THE SKIN
SECRETS
Less than a millimeter thick in places,the skin is composed of
three layers.The outermost layer is the bloodless epidermis.The dermis includes
collagen,elastin and nerve endings.The innermost layer,subcutaneous fa,contains
tissue that acts as anenergy source,cushion and insulator for the body.
It is the skin that
provides the sensory stimulation for our body.We can live without hearing or
seeing-in fact ,with out any of our other senses.But babies born without
effective nerve connections between skin and brain can fall to thrive and may
even die.For humans insufficient touching in early years can have lifelong
results, “in touching cultures,adult aggression is low,whereas in cultures
where touches are limited adult aggression is high” writes Tiffany
Field,director of the Toud research institute at the university of Miami school
of Medicine.Studies of a variety of cultures show a correspondence between high
rates of physical affection in childhood and low rates of adult physical
violence.
The skin has
millions of nerve cells of various shapes at different depths.When the nerve
cells are stimulated,physical energy is transformed into energy used by the
nervous system and passed from the skin to the spinal cord and brain.In simploe
terms people perceive three basic things
through skin;pain,temperature,and pressure.
Over exposure to sun
is highly dangerous to skin.repeated sunburn and prolonged exposure to utra
violet radiation from sunlight can cause irreppairable damage to the DNA within
skin cells and allowing cancerous cells to take root.the colour of the skin
depends mainly on melanin a brownish pigment produced by the melanocytes in the
epidermis.
When we age,the skin
loses its ability to retain moisture;the dermis loses its elasticity and its
collagen stretches;and lines and wrinkles from laughter and other habitual
facial expression deepen.Toxins in cigarette smoke accelerate skin-cell aging.
