Hey all!
Today, after I came out of the bathroom, my little brother was pulling me to look at his piece of drawing. However, when he held my hands, he let it off immediately! He was appalled to see my skin shriveling up like a prune. He exclaimed: “Hey! You’ve got wrinkles! You’re getting O-L-D after you bathe!!!” Oh no… I did not! However, this triggered my curiosity. In actual fact, I wondered about the wrinkling of fingers when I was even younger than him.
When I asked my mother why I get wrinkles after bath, I get the same weird answer: ”The water soaks the water out of your skin. Do not bathe too long next time!” That was a hint for me to save water…
After looking up on the internet and the library, I found out that the answer that I got from my mother every time is WRONG! They’re just misconceptions. Many think that we get wrinkly fingers as we are losing body fluids to the surroundings. However, instead, it is due to increased absorption or water that causes wrinkling of skin!
This question of "wrinkling of fingers" happens upon many!
I came upon an article about a group of 9-year-old girls wondering an answer to the wrinkling of their fingers!
click here to look at the article! ^^
Prune Fingers
The wrinkling of our skin after long exposure to water is known as prune fingers or water aging. This is a temporary skin condition that causes no harm to our bodies. But why will I have the wrinkles?
Our skin is made up of 3 layers: the Epidermis, the Dermis and the Subcutaneous. From the diagram, you can see the subcutaneous is the deepest layer. It contains fats and connective tissue along with large blood vessels. The dermis contains blood vessels, nerves, hair roots and sweat glands. The epidermis is the topmost layer. It helps to prevent evaporation of water from the body and protect the internal layers from harm.
The epidermis is made up of 4 layers, and the one that we can see and feel is called the stratum corneum. It is the layer of dead keratin cells. Keratin is a protein found in our hair, nails and the outermost layer of our skin.
Even though we cannot see it, our skin is covered with a special layer of oil called the sebum. Sebum moistens, lubricates and protects our skin. It also makes our skin a little waterproof. That is why water runs off when we wash our hands, and does not absorb the water like a sponge does!
When we are submerged in water for too long, the water washes away the sebum. This causes the dead keratin cells to absorb water. This absorption of water causes the swelling of our outermost layer of the skin. This may cause the detachment of the epidermis from the rest of the skin!
BUT! Our skin is TIGHTLY attached to the tissues underneath in certain places. Therefore, our skin wrinkles to accommodate the increased surface area. As water gets into the skin, it puffs up but only at places where it is not tied down to the tissues beneath.
If you notice, it is only our fingers and toes that wrinkles! W-H-Y?
These parts of our body have the thickest layer of dead keratin cells. These parts of our body are also more porous than other parts of the body, thus being better at absorbing water since dermis does not absorb as much water as the epidermis. That is why not the entire finger wrinkles too.
After being out of the water surroundings, the water in our skin will slowly evaporate, and restore to its original look. We will not look wrinkle anymore!
FOOD FOR THOUGHTS!
Why is the skin at our hands and feet thicker than the skin at the rest of our body?
No idea? I came upon this when I was looking up for prune fingers!
Our hands and feet are the parts of our body that is exposed to a lot of wear and tear. The thick skin is a form of protection towards the friction we are exposed to in our daily life. In a way, the grooves on our hands and feet help us in grips through friction. Also, our thick skin protects us from mechanical injuries that will affect the inner parts of our skin!
Imagine playing basketball with the skin on your hands ans thin as the parts on your back!
I bet it would not be as much fun! x)
Wrinkles do appear because of old age too! However, that is only what you experience at old age. Prune fingers every time when you immerse yourself in water for too long! So now, that is a sign for you to get out of water.
Mothers! This is a good sign for you to save up on your bills too! ;)
[felicia (3)]
After looking up on the internet and the library, I found out that the answer that I got from my mother every time is WRONG! They’re just misconceptions. Many think that we get wrinkly fingers as we are losing body fluids to the surroundings. However, instead, it is due to increased absorption or water that causes wrinkling of skin!