Skin Troubles? It May Be your Gut.

Would you pay more attention to your gut’s microbiome if you knew that it can actually have an effect on your beauty? Digestive balance is one of the first steps towards healthy and radiant skin. Skin clarity is heavily impacted by the immune system, and HELLO, the microbiome is home to more than 80 percent of the body’s immunity!

While we often-times flush our skin with overwhelming chemicals in order to find a solution to visible problems such as blemishes, we forget to look behind the closed door (our gut), and find what the root of the problem may be. The gut is where we make nutrients, antioxidants that protect and nourish our skin, metabolize hormones, and neutralize pathogens, all factors that affect our skin-so it only makes sense that a well-balanced gut leads to healthier, more radiant skin.

Here is a breakdown of some of the science behind how your gut affects your skin: Having a healthy variation of bacteria is very important for digestion and health. When levels of good bacteria are low, that means that there is a higher level of pathogen (bad bacteria and fungi), leading to an increase in gut permeability. High levels of pathogens can lead to enlarging the microscopic gaps between the gut cells, allowing microbial toxins to pass through these gaps into your system. Naturally, the immune system kicks in to fight these toxins, overreacts, and causes inflammation. As I’m sure you can see where this is headed, acne is a common inflammatory condition.

So, while an imbalance in your gut flora may not be the sole solution, it certainly is a big component to the problem.

Are you someone that has seemingly tried it all, and nothing seems to work? Try to look at the root of your immunity and the source of overall wellness, your gut. Take control of your microbiome, and your skin may reap the benefits.

Here are 5 Things you Need to Know About the Gut-Skin Connection

1. Explore your Gut

It is important that you understand what is actually occurring inside your microbiome in order to understand how it is affecting your day-to-day. Step 1 to finding out about your personal gut-skin relationship is testing your gut’s bacterial and fungal levels with The BIOHM Gut Report Kit. The report results inform you of the important organisms specific to your gut that may even be linked to skin irritation. With The BIOHM Gut Report, you’ll also receive personalized insights and recommendations from BIOHM’s microbiome-trained Nutritionists based on your results to help you optimize your gut health journey.

2. Fill-up on Antioxidant Rich Foods

Antioxidants are a natural skin regime that have calming beneficiaries, leading to anti-inflammation. Antioxidants can also be naturally repairing, and can help alleviate damaged skin and scarring. Try adding antioxidant rich foods such as colorful fruits and veggies, beans, and even dark chocolate!

3. Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate!

Not only does keeping hydrated aid digestion and immunity, but it also affects the condition of our skin. Skin cells are reliant on water which contributes to plumpness, resilience, and dryness. It is important that we are drinking approximately 8-12 cups of water a day in order to keep our skin fresh and hydrated.

4. Don’t Overlook the Power of Enzymes

Digestion dramatically influences skin, specifically, the nutrients that we digest. Enzymes themselves are naturally anti-inflammatory, immune boosting, detoxifying, and healing to the gut. And as we’ve discussed, the overall wellness of the gut is directly correlated with the overall wellness of the body. While a probiotic supplement, like BIOHM provides the body with an ample amount of digestive enzymes that are naturally healing, it is important to add enzyme rich foods into our diets as well. Enzymes can be found in all raw food, but some especially enzyme rich favorites include mango, pineapple, papaya, bananas, and avocados – YUM!

5. Stress Affects our Skin

Factors such as stress and fatigue negatively affect our skin as well, leaving us looking drained and aged. High stress causes our bodies to make additional hormones, like cortisol, which tells your skin to make more oil, leaving skin more prone to acne and blemishes. How does this relate to our microbiome? Even stress levels can be influenced by our gut. The beneficial bacteria in your gut actually communicates with your brain and affects changes in your mood and stress levels. So while a healthy gut can actually alleviate stress and anxiety, an unbalanced gut can lead to inverse effects, creating unnecessary stress. Your gut’s effect on mental health, and consequently your skin, is another reason why it is so important to add prebiotic and probiotic rich foods into your everyday diet in order to stabilize microbiome balance.

While it is no secret that there is an axis between the skin and gut microbiome, it is easy to ignore our gut as a cause of irritated, dull, or acne infected skin. Your body is an ecosystem, and the gut is a main source of overall wellness, which is why an optimized, balanced microbiome is essential for overall optimal health, and even beauty.