Department of Nutrition Student Projects

Submission Date

4-17-2026

Document Type

Undergraduate Project

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition (BSHN)

First Mentor

Andrea Charvet

Keywords

probiotics, inflammatory skin conditions, acne, eczema, gut–skin axis

Abstract

Teenagers between the ages of 13 and 18 are particularly susceptible to inflammatory skin disorders such as acne vulgaris and atopic dermatitis, which can have a detrimental effect on their physical and mental health. Emerging evidence highlights the importance of the gut-skin axis, indicating that the makeup of the gut microbiota affects both skin health and systemic inflammation. Adolescent-specific research is still limited even though probiotic supplementation, especially Lactobacillus strains, has demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects in laboratory, animal, and small clinical studies.

The purpose of this experimental study is to determine whether oral probiotic supplementation improves inflammatory skin condition symptoms in adolescents ages 13 to18. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either a Lactobacillus-containing probiotic or a placebo. Validated clinical assessment measures and symptom reports from both before and after the intervention will be used to evaluate changes in disease severity. It is hypothesized that adolescents receiving the probiotic will demonstrate greater improvement in inflammatory symptoms compared to the placebo group. The results of this study may provide evidence for probiotics as a complementary therapeutic strategy in adolescent dermatology.

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