Probiotics in Cosmetic and Personal Care Products: Trends and Challenges
Open accessAbstract
Probiotics, defined as “live microorganisms that, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host,” are becoming increasingly popular and marketable. However, too many of the products currently labelled as probiotics fail to comply with the defining characteristics. In recent years, the cosmetic industry has increased the number of products classified as probiotics. While there are several potential applications for probiotics in personal care products, specifically for oral, skin, and intimate care, proper regulation of the labelling and marketing standards is still required to guarantee that consumers are indeed purchasing a probiotic product. This review explores the current market, regulatory aspects, and potential applications of probiotics in the personal care industry.
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Cites
Marco, M. L., Sanders, M. E., Gänzle, M., Arrieta, M. C., Cotter, P. D., De Vuyst, L., Hill, C., Holzapfel, W., Lebeer, S., Merenstein, D., et al. (2021) · Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology · doi:10.1038/s41575-020-00390-5 · Cited by 937 · see citing works
Self-citationOral probiotics can resolve urogenital infections
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“There is no single healthy skin microbiome, so what would it take to ”balance” the one that a given individual possessed? Furthermore, the skin has many layers, with microbes being detected in the dermis, adipose, follicle, epidermis [8].”
BackgroundProbiotics: Biology, Genetics and Health Aspects
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Microbiome and Probiotics in Acne Vulgaris—A Narrative Review
Chilicka, K., Dzieńdziora-Urbińska, I., Szyguła, R., Asanova, B., & Nowicka, D. (2022) · Life · doi:10.3390/life12030422 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
Katona, G., Jovanovic Ljeskovic, N., Strahinic, I., Stanisavljevic, N., Vojvodic, S., Djuris, J., & Pavic, A. (2025) · Molecules · doi:10.3390/molecules30204134 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
- Authors
- Puebla-Barragan, S., & Reid, G.
- Affiliations
- Western University (CA)
- Corresponding author
- Reid, Gregor
- Venue
- Molecules
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2021-02-26
- Volume
- 26
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 1249
- ISSN
- 1420-3049 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7956298
- OpenAlex
- W3135328945
- Cited by
- 143
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 22 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 34 · 2023: 29 · 2022: 21 · 2021: 8
- FWCI
- 2.08
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Molecules (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Scholarship@Western (Western University) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (692895)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Probiotics and Fermented Foods
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Consumer Attitudes and Food Labeling
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Microbiology › Reproductive tract infections research
- Keywords
- probiotics, cosmetics, personal care products, probiotic regulation, product labeling, oral care, skin care, intimate care
- MeSH terms
- Cosmetic Techniques, Cosmetics, Humans, Industry, Probiotics
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