Why Opt For Bioactive Skincare?
Our skin absorbs a significant amount of what we put on it. That includes the products in our daily skincare regime—cleansers, exfoliants, serums, moisturisers, masks and more. This begs the question: what internal impact (good or bad) can our external skincare products cause?
What are bioactive ingredients?
Bioactive ingredients are compounds that have a direct effect on living tissues, including the skin. These ingredients can provide a wide range of benefits, such as promoting cell growth, reducing inflammation, improving hydration, and supporting the skin's natural barrier function. Bioactive ingredients are a major marker of quality and distinction in microbiome product manufacturing. And here’s why: the true goal of microbiome-focused skincare and cosmetics is to support your customers' microbiotic balance.
Rather than contributing to, causing or exacerbating your customers’ skin dysbiosis or concerns (disease, chronic conditions or infection), we want our products to promote homeostasis in the microbiome. Enter bioactive ingredients. Bioactive ingredients have the ability to beneficially interact with our skin at a cellular level and are often derived from natural sources such as plants, herbs, or algae.
What are synthetic ingredients?
Synthetic ingredients are chemical compounds that are artificially created through various chemical processes. These ingredients can be found in a wide range of products, including skincare and cosmetics, processed foods, medications, and cleaning products, among others. Synthetic ingredients are often created to mimic the effects of natural ingredients or to provide specific properties, such as colour, texture or fragrance.
While synthetic ingredients can be effective and cost-efficient, they have also been associated with a number of health and environmental concerns. Some synthetic ingredients have been linked to skin irritation, allergic reactions and other negative skin reactions. And in some cases, other ingredients have been linked to hormone disruption, cancer and other health issues.
The deeper truth behind the products we use
Now that consumers and the scientific community are increasingly recognising the impact of skincare ingredients on our bodies as a whole, there’s a growing drive to seek better, higher-quality brands that prioritise safe bioactive ingredients, formulations and product manufacturing. And yet, the risk remains that brands will only incorporate ‘bioactive ingredients’ for a marketing edge—not for real, lasting microbiome-focused results.
At BiomeCentric, our ingredient selection goes beyond the market trends. Selecting ingredients for skincare products involves a complex process that takes into account a wide range of factors—including market trends, safety, efficacy, sustainability, and consumer preferences. While market trends can be a valuable source of information for ingredient selection, they are not the only consideration.
Our ingredient selection and manufacturing
Our mission is to ensure that formulations are researched, developed and tested for optimal microbiome outcomes. Namely, one of our goals is to address skin dysbiosis, which refers to an imbalance in the skin microbiome. Dysbiosis can lead to a range of skin issues, including dryness, redness, acne, and other conditions. Understanding the causes of dysbiosis within the skin microbiome is a critical step in developing effective skincare and cosmetic products that can help to restore balance and promote healthy skin.
Recent advances in genetic sequencing technology have made it possible to analyse the skin microbiome in greater detail, providing valuable insights into the specific strains of bacteria and other microorganisms that inhabit the skin. This information is used to develop skincare and cosmetic products that are tailored to the unique needs of the individual's skin microbiome.
The role of bioactive ingredients in skincare
Microbiome-centric skincare is not just about selecting ‘organic’ or ‘natural’ ingredients for marketing purposes. Rather, we aim to tailor every element of a product so that it is purpose-filled for your customer. Depending on the goal of the product you’re developing, some of the highly beneficial bioactive compounds we manufacture and select for our product formulations can include:
Traditional - Prebiotics, Probiotics, and Postbiotics, which are all essential components of a healthy and balanced microbiome—both in the gut and on the skin. Prebiotics are non-digestible fibres that provide a source of nourishment for beneficial bacteria in the gut and on the skin. Probiotics are live microorganisms that can help to restore balance to the microbiome, promoting a healthy and diverse community of microorganisms. Postbiotics are the metabolic byproducts of probiotic microorganisms, which can also provide a range of health benefits.
Next-generation - Prebiotics, Probiotics, and Postbiotics are a new generation of microbiome-focused ingredients that are designed to support and diversify a balanced microflora, both in the gut and on the skin. These ingredients are typically formulated using cutting-edge scientific insights and advanced technologies, and they can provide a range of health benefits beyond those offered by traditional pre-, pro-, and postbiotics.
One example of a next-generation postbiotic is short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), which are produced by beneficial bacteria in the gut. SCFAs have been shown to have a range of health benefits, including reducing inflammation, promoting a healthy gut microbiome, and improving metabolic health. In skincare products, SCFAs can help to strengthen the skin barrier, improve hydration, and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Another example of a next-generation postbiotic is postbiotic peptides, which are small chains of amino acids that are produced by probiotic microorganisms. Postbiotic peptides can help to stimulate collagen production, reduce inflammation, and improve skin elasticity and firmness.Bio-Fermented Botanicals, using BiomeCentric advanced strain-specific fermentation, it is possible to optimise the fermentation process to produce the highest-quality and most effective fermented botanicals. This approach can be particularly useful when working with botanicals that have specific bioactive compounds that are difficult to extract or that are not easily absorbed by the body.
During the fermentation process, the microorganisms consume the sugars and other compounds in the botanical material, producing a range of metabolites, including organic acids, enzymes and other bioactive compounds. These metabolites can enhance the bioavailability of the active compounds in the botanical material, making them more easily absorbed by the body and providing a greater level of efficacy.
In addition, fermented botanical actives produced using strain-specific fermentation can have specific benefits for the microbiome. For example, some strains of microorganisms are known to produce compounds that can support the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut or on the skin, helping to promote a healthy and diverse microbiome.
Overall, fermented botanical actives produced using strain-specific fermentation represent an innovative approach to developing effective and safe natural ingredients for skincare and cosmetics.
There’s more to discover
As leading developers and manufacturers, we exist to share our in-depth knowledge of the microbiome and help bold brands deliver their authentically game-changing products to global and local markets. It is important to note not all fermented and bioactive ingredients and products are created equally. To learn more about our ingredient selection process, product formulation or manufacturing approach, get in touch with our team today.