It is a general observation that whenever conversation turns towards the health of your body organs, you immediately think about your heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, bones and muscles. But you never give importance to the protection and health of Your Body’s Biggest Organ, the Skin. Yes, it is about your skin, the most visible organ of your body.
Skin is the most crucial organ that performs many important tasks for you including protection against harmful organisms like bacteria and viruses and regulation of the body temperature. Your overall health also depends on good skin health.
Lets read out this article carefully to understand what your skin actually does for you and how you provide best care to this amazing organ of your body!
What are the Important Functions of Your Skin?
According to anatomical studies, your skin firms 15% of your total body weight. It also covers an area of 2 square meters around your body circumference. The area is nearly equal to the surface area of a large kitchen table.
Your skin performs many functions to support your overall well-being. It is an important team member of your body organs team. This means your body organs work together with coordination like a team. Therefore, your skill also plays its role in this team, but you have never explored its functions. Many of us take skin as an outer covering if the body has perhaps no important function except a wrapping of body.
But the reality is opposite to it. Skin is an essential body organ system that plays many complex roles in your body. It is a multi-functional organ because to perform different duties at the same time, such as:
- Synthesizing vitamin D.
- Providing immunity.
- Enabling you to differentiate between temperatures, textures and other factors through a touch.
- Protecting and converting the internal vital parts and organs of the body.
- Making melanin.
- Releasing sweat.
Protection Against Invaders
Your skin is the best defense system for your body that works against invaders like viruses, bacteria and harmful external forces. The outermost layer is called epidermis that acts as a front line against germs that try to enter your body.
A healthy and intact skin prevents germs and harmful substances from entering the body. On the other hand, disrupted or unhealthy skin easily allows pathogens like viruses and bacteria penetrate deeper into your skin that leads to infections.
It seems you’re worrying now but you actually just need to worry because the superhero, your skin does not stop fighting against these pathogens even after their penetration deep into your skin. The skin cells work together as a combined force and create immune signals to make your body defense system alert that help protect your body against the pathogens attack.
In addition, the white blood cells continuously circulate around your skin leading to a disturbance of immune surveillance.
Moreover, your skin also contains special types of cells known as epidermal keratinocytes that prepare a special protein containing antiviral, antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. The sebaceous glands located on the skin foldings also help by secreting oil that act as another layer of protection against foreign substances and organisms. The sebum or oil also enhances the softness of skin.
Wrapping the Bones, Muscles, Nervous System and Other Internal Organs
Immunity does not affect the skin’s ability to protect the inner organs. This is because the innermost layer of skin which is known as subcutis or hypodermis is composed of fat reservoirs and acts as a natural shock absorber. In case of having a fall, injury or trauma, the innermost fatty layer provides a cushion that protects your inner iron as a protection against crashes.
In addition, skin also helps protect your internal organs from ultraviolet radiation from the sun. This is because the outermost layer of skin is composed of some protective chemicals like melanin that help shield deeper tissues from your skin, muscles and flesh from harmful UV exposure.
Sweat Release
You may denote the release of sweat as a sign of strenuous workout but the fact is opposite. Sweating is a natural mechanism of your body that helps maintain the normal temperature of the body especially in warm blooded organisms. Thus skin helps in thermoregulation. It prevents your body from becoming overheated by making it cool through sweating.
There are two types of glands in your eye that help in sweat release:
- Apocrine Glands: These glands are on your scalp, groin and armpits. They open into their hair follicles to release sweat.
- Eccrine Glands: They open onto your ski surface, excrete waste products in the fire of sweat and cover most of the body area.
Vitamin D Synthesis
Exposure to the sun is the only way to make vitamin D in your body naturally. Vitamin D is categorized as an essential nutrient that is required for the strengthening of bones, teeth and other tissues. Lack of vitamin D causes many bone and joints related health conditions along with brittle nails and weak hairs.
Its common functions include:
- Promoting immune function.
- Reducing risk of atopic dermatitis.
- Improving bone health.
- Promoting skin and hair health.
- Managing symptoms of psoriasis.
- providing protection against skin cancer.
Melanin Reservoirs
Melanin is an important chemical pigment found in the epidermis. The chemical helps maintain skin tone and color complexion of skin. Greater concentration of melanin causes a darker skin tone and voice versa.
But it is not the skin tone that is associated with melanin, it is also more important, like providing protection to your skin against ultraviolet rays coming from the sun. The relation between UV and melanin is complex but if you don’t take care of it and make your skin exposing to sun rays overtime, o may result in:
- Reduced collagen production.
- Sunburns.
- Premature aging.
- Reduced ski elasticity.
- Skin cancer.
Affect Touching Ability
Your skin is a sense organ that helps you feel the touch.without skin or the sense of touch you cannot feel the warmth of a cozy blanket, softness of your pet, roughness of hard surfaces. This is your ski that enables you to enjoy the pleasure of touch and also makes you feel pain when you get bumped, burnt, or fell.
Your skin helps you differentiate between hot and cold, rough and soft, that;s why you easily detect textures and temperature differences. Tiny but powerful touch receptors are present in your skin. These receptors are of different types and perform different functions, such as:
- Nociceptors are the skin receptors that make you feel pain when you experience a thing painful like a bump, injury or wound.
- Mechanoreceptors play a role in identification of pressure like fir handshake.
- Thermoreceptors help you determine temperature.
Things to do for Protection of Your Largest Sense Organ (Skin)
There is a long list of skincare products that are considered essential for skin care. People nowadays take those so-called skincare products as:
- “Must-have” but the reality is not like this.
- The unchecked use of these products can prove harmful for your skin.
- According to experts, using simple and natural methods for your skincare is the most effective way.
Let’s learn how you can do this!
Prioritize Nutritious Dietary Choices
Your skin is greatly affected by what you eat. So, a nutritious diet is necessary for the care of your skin. Your skincare needs nutrient-dense food as the first step.
Experts recommend that taking following nutrients can help protect your skin:
- Probiotics: This nutrient is important to enhance the skin’s barrier. This means it improves the ability of skin to prevent harmful UV and other pollutants from entering skin pores. High fiber items like fruits and vegetables and yogurt are rich sources of probiotics.
- Antioxidants: This nutrient helps counteract free radical and environmental damages. Its sources include spinach, kale, berries and leafy greens.
- Monounsaturated and Polyunsaturated Fats: These nutrients contribute to strengthening the skin’s lipid barrier. Its rich sources are chia seeds, walnuts and salmon.
It is suggested that limiting certain foods like sugary and highly processed foods can also help improve skin health.
According to 2022 research, food rich in sugar causes acne and blisters in the skin. Dairy products are also a great source of acne and pimples. Similarly ultra processed food increases the risk of developing atopic dermatitis.
How Can You Make Your Skin Healthy and Flawless?
If you start choosing skincare products, you may become confused. Because a lot of products are available.
But in experts opinion, using just a few basic products is enough for getting a healthy skin.
So, keep your skincare limited to these:
- A Skin Friendly Cleanser: It should be suitable to your skin and easy to use.
- A Good Moisturizer: Use the one that suits your skin type and needs.
- Broad-Spectrum Sunscreen: That is useful for your skin and provides protection against UV and other pollutants like dust.
Self-Care Activities that Support Your Skincare
Skincare is not possible without self-care. Many of you take it as spending a full day at the spa. But in experts opinion, self-care activities can be performed at home. The simple self-care at-home activities are enough to boost your skin health.
Some of these activities are:
- Exercise: Physical activities are best for improving blood flow in your body and even in your skin.
- Sleep: A good sleep of about 8 to 9 hours is necessary for boosting the health of your largest sense organ.
- Outdoor Activities: Air inside offices and houses is often drier than outside. Going outside helps keep your skin moisturized and flawless especially in cooler months when sun shows.
Take a Lukewarm Water Bath
Hot water fee;ls good at start but it actually washes away the moisturizing layer from your skin and makes it dry. Therefore, opting for a lukewarm water bath is good for skin. Taking a shower with water having the same temperature as your body is luxurious fur skincare. Steaming is also good for boosting skin health but if your skin gets red in steam, come out if you shower. Too much high temperature is injurious to your sin.
Use the Right Sunscreen
Broad-Spectrum sunscreen is considered the best option for protecting your skin against UVB and UVA.
Focus on these suggestions while picking a sunscreen:
- Choose a water proof sunscreen as it can block more than 90% of ultraviolet radiations coming from the sun.
- Apply the sunscreen on full body.
- After swimming or sweating, apply it again.
Dress Properly to Minimize Sun Exposure
Though sunscreens help avoid sun exposure, they cannot provide 100% protection from sunlight rays. Adding extra layers of protection with your outfit can help improve protection.
Try to add these to your outfit:
- UPF 50+ clothing.
- A hat.
- Sunglasses.
Add Vitamin D Supplements to Your Daily Diet
Sunlight is the only source that provides vitamin D to your body. Deficiency of vitamin D can cause serious problems including skin problems especially when you try hard to avoid sun exposure for your skincare. Adding vitamin D supplement can help maintain the vitamin D level i or body. These are of two types, including:
- Vitamin D 2: Some plants and fungi are rich with this vitamin, you can obtain this vitamin by eating these plants and fungi.
- Vitamin D3: It is made only by your skin in the presence of sunlight. But you can obtain it by eating fatty fish or fish liver oil.
Conclusion
Skin is your largest body organ. It is also the fifth sense organ that senses heat, cold and pain. It helps you differentiate between textures and temperature. This is a superhero that protects you from pathogens, pollutants and harmful UVA and UVB. It also helps protect internal organs of your body including bones, joints and muscles.
Skin perfume thermoregulatory function that helps maintain your body temperature by inducing cooling effect through sweating. Although sun exposure is harmful for your skin health, a little sun exposure is necessary because sunlight provides your body with vitamin D that is essential for the strengthening of your bones.
You can aid your skin’s health by taking a diet rich in antioxidants, vitamins and fats. Exercise, outdoor activities and stress relieving activities also help in your skincare routine.
