The skin - its construction and function

Not only is the skin the largest organ of the body, but it is also the most varied organ, since it adapts itself as the occasion requires. It is thicker on the soles of our feet, back and palms, yet the thinnest on the eyelids.

At its thickest, it measures about 1/8 inch in thickness, while the skin on the eyelids only measures 1/25 inches. Another strange statistic is that the entire surface of the skin measures about 20 square feet and weighs between 7 to 9 pounds.

The skin consists of three layers, each with its own specialized role to play:

• the hypodermis
• the dermis
• the epidermis

The skin also contains very specialized items in the form of:

• sebaceous glands
• apocrine glands
• eccrine glands

Other pages dealing with the skin

• Introduction to the human skin
• The Hypodermis
• The Dermis
• The Epidermis
• The sweat glands in the skin

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