The Skin

Hi Everyone, 

This is a bit of a different topic I hope that you like it and find it interesting, I am going to try add in the odd information based post to my blog so if there is anything you would like to know comment below and I will do my best to help you out.

Being a beauty therapist I find there are a lot of people who don’t know much about the skin and how it works but they are interested to know. A lot of the information on the internet is in medical lingo and hard to understand so I thought I would try and make it simple so that you can understand a little bit more about how the skin works.

So here goes:

The skins main functions are protection, sensation, heat regulation absorption and excretion.

There are 3 primary layers the epidermis, dermis and the subcutaneous or fat layer.

The epidermis is made up of 5 layers of cells.

1. Stratum Corneum/ Horny layer: The outermost layer which consists of several layers of dead (keratinized) cells. They are constantly shedding off.

2. Stratum Lucidum/Transparent layer: Is made up of small tightly packed dead cells that are transparent. This layer is more noticeable in the thickest areas of skin (palms of hands and soles of feet).

3. Stratum Grandulosum: This is where the skin cells start to die and flatten out and lose fluid. 

4. Stratum Spinosum: Is the thickest layer in the epidermis these cells are still alive and getting nutrients. 

5. Stratum Germinative/Basal Layer: This is the deepest layer of the epidermis the home to your stem cells, the cells are alive and get lots of nutrient’s. This is where you find melanocytes which give the skin its colour and protect it from harmful ultraviolet radiation (the sun).

 The Dermis has two layers:

The papillary layer: Which is irregular in shape with rounded parts that poke up into the epidermis called papillae. The nerves that sense touch, pain, heat and cold are found in this layer. Fine blood vessels bring oxygen and nourishment to the skin and carrying away any waste products. Also in this layer you will find groups of collagen, reticulin (a structural protein) and elastic fibers which provide the skin with strength, support and elasticity.

Recticular layer: This layer has collagen, reticulin and elastic fibers that are woven together. It is responsible for the elasticity and general tone of the skin (eg aging). The sweat gland, arrector pili muscle (the muscle the makes your hairs stand up), deep pain sensors and an abundance of fine veins and arteries passing thought.

 Did you know that the skin is the body’s biggest organ and makes up about 10% of your body weight.

So that is a brief bit of information about the skin and what it is made up of. I hope you found it interesting and got what you were looking for. If you didn't please leave me a question in the comments below and I will do my best to answer them for you. :)  

Are you interested to know more about the skin?