Skin is not just body tissue. The skin is connected in one way or another with all systems, organs of a person, creating the conditions for him to successfully perform the assigned functions, it works throughout a person’s life and grows with it.

In infants, the thickness of the skin does not exceed 1 mm, by 7 years it adds another half a millimeter of thickness, and by 14 years the figure is already 2 mm. Only by 20 years or more does its thickness reach an adult value of 3 mm.

The condition of the skin can tell in detail about human health. This organ studies histology. There is also dermatology and cosmetology - these areas are responsible for skin treatment and skin care.

Features of the skin and its properties

The skin is multi-layered, has a unique structure that allows it to perform many functions. The adult's integument area is approximately 1.5-1.8 square meters, and their mass reaches 17 percent of the total body weight. It is characterized by elasticity, softness, strength. The skin perfectly protects against temperature changes, exposure to weak alkalis or acids, minor mechanical damage, and constantly regenerates, getting rid of worn layers and creating new ones. The skin is able to repair itself, and in addition, it has the following features:

• Removal of harmful substances from the body along with sweat;
• Thermoregulation due to the work of sweat glands and the mechanism of raising hairs - "goose bumps";
• Breath;
• Perception of tactile information;
• Protection - including blocking the negative effects of sunlight due to the excreted melanin - is a tanning process.

The structure of the skin

The skin consists of three main departments - the epidermis, the upper layer, the dermis located below, and the hypodermis. The epidermis is a keratinized layer that constantly discards old scales and acquires new ones. The two upper layers of the epidermis were sent by dead cells, the first three by living cells. There are no blood vessels here, but there are nerves that allow a person to get tactile sensations.

Under this layer is the dermis with its collagen content - this is a strong connective tissue in which the roots of hair and nails are fixed, nerves are also contained. Moisture can build up in the collagen layer, which provides the skin with elasticity and a youthful appearance. From this layer, nutrients enter the epidermis.

The hypodermis is represented by fiber, which is located under the outer skin layers, and in which there are subcutaneous fat deposits and connective tissues. There are many blood vessels, there are glands that produce sweat and deliver it out through the pores.

The layer provides optimal heat transfer, serves as additional protection against mechanical stress, strengthens the skin. Normally, the layer of subcutaneous fat in this shell is about 2 mm, but the thickness may vary depending on the health, age, hormonal state of a person.

Skin is an exclusively active organ that participates in the metabolic processes of the body and is second only to the liver and muscles in this regard.It may have a different color depending on the content of melanin - a substance that excludes damage from too much sunlight. The integuments change with age - at first they thicken, and then, with the onset of old age, lose their elasticity. But in any case, this is one of the most important organs in the human body.