Can you eat hyaluronic acid? Skin, hydration and gut benefits
Kate TaylorHyaluronic acid has been one of our top selected actives for our Skin Glow Blend. Our customers keep choosing it over and over again for its versatility as an active ingredient to support many skin conditions and concerns (like dryness, appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, dullness, inflammation — just to name a few), and how quickly they start seeing results.
So, I thought it was time to shine the spotlight on this amazing active! We are going to look deeper into how hyaluronic acid works as a functional food supplement, the benefits of ingesting it for your skin, and other positive side effects it can have on your whole body (some of these I didn’t even know about!).
What is hyaluronic acid?
Let’s cover the basics about hyaluronic acid first.
- Hyaluronic acid is a glycosaminoglycan, a natural sugar-based compound found in our bodies
- It acts as a humectant (meaning it draws water into tissues) and is able to hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water
- It is known as one of the best and most widely used active ingredients in topical skincare. It is well tolerated and suitable for long-term use
How hyaluronic acid works when ingested
Here are some more interesting facts you might not know about hyaluronic acid:
- In Japan, hyaluronic acid has been used as an ingestible skincare food supplement for many years
- Hyaluronic acid is typically made naturally by using bacteria to ferment plant-based sugars, which is then purified into a stable ingredient
- The molecular weight of hyaluronic acid determines the role it plays in the body once consumed
High molecular weight (HMW) hyaluronic acid has a more structural function and directly improves hydration.
Low molecular weight (LMW) hyaluronic acid acts more like a signaling molecule in the body, influencing inflammation and immune responses, and signals the body to produce more of its own hyaluronic acid.
The one used in the Skin Glow Blend is HMW, between 800–1200 kDa.
Benefits of ingesting hyaluronic acid for skin
Earlier this year, a review of different nutricosmetic ingredients and their benefits towards skin ageing was published. These were listed as the top 5 benefits for using hyaluronic acid as an ingestible skincare active:
1. Supports skin hydration
- Oral hyaluronic acid significantly increases skin moisture levels
- Effects are seen not only in the surface layers, but deeper layers of the skin
- Visible improvements can start showing after 2 weeks of consistent use
2. Improves skin texture and appearance
- Through enhancing skin smoothness, softness, and overall skin condition
- By reducing dryness and roughness
- This is linked to improved skin tone and brightness over time
3. Enhances skin elasticity and structure
- Oral hyaluronic acid supports elasticity of the skin (how “bouncy” skin feels) and epidermal (skin) thickness, leading to a stronger skin structure over time
- This is important for skin resilience and reducing premature skin ageing
4. Reduces wrinkles and visible signs of ageing
- Research shows that consistently taking oral hyaluronic acid reduces wrinkle depth and improves fine lines and skin ageing markers over time
5. Supports the skin barrier and water retention
- Through hyaluronic acid’s unique ability to bind and retain large amounts of water, this helps to maintain skin barrier integrity and long-lasting hydration
What else does hyaluronic acid do in the body?
Now that we have covered the benefits for skin, let’s go through some positive side effects that have been researched from ingesting hyaluronic acid that you probably didn’t know (and some of these were new to me too!).
1. It hydrates your WHOLE body
It supports hydration at a cellular level. This means it doesn’t just hydrate your skin, it hydrates everywhere, including your joints, eyes, and any other connective tissue in your body.
Proper hydration from hyaluronic acid also helps to maintain protective barriers like the bladder lining and epithelial tissues. This reduces permeability of these barriers and protects against irritation and inflammation.
The hydration also fills space in the body to maintain tissue volume.
2. It has strong anti-inflammatory effects
A study showed that oral supplementation of hyaluronic acid reduced pro-inflammatory cytokines (Wang et al., 2025). These are the things that create inflammation in our bodies.
It has been shown to decrease inflammatory markers like:
- COX-2: an enzyme induced by inflammation, pain, and fever
- iNOS: a key enzyme that produces high levels of nitric oxide in response to inflammatory stimuli
- MMPs: enzymes that break down tissue, including collagen and elastin
Why is this important for your skin?
This means it can reduce redness, sensitivity, and accelerated ageing in our skin by reducing inflammation.
This also has benefits for joint health, as oral supplementation of hyaluronic acid has been shown to reduce the progression of arthritis, pain, and cartilage damage.
3. It influences your gut microbiome
I thought when we consumed hyaluronic acid, it must just be absorbed through the gut into our bloodstream, then sent to our tissues, where it attracts water and hydrates and plumps everything up.
And that is true for a percentage of the hyaluronic acid we consume, but there is so much more to it than that.
A study in 2021 found some interesting links between consuming hyaluronic acid and our gut microbiome. It found that hyaluronic acid is actually fermented by bacteria in our gut.
The fermentation of hyaluronic acid was found to increase the abundance of certain species of bacteria in the gut, which means that consuming hyaluronic acid actually changes and influences the composition of our gut microbiome (Pan et al., 2021).
Hyaluronic acid was also found to be degraded, mainly by Bacteroides spp., into different oligosaccharides (small carbohydrates) and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), including acetate, propionate, and butyrate.
These SCFAs have anti-inflammatory effects in our bodies, and the oligosaccharides can be metabolised to provide energy. They can also act as prebiotics (food) for the bacteria living in our gut.
Final thoughts
Hyaluronic acid is such a versatile active ingredient that provides hydration at a cellular level and has beneficial effects for our skin, immune function, gut health, pain management, joint health, and inflammation.
So, the good news is that hyaluronic acid is available as an active you can select to be one of your 5 actives in your Skin Glow Blend. For more information on hyaluronic acid and our other actives, explore our Ingredients Library.
You only need to consume a very small amount to have noticeable effects on your skin — around 150 mg per day is enough, which is the dose included in the Skin Glow Blend.
Frequently asked questions about hyaluronic acid
Can you take hyaluronic acid as a supplement?
Yes, hyaluronic acid can be consumed as a functional food ingredient. It is typically taken in small daily amounts to support hydration, skin health, and other functions in the body.
How long does hyaluronic acid take to work?
Some studies show improvements in skin hydration within around 2–4 weeks of consistent use. Like most things, consistency matters more than taking large amounts.
Is ingesting hyaluronic acid better than topical?
They work differently. Topical hyaluronic acid hydrates the surface of the skin, while ingesting it supports hydration and other processes from within.
What does hyaluronic acid do in the body?
Hyaluronic acid helps retain water in tissues, supporting hydration in the skin, joints, and connective tissues. It also plays a role in inflammation and can influence the gut microbiome.
How much hyaluronic acid should you take daily?
Around 150 mg per day has been shown to be effective, which is the amount included in the Skin Glow Blend.
References
Marinho, A., Nunes, C., & Reis, S. (2021). Hyaluronic Acid: A Key Ingredient in the Therapy of Inflammation. Biomolecules, 11(10), 1518. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom11101518
Pan, L., Ai, X., Fu, T., Ren, L., Shang, Q., Li, G., & Yu, G. (2021). In vitro fermentation of hyaluronan by human gut microbiota: Changes in microbiota community and potential degradation mechanism. Carbohydrate Polymers, 269, 118313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbpol.2021.118313
Wang B, Wang F, Zhang T, Bai J, Cui S and Shi H (2025) Role of oral hyaluronic acid for joint health: insights from rat models and clinical trials. Front. Nutr. 12:1691328. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1691328 Frontiers | Role of oral hyaluronic acid for joint health: insights from rat models and clinical trials
Zhu, Yuhang & Capanoglu, Esra & Huang, Weisu & Wang王章铁, Zhangtie & Xiao, Jianbo & Lu, Baiyi. (2026). Food-derived nutricosmetic ingredients for combating skin aging: a critical review. Food Science and Human Wellness. 10.26599/FSHW.2026.9250928. FSHW.2026.9250928.pdf