Microbiome researcher and co-founder of Phyla, Yug Varma, PhD joins Stacy to educate us about the microbiomes that live in and on us, the importance of keeping those habitats in balance, and the big role hydration, inside and out, plays in maintaining our skin health.
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Key Takeaways
Introductions
- Dr. Yug Varma has 10+ years of microbiome research experience including an extensive background in bio-organic chemistry, microbiology, and synthetic biology. With scientific training from distinguished academic institutions such as Johns Hopkins University (Ph.D.) and the University of California, San Francisco.
- Dr. Varma has now also had his work published in many prestigious journals, including Nature. Dr. Varma’s mission is to change the way we treat chronic bacterial diseases and is working tirelessly to achieve this goal with a microbiome-based technology platform. He is passionate about promoting scientific literacy and devotes a significant amount of time to demystifying microbiome research and making the latest research accessible to the general public.
- He is the co-founder & CEO of Phyla, a probiotic skincare system to target acne.
Microbiomes
- Our microbiomes reside in and outside of us, which can include bacteria, viruses, and fungi. They live off of, with, and within our bodies. Each microbiome (i.e. skin, gut, oral, vaginal, etc.) has its own ecosystem or habitat.
- Dysbiosis happens when these habitats get out of balance. Issues like allergies, asthma, and even neurological disorders are intimately connected to the gut microbiome. Whereas we see skin microbiome unbalanced disorders like rosacea and acne. Once a bacteria grows out of balance, the body sends signals that trigger inflammation.
Skin Microbiome
It’s really fascinating how the skin has evolved or adapted its defenses and that it functions as remarkably homeostatic as it does, which means it maintains a certain balance and just stays there. And one of the crucial parts of that is the pH. The skin is very acidic. And that acidity makes it very inhospitable for most bacteria that are just landing on it to survive. Obviously, the bacteria that are in our skin microbiome have adapted to that acidic situation. So it’s really important to maintain the pH of your skin. – Dr. Yug Varma
- Our skin is our largest organ, has the largest surface area of any organ, is our heaviest organ, and is the main interface between us and the world. We’re touching things, we’re sensing things with our fingers and our whole body, and our skin is involved with that. And, as a result, our skin is exposed to all of the elements and comes into contact with a number of microorganisms all the time.
- The skin is acidic. Stacy discusses why a prep or tone step is important in helping the skin balance acidity. They also agree moisturizing is really important!
- Stacy has seen a lot of folks who are also overdoing skincare, especially young folks, using so many products that are actually too harsh, drying out skin, and killing healthy microbiome that protects the skin. Dr. Varma agrees that suppressing the diversity of the bacteria of your skin is an issue and, as mentioned, lack of diverse skin microbiome can lead to dysbiosis.
- Everyone’s face contains most of the same bacteria. So why do some people get acne and some don’t? It’s not just the presence, but the balance. Acne is primarily caused by an overgrowth of Cutibacterium acnes (C. acnes).
Next Steps
- Stacy and Dr. Varma talks about how important our sebum (an oily substance that protects and hydrates the skin’s surface) is in preventing water loss in the skin and minimizing fine lines and wrinkles. Keeping your skin hydrated minimizes extra sebum oil production.
- Dr. Varma’s biggest recommendation is to make small incremental changes to build habits and be patient.
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