Study recommends botanical and probiotic mix for treating facial acne

16 Mar 2022 --- An Italy-based clinical study urges for a botanical and probiotic symbiotic mix as a potential alternative to traditional systemic antibiotics and topical treatments for strengthening the skin microbiota disrupted by acne. 

The study finds that administering dietary supplements containing probiotic strains and botanical extracts to 114 participants (aged 23 to 30) with mild to moderate facial acne resulted in a reduction of “total facial lesion count (Global Acne Grading System score)” and treatment and control of inflammatory acne after eight weeks.

The mix contained: “probiotics (Bifidobacterium breve BR03 DSM 16604, Lacticaseibacillus casei LC03 DSM 27537 and Ligilactobacillus salivarius LS03 DSM 22776) and botanical extract (lupeol from Solanum melongena L. and Echinacea).”

The research justified its stance by explaining a need to restore the dysbiosis (disruption of microbiota), which begins from the onset of acne. 

Oral treatments like antibiotics and topical treatments like retinoids do not target microbiota restoration – they have “many limitations.”Acne is among the top ten diseases worldwide by half of all women aged 21-30 years, according to the study. 

“Oral antibiotic therapy is recommended to manage moderate and severe inflammatory acne resistant to topical treatments. The use of systemic antibiotics should be limited to the shortest possible time, generally three months,” recommend the researchers. 

Acne vulgaris is defined by the study as “chronic inflammatory dermatosis…affecting mainly adolescents.” 

Probiotic and botanical mechanism
The study notes that probiotics have a two-way mechanism for managing acne. Probiotics prevent the growth of “opportunistic bacteria” and thus rebalances the microbiota. 

Additionally, it was found that probiotics reduce inflammation by inhibiting inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-8) and pathogenic cells (CD8 T). 

Lupeol extract from Solanum melongena L. (eggplant) was found to target the main pathogenic feature of acne. 

Echinacea (coneflower) is another noted effective botanical extract for treating acne. 

Limitations of antibiotic and topical therapy
“Antibiotic and retinoid therapies, both topical and oral, have many limitations: cheilitis; xerosis of the hands and face, including the nasal mucosa; skin fragility; and sensitivity to UV radiation,” say researchers.“There is growing evidence in support of the use of probiotics, mainly Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains, as a treatment for acne,” says the study.

For example, medications such as isotretinoin and lymecycline are reported to alter the skin microbiota in acne. Therefore, the study argues that antibiotics have been linked to gut and skin microbiota alteration. 

“Commonly used topical therapies include benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, retinoids, azelaic acid, antibiotics and combinations.” 

Since Cutibacterium acnes is not the sole microorganism of acne development, other treatments are “needed to restore the dysbiosis correlated with acne onset and evolution.” Other bacteria like, Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermis also play a role. 

Microbiome and microbiota relevance
PersoncalCareInsights recently spoke with researchers receiving government funding to study the skin’s microbiome as the key to healthy aging. With the rise of microbiome-friendly products, Sequential Bio is offering in-vivo tests and certifying microbiome-friendly products. 

Other related research points to the loss of IKKB function as the cause of atopic dermatitis. University of Antwerp researchers also argue that probiotics improve the skin microbiota and should skip consuming antibiotics. 

Edited by Venya Patel