CONVERSATIONS WITH CLAUDIA AGUIRRE
BY MAE MAÑACAP- JOHNSON
As a neuroscientist and skin expert , Dr . Claudia
Aguirre specializes in the brain-skin connection . In the medical world , this unique interaction of mind and skin has given birth to psychodermatology , a relatively new discipline in psychosomatic medicine that looks into how emotional and environmental stressors affect the skin .
Dr . Aguirre has extensively spoken about the brain-skin connection , including at TEDxUCLA . She is also part of the scientific committee of [ comfort zone ] wherein she advises its R & D team regarding the development of new skin-care products . “ I became involved with [ comfort zone ] a year ago after meeting the chairman , Davide Bollati . The committee includes a dermatologist , a cardiologist and myself ( a neuroscientist ). Together , we bring our expertise from different areas and help trigger ideas about future products or treatments for [ comfort zone ],” she says .
In this Conversations , Dr . Aguirre provides a more scientific look at how the brain affects the skin .
PULSE : What sparked your interest in psychodermatology ? Dr . Claudia Aguirre : I was initially researching skin sensitivity while working on launching a line of professional skin products when I uncovered the new research of the skin ’ s neuroimmunology .
P : We ’ ve heard about psychodermatology or the brain-skin connection for a while now . Can you provide an overview on how this connection was first discovered ?
A : Believe it or not , the connection Click here between our digestive health , our to view the emotions and , ultimately , skin video ! health was described back in
1930 , by dermatologists John H . Stokes and Donald M . Pillsbury . While the idea of prescribing probiotics to patients suffering from acne seems ahead of its time , somehow , this knowledge was buried for many years . It ’ s only been in the past decade or so that scientists have uncovered the mechanisms behind the brain-skin connection . For instance , beginning in the late 90s , researchers examined the effects of stress on atopic dermatitis and other inflammatory skin conditions . Then , the field moved into the neuroscience of the neuro-immuno-endocrine system of the skin as it responds to stress . Today , the research is ongoing and has uncovered much about the independent stress axis of
24 PULSE ■ August 2016