Functions of the Skin

 

You know your skin is very important. If your skin looks good, you look good. But what exactly does it do?

Skin is a barrier

Your skin acts as a barrier. It keeps all of your internal organs together as well as away from the harmful environment. Think about when you get a cut and how you need to keep it clean and away from the environment. If you don’t, it will get infected.

You internal body needs to stay away from the environment. Your skin keeps out microorganisms and other harmful things to keep you from getting sick and infections.

Provides sensations

Your skin is necessary for one of your five senses, touch. Your skin is full of nerve endings that allow you to feel. The nerve endings react to hot and cold, touch, vibration, and pain. Without this ability to feel, you would never know if you were hurt or even just touching something.

Regulates Body Temperature

Your skin has an incredible power to regulate your body temperature. It has a large supply of blood that is constantly working to keep your at the right temperature. When you get hot, your skin turns red which is the blood coming to the surface of the skin to cool.

Absorption, Excretion, and Evaporation

Your skin can absorb a lot of nutrients including nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. You often think of your skin absorbing lotions and creams to stay moist and supple, but it also has these benefits. It also absorbs vitamin D from the sun.

Skin excretes waste product and sweat from the body. It is continuously sweating, but sweats more as part of heat regulation. Evaporation is a part of this heat regulation. When you sweat, you are excreting salt and water. The water evaporates which in turn, cools your skin and body.

Synthesis of Vitamins

Your skin stores lipids and water and, as we mentioned earlier, it collects vitamin D. Vitamin D is needed to absorb calcium and phosphate. Your skin collects the vitamin D from the sunlight and synthesizes it for your use.

The functions of your skin are extensive as well as important. Take care of it!

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