“We are trying to target all gut-axes,” Yvonne Kim, head of technical and regulatory at Life-Space told NutraIngredients.
The company is established for its probiotics for infant and maternal health, and immunity.
Building on its success in these areas, it is now beefing up efforts into other gut-axis, such as the gut-skin, gut-brain, and longevity space.
Award win for first SKU for acne relief
Just in September, the company was recognized for its gut-skin innovation when it took home the Product of the Year: Microbiome Modulation Award for its product Life-Space Acne Relief + Skin Rebalance at the NutraIngredients-Asia Awards 2025.
This is the first SKU that Life-Space has formulated for acne relief.
It emerged as the winner against two other finalists, Meiyitian by Yili and Ova-All Care by Theronomic.
The judges commented that they were impressed with the product’s significant commercial success, widespread listings in brick-and-mortar stores alongside e-commerce, and ample evidence of research to support its claims.
The product contains two probiotic strains Bifidobacterium breve M-16V and Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus Lb-87 at the clinical dosage of 1bn CFU each.
“The product was designed to support clearer and healthier skin from within by targeting the gut-skin axis,” Kim said.
“There are two key probiotic strains in it, backed by evidence showing to modulate the immune system and also systemic inflammation.”
Bovine lactoferrin, zinc, biotin, vitamin C and E were also added for synergistic effects. One capsule can be taken daily for skin support and two capsules for acne relief.
The idea of targeting the gut microbiome for acne relief came from consumer feedback.
“By listening to consumers, we realized a huge market gap, where we’ve a lot of customers coming to us and telling us that they do not have to use topical cream anymore, because every time they stop using it, their acne comes back,” she said.
This was when the research team started exploring the gut microbiome as a potential root cause of recurring acne problems, and adopt a microbiome-first approach.
Building the gut-skin axis portfolio
Launched about a year ago, Life-Space Acne Relief + Skin Rebalance is the company’s first SKU for acne relief.
There are plans to further expand the portfolio by using different probiotic strains and ingredients.
“This product is more on skin rebalance and acne, it leads us to wonder if there’s going to be a portfolio evolution for skin rebalance into skin repair, glow or calm,” said Kim.
Outside of Australia, there are plans to launch the award-winning product to South East Asia, China, and the Middle East.
More into gut-brain axis and longevity
Following the launch of its gut-brain axis SKU NeuroBiotic in August, Life-Space is planning to ramp up its pipeline for this area, as well as for healthy longevity.
NeuroBiotic contains two probiotic strains Bifidobacterium longum 1714 and Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. Lactis BB-12, as well as L-Theanine.
The capsule product claims to support cognitive function and reduce mental fatigue, relieve stress and enhance sleep quality, and improve short-term memory and support mental recall.
“We are looking at probably the senior population in the next stage, looking at gut-muscle and gut-bone, that’s one of the few areas that we want to [explore] amid an aging population worldwide and longevity - which is one big area that we will play upon.
“We already have a gut-cholesterol product and this is a natural expansion into the different senior range,” she said.
