The Skin on Your Body

The Skin on Your Body — page 1 — WHAT IS SKIN Skin is the outer covering that humans and all other animals with a backbone have Human skin has three layers Each layer has a special job The outer layer is called the epidermis The epidermis is the layer of skin that we can see It keeps the inside of the body safe It helps keep germs out of our bodies The second layer or dermis makes the epidermis strong It carries blood to the epidermis The blood feeds skin cells to keep the skin healthy Skin is different on different parts of the body Some places have thinner or thicker layers of skin 4 A cell is the basic unit of life All living things are made up of cells

The Skin on Your Body — page 2 — This layer also has nerves that help us to feel the things in the world around us The bottom layer is made up of mostly fat This fat supplies nutrients to the other two layers The bottom layer connects the skin to all the tissues underneath it It also cushions the body and protects it from the cold 5 This shows all three layers of the skin with the pores on the top layer hair coming out of the second layer and fat in the third layer

The Skin on Your Body — page 3 — 6 DIFFERENT PEOPLE DIFFERENT SKIN Everybody has skin but each person’s skin looks different Cells in the skin produce a substance called melanin which creates different skin colors Melanin protects our skin from the Sun’s harmful rays The melanin in dark skin is more active than the melanin in light skin That means that People may share the same skin color because they come from the same family or their ancestors came from the same part of the world

The Skin on Your Body — page 4 — 7 people with darker skin have better protection from the Sun Skin of all colors can be damaged by the Sun however Too much sun can cause sunburns when the skin becomes red and warm Very bad sunburns can cause blisters to form Some people have no active melanin This condition is called albinism Albinos cannot make skin color Their One form of skin cancer is called melanoma Where does that name come from THINK ABOUT IT This boy had a sunburn that has healed The burned skin peels off showing lighter-colored skin beneath

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