Probiotics have been widely reported to alleviate
lactose intolerance, suppress diarrhoea, reduce irritable
bowel symptoms, prevent inflammatory bowel disease
and exhibit anticolorectal cancer activities. Recently, clinical studies have reported that probiotics may exert other
health-promoting effects beyond gut well-being. Probiotics have been documented to lower blood cholesterol levels (Ooi and Liong 2010), exert antihypertensive effects
(Yeo and Liong 2010), treat urogenital infections (Abad
and Safdar 2009), reduce allergic reactions (Michail
2009), prevent dental caries (Saha et al. 2012), reduce
risks of cancers (Kumar et al. 2010), alleviate postmenopausal symptoms (de Vrese 2009) and exhibit immunomodulatory effects (Ruemmele et al. 2009). In addition,
probiotics have also been documented to exert dermal
potentials such as improving atopic eczema, atopic dermatitis, healing of burn and scars, skin-rejuvenating
properties and also improving skin’s innate immunity.
The gut–brain–skin axis concept, as proposed by Arck
et al. (2010) suggests that modulation of the microbiome
by deployment of probiotics can exert profound beneficial effects, for example, on skin inflammation and skin
homeostasis.