  We then combine high antioxidants from polyphenol rich foods including grape seed extract[iv], pine bark extract, haskap berry and butterfly pea flower.  Super skin nutrients are also included such as hyaluronic acid to moisturise the skin from within[v].  We’re delighted that the formula has been recognised by the Beauty Shortlist Awards as not only the Best Beauty Supplement for 2025, but also the Beat Hair Growth Supplement and Wellness Innovation.