5 Things You Didn’t Know About Your Skin

5 Things You Didn't Know About Your Skin

Last updated 9 months ago

When most people look at their skin, they usually only see its imperfections: too bumpy, too red, too pale, too wrinkled. While having healthy, radiant skin is certainly a worthy goal, understanding how the skin works can help you better appreciate your body’s largest organ. Below are five skin facts you may not have known that shed light on the abilities and secrets of your skin.

The Skin is Your Largest Organ: Spanning approximately 22 feet in length and weighing around eight pounds in the average adult, your skin is your largest organ. Your skin is broken down into three layers including the epidermis, dermis, and a subcutaneous layer of fat.
Your Skin Performs a Myriad of Functions: In addition to enabling sensations of touch, heat and cold, your skin also performs a variety of other functions, including maintaining body temperature and protecting you from harmful chemicals and UV radiation.
Your Skin Cells are Constantly Shedding: Your skin cells are constantly being regenerated, which means that you are shedding dead skin cells on a regular basis. In fact, you lose anywhere between 30,000 to 40,000 skin cells every minute!
Goosebumps Help Keep Your Warmer: Goosebumps are a natural reaction in which the tiny muscles that pull on your hair follicles contract or tighten. This causes your hair to stand on end as your blood vessels contract in order to reduce heat loss.
Your Skin Can Lose 3 Gallons of Water a Day: Keeping hydrated is as important for your skin as it is for your internal systems. This is especially true on hot days when your body can sweat up to three gallons of water.

For more informative and interesting facts about your skin, ask your dermatologist. If you are looking for a dermatologist in Tampa, contact Advanced Dermatology & Cosmetic Surgery. To locate an office or doctor near you, please visit Advanced Dermatology online or call us today at (866) 400-3376.