What is the Skin? | Types, Definition, Structure, Function & Facts

What is the Skin?

We all have skin. The skin covers our entire body and keeps the good stuff inside and the bad stuff outside. But what exactly is skin? We’ll go into more detail below, but for starters, the skin is an organ. Just like the heart or the brain. It is an important organ that performs many functions to help us live.

Integumentary System

The skin is part of an important organ system known as the integrative system. The skin system includes the skin, hair, nails, and exocrine glands.

Functions of the Skin

Skin is very flexible, which means it has a lot of functions. It’s our first line of defense against the outside environment, it houses one of our five senses, it absorbs sunlight for vitamin D and heat, and regulates internal temperature.

Protection – One of the basic functions of the skin is to protect. On most of your body, skin is about 2mm thick. In some areas, such as your eyelids, it is thinner, while in others, such as the soles of the feet, it is much thicker. Skin helps to remove bad things from our body, such as germs and dirt that can cause infections. It also stores good things, like liquids like water and blood.

Sense of Touch – The skin is also home to one of our five senses: touch. In our skin there are thousands and thousands of sensors or receptor cells. These sensors send information to the brain about things we touch. They can tell the brain if it’s hot, cold, rough, smooth, or painful. Different areas of our body have more receptor cells than others. Our hands, feet, and lips all have extra receptors that make these areas more sensitive. In fact, there are different types of receptor cells for each type of sensation.

Temperature Control – Skin plays an important role in regulating our body temperature. When we get too hot, he sweats to help us cool down. It can also widen blood vessels in the skin to bring more blood closer to the skin, where it can cool. At the same time, the skin can constrict blood vessels to help us stay warm. By controlling blood flow and perspiration, the skin regulates our body temperature.

Layers of the Skin

The skin has three main layers. Each one has its own function.

• Epidermis – The epidermis is the outermost layer of the skin. Its main function is protection. The cells in the outermost layer of the epidermis are constantly dying and being replaced by new cells.
• Dermis – The dermis is thicker than the epidermis. The dermis contains blood cells, hair follicles, and sweat glands.
• Hypodermis – The hypodermis lies below the dermis and connects the skin to muscles and bones.

A. Epidermis
B. Dermis
C. Hypodermis
D. Blood Vessels
E. Stratum Germinativum

1.Hair Shaft
2.Stratum Corneum
3.Pigment Layer
4.Stratum Spinosum
5.Stratum Basale
6.Arrector Pili Muscle
7.Sebaceous Gland
8.Hair Follicle
9.Papilla of Hair
10.Nerve Fiber
11.Sweat Gland
12.Pacinian Corpuscle
13.Artery
14.Vein
15.Sensory Nerve ending (for touch)
16.Dermal Papillary
17.Sweat Pore