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By Céline Champigny
President and Founder of Corpa Flora
The more we advance in this field, the more we discover that the infinitely small has an infinitely large repercussion on our general health but also the health of the largest organ of our body, THE SKIN.
We have been talking about microbiome, microbiota and skin flora for a few years now and what a fascinating subject for me who has been working for more than 20 years with invisible players to the naked eye such as DNA, RNA and certain microorganisms that are very useful for my work.
This is my first blog of a series where I will popularize this invisible world which is the skin microbiota in relation to the cosmetic world.
Each person is covered with more than 100 billion microorganisms that are arranged in a unique way like our own identity card. We could compare our body to a planet and the different body parts to continents with their own microbiota or microorganisms.
First of all, what is the hydrolipidic barrier?
The hydrolipidic barrier of our skin is an invisible film that covers the entire surface of our skin (stratum corneum - the outermost layer of the epidermis) and is basically made up of TWO phases, a watery phase composed of water and sweat and an oily phase composed of sebum and cellular lipids that prevent the skin from losing its water but also form a barrier against foreign substances. THESE TWO PHASES help determine your skin type. A high concentration of the oil phase results in oily skin, while a low amount of the oil phase results in dry skin. We also find an invisible ecosystem, our cutaneous microbiota composed of bacteria, viruses, yeasts etc.
Our hydrolipidic film ensures the balance of our cutaneous microbiota because these small microbes like water and fat and work to protect us against the invasion of undesirable microorganisms, their friendly relationship with our hydrolipidic film is very important for the health of our skin.
How do we know if our hydrolipid barrier is damaged? Dry skin is observed and this opens the door to eczema, redness, acne and other inflammatory conditions.
First of all, what is the purpose of these micro-organisms that reside on the surface and inside our skin?
DEFENSE ROLE
They are our "front line" warriors that fight against the invasion of less friendly micro-organisms that could settle on our skin.
SECOND SKIN ROLE
They act as a physical barrier with the skin's hydrolipidic film to prevent irritating or allergenic substances from reaching the skin.
ROLE OF REGULATING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
When the skin reacts, they communicate with our cutaneous immune system to alleviate inflammation.
REGULATING THE ACIDITY (pH) OF OUR SKIN
They live in harmony on our skin when the skin has a slightly acidic pH of about 5.5, which prevents the uncontrolled development of certain micro-organisms. In this environment, all microorganisms survive in equilibrium and under normal circumstances the species do not destroy each other.
For example, the staphylococcus aureus bacteria needs a higher pH (less acidic) to develop on the skin.
MICROBIOME FRIENDLY PRODUCTS
It should be noted that our facial oils and our serums with hyaluronic acid are accomplices to the health of our skin flora. They help replenish the lipids lost through cleansing but also through the effects of aging characterized by a reduction in sebum secretion (our little natural oils) which helps maintain the precious balance our skin microbiota needs.
What has happened in the last century to make our microbiota take so much away ?
ARE WE TOO CLEAN ?
Our skin is not sufficiently equipped to deal with showers, hot baths every day and sometimes even twice a day, chlorinated water, the abuse of very aggressive chemical peels, exposure to UV rays, the overuse of perfumed products, frequent antibiotic treatments and certain cosmetics that contain too many ingredients and several preservatives, some of which are broad spectrum, which are harmful to our skin microbiota because these preservatives do not differentiate between good and bad bacteria.
Some overly aggressive cleansing formulas drastically strip us of our little natural oils which often leads to redness, dryness and our skin becomes more and more sensitive which opens the door to inflammation and imbalance of our microbiota.
In a future blog, I will talk in more detail about this phenomenon regarding preservatives in cosmetic products because at Corpa Flora, our aqueous serums (which contain water) are preserved with natural ferments that do not contain active bacteria such as the radish root ferment filtrate by leuconostoque that we use in our HB5 and H3 antidotes and our lactobacillus ferment that is in the Antidote H+ formula. Our facial oils contain no preservatives and THANK GOD!
IT IS THE ACCUMULATION OF AGGRESSIONS WHICH HARMS THE BALANCE OF OUR SKIN MICROBIOTA...
CORPA FLORA TIPS
The use of body oils or balms is often necessary after the bath or shower to replenish and seal in the moisture of the skin in order to promote the health of the skin microbiota.
During the coming cold season, try to take your shower only every other night or even every third night and to wash only the most intimate parts of the body every day with a washcloth using a very gentle cleansing formula, you will see the benefits on your skin.
DURING MENOPAUSE or for very dry skin
It is judicious to clean your face only in the evening with our cleansing oil and to clean your face only with fresh water only in the morning.
IT IS NECESSARY TO PAMPER OUR SKIN AND HIS MICROBIOTA !
Corpa Flora cleansing oils are the best protection step for all skin types and conditions. After cleansing, your skin is not tight, but perfectly clean and without any greasy residue.
Sources
3. Le microbiote cutané par Anne Goetz (18-11-2016)
4. Front. Immunol., 17 December 2019 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2019.02950
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7998121/