The Skin You're In
As the largest organ of the body, the skin on the average adult weighs about six pounds. One square inch of skin contains 94 oil glands, 19 feet of blood vessels, 625 sweat glands, 19,000 sensory cells, 75 feet of nerves, 155 pressure receptors, 1,250 pain receptors, 12 heat receptors, 19 million cells and 60 hairs.
Specialized cells and structures form a complex system of multiple layers of tissue. If any of the structures do not work properly, a rash or abnormal sensation may occur.
Don’t take skin for granted - as the primary interface between us and the environment, it is just as important as the heart or brain.
Skin can be permeated by many chemicals, which penetrating the skin may enter the bloodstream. Therefore, it is important to be careful to only use substances on your skin that will feed and nourish.
SKIN STRUCTURE
Three different layers – epidermis, dermis, and hypodermis make up the structure of skin.
Epidermis
The outermost and first layer of protection of skin is the epidermis. The thickness of the epidermis varies on different types of skin. The eyelids are the thinnest layer at .05mm, while the layer on the palms and soles is 1.5mm thick. This tough, relatively impermeable, and self-replacing layer provides energy and insulation to the body.
Dermis
The dermis also varies in thickness depending on its location on the body. The dermis on eyelids measures only about .3mm thick, while the layer on the back is 3 times as thick at 3.0mm. Tough collagen fibers and resilient elastic fibers provide mechanical strength. The dermis contains blood vessels that carry essential materials for growth, nourishment and repair to the skin, hair and nails.
The dermis controls heat regulation, absorption and sensation as well as defensive reactions such as inflammation, and the healing processes of growth and repair.
Hypodermis (Subcutaneous Tissue)
Made up of fat and connective tissue, the hypodermis supplies the skin with blood vessels and nerves. The hypodermis acts mainly as a cushion between the other layers of the skin and the underlying muscles, tissues and bones.
SPECIALIZED STRUCTURES
Basket Cells – Surround the base of hair follicles and can sense pressure.
Hair Follicles – Nourish the hair.
Hair Shafts – The part of the hair above the skin.
Pacinian Corpuscles – Respond to pressure and vibration.
Sebaceous Glands – Release an oily substance that coats and protects the hair shafts.
Sensory Nerves – Sense and transmit heat, pain, and other noxious sensations. When they are not functioning properly, one may feel sensations such as numbness, pain, tingling, or burning.
Sweat Glands (Sudoriferous Gland) – Produce moisture (sweat) secreted through ducts onto the surface of the skin. When sweat evaporates, skin temperature drops.
SKIN FUNCTIONS
Skin serves many specific functions:
1. Protection from–
• The entry of foreign material
• Mechanical or thermic impact – i.e. pressure, heat, cold
• UV-radiation
• Microorganisms – i.e. bacteria, viruses
• Water loss
2. Sensation – Reacts to heat and cold, touch, pressure, vibration etc.
3. Temperature regulation – Controls the transfer of heat across the body’s surface, letting it in or out as necessary.
4. Communication – Others see our skin and can assess our mood, physical state (i.e. paling or blushing) and attractiveness.
5. Storage – Storage center for lipids and water
6. Synthesis – Produces vitamin D through exposure to UV radiation in sunlight.
7. Excretion – Releases wastes including water, salts and toxins.
8. Absorption – Oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide diffuse into the epidermis in small amounts. Medicine can also be administered through the skin by ointments or by an adhesive patch.
9. Water resistance – Prevents body fluid and essential nutrients from being washed out of the body.
10. Wound healing – Extremely effective at regenerating after damage.
SKIN AGING
Skin ages in two different ways:
Intrinsic aging is genetic (therefore impossible to delay or prevent) and occurs over the entire body. The skin becomes thinner, drier and slower to regenerate.
Photoaging occurs due to exposure to ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. It is the main cause of the cosmetic change to our skin as it ages. Photodamage results in a buildup of abnormal elastin which no longer has ‘springy’ properties and causes skin to sag and appear swallow, rough, and wrinkled.
APPEARANCE
Color – Skin is moderately transparent. Light which penetrates the skin is reflected back by melanin, collagen and hemoglobin to contribute to the apparent color of skin. Variations in skin color are related to the amount of pigment in skin, and the thickness of the dermis.
Texture – The thickness and smoothness of the epidermis, the quality of fibers in the dermis, and the amount of fluid in the connective tissue all affect the texture of skin.
SKIN CARE
A complex organ, skin plays an important role in our overall health, which is why it’s important to give your skin the best nourishment available. Your body (including your skin) regenerates. Given the right materials to work with it will heal itself and repair structures or cells that may not be working properly. MiraCell provides a line of products made from pure botanical extracts that help your skin help itself – naturally. Whether or not you are afflicted with dry, rough and scaly skin or not, MiraCell Skin Relief & Support will give you the healthiest skin you’ve ever had.
ORGANIC VS. INORGANIC
7 Critical Factors You Need to Know About Ingredients in Your Skin Care Products
|
Organic
1. You, organic, drink water and eat fruits and vegetables
|
Inorganic
1. Your car, inorganic, runs on gasoline and motor oil
|
|
Supply Skin Health
2. To give you healthy beautiful skin, MiraCell only uses pure botanical extracts, and pH correct ingredients in molecular weights your skin can use.
|
Rob Skin’s Vitality
2. Inorganic ingredients sit on the surface of your skin, dry out sub layers and offer nothing to rebuild skin. Mineral oil and petroleum, from the same source as gasoline are used because they’re cheap and have long shelf life.
|
|
Skin Compatible
3. Your skin has intelligence in every cell. Without you telling it, skin readjusts, rebalances and renews itself when it’s given the right materials to work with. If skin is not given good nutrients, it starves, ages and wrinkles faster.
|
Incompatible with Skin
3. Skin cells, to fill nutritional needs, sort useable ingredients from incompatible poor and bad ingredients that don’t help. Skin must protect itself from harmful ingredients that would hurt it.
|
|
pH Correct
4. pH correct, MiraCell’s ingredients in their natural state match your skin’s pH. They absorb quickly to soothe, condition and rebuild healthy skin.
|
pH Differences
4. Acidic pH – slows sebum production, skin becomes dry, tight, uncomfortable and has a burning sensation. Alkaline pH – destroys skin’s natural acidic mantle. Skin over-produces oil to buffer alkaline, breaks out, feels irritated and is open to infections, i.e. acne. Balanced pH –mix high alkaline and high acidic ingredients to the correct pH, but these still don’t give the best skin benefits.
|
|
Labels
5. Nutrients first or high on ingredient labels mean the product contains high levels of nutrients to give full strength nutritional support to your skin.
|
Labels
5. Nutrients low on ingredient labels mean the product has low levels of those nutrients. While this may look good to consumers, the levels are too low to be effective.
|
|
Molecular Weight
6. Botanical ingredients with small molecules are easily absorbed and used by your skin.
|
Molecular Weight
6. Ingredients like glycerin have large molecules that can’t be absorbed so they sit unused on the surface of your skin. Glycerin even robs skin tissue of moisture.
|
|
Whole Plant Extracts
7. Give you the full plant environment which includes balancing, protecting factors we may not yet understand. All side effects are beneficial i.e. comfortable, glowing skin.
|
Active Ingredients
7. Because the “active” ingredients are removed from their natural environment, they can have negative side effects.
|
SKIN DISFUNCTION
Patricia Hyde, MD – June 2006
“Infections, inflammations, cancers, and other disorders can affect the human skin.
Dermatitis refers to any kind of swelling, redness or itchiness occurring on the skin.
Atopic Dermatitis (Eczema) – A very common hereditary condition that causes an itchy rash usually on the face, trunk, arms and/or legs. It can be caused by seasonal changes, asthma, or allergies.
Contact Dermatitis – Occurs when skin comes in contact with any substance a person is allergic or sensitive to. Contracting poison ivy is an example of contact dermatitis. However, there are other causes such as jewelry, cosmetics, or perfumes.
Seborrheic Dermatitis – An oily rash that appears on the face, chest, or back. It is usually caused by an overproduction of sebum.
Bacteria also causes skin infections and skin dysfunction.
Impetigo is one of these infections. Brown and gold colored crusty rashes on the mouth and nose are signs of impetigo.
Cellulitis occurs when bacteria enters the skin through a puncture or bite. The affected area then becomes warm, tender, and red.
Fungal infections are another type of skin dysfunction.
Candidal dermatitis is a fungal infection which occurs in warm, moist areas of the body such as the diaper area on infants.
Ringworm is another infection that can grow near the nails, scalp, and skin. Scaly, ring-like sores appear on the affected area.
Athlete’s foot is another skin infection which is very common. It is caused by the same fungi that cause ringworm, but it affects the webbing of the feet, usually during warm weather.
Parasites can also cause dysfunction of the skin. Some examples are lice and scabies. Usually tiny insects feed on the skin or burrow inside it, resulting in a rash. They are contagious and can spread easily from person to person.
Viruses such as chicken pox, shingles, cold sores, warts, and many others can affect the skin as well.
Acne, most common in teens, is a very common skin problem. The body produces an abundant supply of oil, and this is often manifested by pustules of yellowish liquid on the face, back, and chest.
Skin cancer is a serious problem that occurs when skin is overexposed to sunlight melanoma, a severe type of cancer may result in some cases. “
REFERENCES:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin
http://www.cosmeticdoctors.co.uk/medical.asp
http://www.siumed.edu/~dking2/intro.skin.htm
http://dermatology.about.com/cs/skinanatomy/a/anatomy.htm
http://skincare.dermis.net/content/e01aufbau/e583/index_eng.html
http://www.ecovoice.com.au/evonline/evo-23/evo23-decodingcosmetics.html
http://training.seer.cancer.gov/ss_module14_melanoma/unit02_sec01_anatomy.html
|
