If it is harmful to the gut, is the same chemistry harming the skin barrier? The parallel between ultra/highly processed foods and skincare. They use the same emulsifiers.
At Vitis V, we value curiosity, because science starts with an observation, followed by a question. After reading an article in The Guardian about emerging understandings of the damage emulsifiers in food are causing to the gut not only physically but functionally, it led us to ask: what are the parallels between nutrition, formulation science, (food and cosmetic) and skin health? https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jun/29/the-truth-about-emulsifiers-gut-health-microbiome
One of the clearest parallels is the use of synthetic emulsifiers in ultra/highly processed food and cosmetics. Emulsifiers are also known as surfactants (surface-active-agents), are chemicals that lowers surface tension. These are ingredients that force oil and water, two naturally immiscible substances, to mix and form an emulsion. This makes them invaluable in the food and cosmetics industries for creating smooth, creamy textured, uniform products from cheap ingredients like water and vegetable oils. Two of the most common are Polysorbate 80 (P80) E433 and Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) E466 While currently accepted and marketed as safe, research into their effects on the gut barrier raises important questions for the skin barrier.
🔬 The Gut–Skin Parallel
Both the gut lining and the skin are barrier organs, evolved to keep harmful substances absorbing into our circulatory system, while allowing necessary exchange with the environment. Despite differences, they share striking similarities:
• Physical barrier: Tight junctions in the gut and lipid layers in skin both prevent unwanted penetration.
• Microbiome dependency: Both rely on balanced microbial communities to support barrier integrity.
• Immune surveillance: Each hosts immune cells ready to respond to breaches.
• Repair mechanisms: Both can repair after injury but are vulnerable to chronic disruption, inflammation.
This makes the gut a useful analogue when considering what emulsifiers might do to the skin. It is not in the interest of Big Cosmetics to disclose that emulsifiers used in skincare products are damaging the skin barrier, triggering inflammation the root cause of ageing.
🍽️ Emulsifiers in Food
Research shows emulsifiers such as Polysorbate 80 (P80) and Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) can:
• Increase intestinal permeability (“leaky gut”).
• Disrupt the gut microbiota, promoting pro inflammatory species.
• Trigger chronic inflammation that can lead to cancer
What’s striking is that these effects occur after emulsifiers have survived the stomach’s acidic environment and digestive enzymes. Despite this breakdown attempt, they still significantly disrupt and damage the gut barrier.
🧴 Emulsifiers in Skincare
The very same emulsifiers appear in skincare:
• Polysorbate 80 (P80): Common in lotions, cleansers, serums, and balms.
• Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC): Used in creams, gels, and oral care products.
Often these products are marketed as “natural” despite their petrochemical or synthetic origins.
Here is the concern: if emulsifiers can survive digestion and still damage the gut barrier, what happens when they are applied directly to skin with no protective breakdown first?
• Indirect route: gut damage goes to systemic inflammation which weakens the skin barrier resulting in skin disease such as psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, acne and rosacea.
• Direct route: applied on skin, emulsifiers can strip lipids, increasing permeability, raising trans epidermal water loss (TEWL) triggering inflammation, dryness, redness, sensitivity and the potential to be absorbed into the circulatory system.
📊 Market Use
The scale of emulsifier use shows how embedded they are in modern life:
• Polysorbate 80 (P80): Valued at around $1.4 billion USD in 2024, with ~60% used in food, ~30% in pharmaceuticals, and ~10% in personal care.
• Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC): Worth $1.6–1.8 billion USD annually, with over half used in food and ~30% in personal care.
Both are staples of ultra/highly processed foods and ultra/highly processed skincare.
🌱 The Bigger Picture: Ultra/Highly Processing
Emulsifiers do not provide nutrition or skin nourishment they provide product attributes such as texture, slip, stability, and shelf life. They are binding agents for oil and water.
• In food: They are hallmarks of ultra/highly processed products, where production cost, product stability, shelf life and profit outweigh nutritional value.
• In skincare: They dominate ultra/highly processed formulations, prioritising look and feel over barrier health.
That creamy moisturiser texture is doing more damage than good.
The parallel is clear: both industries are relying on synthetic emulsifiers to homogenise products, reduce production costs, gain shelf life and prioritise profit at the expense of barrier health.
⚠️ Why This Matters
• If emulsifiers can harm the gut barrier after surviving digestion, they may pose an even greater risk when applied directly to skin.
• Barrier damage is subtle but cumulative, showing up as dryness, sensitivity, inflammation, and impaired resilience.
• Just as nutrition science is re evaluating ultra/highly processed foods, you should re examine your skincare and ingredients.
Precaution is key: avoid skincare with polysorbate 80 and CMC, and be wary of synthetic emulsifiers marketed as “natural.” and definitely avoid them in food. Foods that use E443 and E466, include ice cream, mayonnaise/salad dressings, processed cheese, biscuits and baked goods.
🌿 Vitis V Perspective
At Vitis V, we do not formulate with emulsifiers that compromise the skin barrier. Instead we blend whole, unprocessed ingredients, cold pressed unfermented grapeseed oil and white grapeseed extract, naturally rich in bio- essential linoleic acid, multiple sources of antioxidants including super antioxidant proanthocyanidins and phytonutrients. These nourish, fortify, boost, support, and protect the barrier instead of instigating chronic inflammation.
The lesson is simple: barrier health underpins both gut and skin function and resilience. If an ingredient is harmful in the gut, it deserves equal scrutiny on the skin.
✅ Key takeaway: Emulsifiers disrupt the gut barrier even after digestion. On skin, there’s no such filter, the risk to the skin barrier is more direct.
Vitis V Face TonIQ; skincare that works with your biology, not against it.
📚 Reference
https://microbiomejournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40168-020-00996-6
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/12/4/167
https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/polysorbate-market-29509
https://www.precedenceresearch.com/carboxymethyl-cellulose-market