Study: Dietary Fiber Intake Improves Skin

Simian Practicalist
Mar 4
2 min read

A Japanese study by M.P. Kapoor, A. Abe et al titled “Dietary intervention of prebiotic partially hydrolyzed guar gum improves skin viscoelasticity, stratum corneum hydration, and ‍reduction of trans-epidermal water loss” published in January 2025 has found that prebiotic dietary fiber intake improves the skin.

The paper is about 20 pages, including acknowledgements and references.

The motivation for the study is to support the hypothesis and previous studies that prebiotic intake, specifically partially hydrolyzed guar gum (PHGG), can maintain or improve skin conditions like dryness and inflammation by helping skin to retain moisture.

The study involved 70 adults in total, 9 male and 61 female, with a mean age of 45.5 years. Those who had serious health issues and skin conditions, amongst others, were excluded. Two groups of 35 individuals were formed: one received the 5g PHGG dietary fiber supplement and the other received the 5g placebo. There were no adverse events reported for either group.

The study was carried out in Tokyo during the winter from January to April 2023. Measurements were taken before the start (T0), after six weeks (T6) and after twelve weeks (T12). These measurements included skin stratum corneum hydration (SCH), Trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL) and skin viscoelasticity functions at the cheek, upper arm and upper back.

In short, the PHGG group experienced significant improvement in skin moisture and TEWL in the cheek after 6 weeks as compared to the placebo group. Although this improvement in the PHGG group did not continue between T6 and T12, it was more-or-less maintained. The differences are less in the upper arm and upper back.