Curious About Skin

PODCAST 240: CURIOUS ABOUT SKIN

RELEASE DATE: SUNDAY, MAY 7TH, 2023

D:  HELLO, AND WELCOME BACK TO THE CURIOUS KID PODCAST.  OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, WE’VE COVERED SOME VERY IMPORTANT BODY ORGANS, LIKE THE BRAIN AND THE HEART.  AN ORGAN IS SIMPLY A PART OF THE BODY THAT WORKS TO PERFORM A SPECIFIC FUNCTION, OR FUNCTIONS.  THE ORGAN WE ARE COVERING THIS WEEK IS JUST AS IMPORTANT AS THE BRAIN OR THE HEART IN KEEPING US ALIVE, AND IT TURNS OUT THAT IT IS THE BODY’S LARGEST ORGAN.  

O:  DOUBLE-MAILBAG!

D:  DOUBLE-MAILBAG!

“DEAR JACOB AND OLIVIA, I AM CURIOUS ABOUT SKIN AND I WOULD BE REALLY HAPPY IF YOU DID GET CURIOUS FOR ME!  

• FROM EDWARD OF CENTRAL TEXAS”

“HI JACOB AND OLIVIA, WE RECENTLY DISCOVERED YOU ALL’S PODCAST AND WE LOVE IT!  WE ARE WORKING OUR WAY THROUGH ALL OF THE PAST EPISODES AND LEARNING A LOT.  SLOANE (6 YEARS OLD) IS CURIOUS ABOUT TURKEYS, FLOWERS, AND GIANT OCTOPUSES (LIKE THE KRAKEN!).  LOGAN (4 YEARS OLD) IS CURIOUS ABOUT SKIN AND BIRDS!  THANK YOU FOR THE AWESOME PODCAST!

• SLOANE AND LOGAN OF OCALA, FLORIDA”

O:  MY GOODNESS.  THOSE WERE A PAIR OF AWESOME EMAILS FROM SOME OF OUR AMAZING LISTENERS.  WE CAN’T WAIT TO GET THE SKINNY ON SKIN FOR EDWARD, SLOANE, AND LOGAN.  

D:  SKIN COVERS OUR BODIES, BUT THE SKIN IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF OUR BODIES COULD BE DIFFERENT.  

O:  THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK IS, WHERE ON THE BODY CAN THE THICKEST SKIN BE FOUND, AND WHERE ON THE BODY IS YOUR SKIN THE THINNEST?

D:  WHILE YOU’RE THINKING OF THE ANSWER, LET’S LEARN A TON OF FACTS ABOUT OUR BIGGEST ORGAN, THE SKIN.  

O:  THE SKIN IS MADE UP OF THREE DIFFERENT LAYERS.  THE OUTER LAYER OF SKIN IS CALLED THE EPIDERMIS.  THAT’S THE PART OF THE SKIN THAT YOU CAN SEE.  THE EPIDERMIS DOES A FEW IMPORTANT THINGS, BUT IT’S MAIN TASK IT TO MAKE NEW SKIN CELLS.

D:  BELIEVE IT OR NOT, YOUR SKIN REPLACES ITSELF ABOUT EVERY 30 DAYS.  YOU PROBABLY DON’T NOTICE IT, BUT WE ARE LOSING DEAD SKIN CELLS ALL THE TIME.  THE BODY SHEDS FROM 30,000 TO 40,000 SKIN CELLS EACH AND EVERY MINUTE.

O:  FOR THAT REASON, 95% OF THE CELLS IN THE EPIDERMIS ARE HARD AT WORK MAKING NEW SKIN CELLS TO REPLACE ALL OF THE DEAD SKIN CELLS.

D:  IN A FULL YEAR, YOU WILL SHED ANYWHERE FROM 5 TO 10 POUNDS OF DEAD SKIN THAT WILL SIMPLY FLAKE OFF OF YOUR BODY.  

O:  BUT DON’T WORRY, BECAUSE NEW SKIN CELLS ARE BEING MADE ALL OF THE TIME TO REPLACE THE DEAD CELLS.  THE NEW SKIN CELLS ARE BEING MADE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE EPIDERMIS.  IT TAKES ABOUT A MONTH FOR THOSE NEW SKIN CELLS TO PUSH UP TO THE TOP OF THE EPIDERMIS, REPLACING THE SKIN CELLS THAT ARE DYING.  

D:  SO, WE MENTIONED THAT 95% OF THE CELLS IN THE EPIDERMIS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING NEW SKIN CELLS.  THE OTHER 5% MAKE MELANIN, WHICH IS A SUBSTANCE IN YOUR BODY THAT GIVES YOUR SKIN IT’S UNIQUE COLOR.  THE MORE MELANIN SOMEONE HAS, THE DARKER THEIR SKIN COLOR.  

O:  YOUR BODY ALSO MAKES EXTRA MELANIN TO HELP PROTECT YOU FROM THE SUN.  IF YOU GET A SUNTAN, IT’S THE MELANIN IN YOUR BODY THAT IS GIVING YOU A DARKER COLOR.  MELANIN BY ISTELF ISN’T GOOD ENOUGH AT GIVING YOU ENOUGH PROTECTION FROM THE SUN, SO SUNSCREEN IS STILL IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ENOUGH PROTECTION.  TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SUNSCREEN, GIVE A LISTEN TO EPISODE 34, CURIOUS ABOUT SUNSCREEN.  IN THAT EPISODE, WE GIVE LOTS OF TIPS ON HOW TO PROTECT YOUR SKIN, LIKE HOW MUCH SUNSCREEN NEEDS TO BE APPLIED, HOW OFTEN SUNSCREEN NEEDS TO BE APPLIED, AND WE ALSO EXPLAIN WHAT SPF IS.  

D:  JUST BENEATH THE EPIDERMIS IS A LAYER OF THE SKIN CALLED THE DERMIS.  THE DERMIS HAS BLOOD VESSELS, NERVE ENDINGS, AND OIL AND SWEAT GLANDS. 

O:  THE NERVE ENDINGS HELP SEND MESSAGES TO YOUR BRAIN TO LET IT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE FEELING.  THE TEENY TINY BLOOD VESSELS IN THE DERMIS HELP BRING OXYGEN AND IMPORTANT NUTRIENTS TO YOUR SKIN.  THEY ALSO HELP CLEAR THE SKIN CELLS OF WASTE.  

D:  THE OIL GLANDS MAKE AN OIL THAT RISES TO THE EPIDERMIS, HELPING TO KEEP YOUR SKIN NICE AND SOFT.  THE OIL GLANDS ALSO HAVE AN AWESOME NAME, CALLED SEBACEOUS GLANDS, AND THE SPECIAL OIL THAT THEY MAKE IS CALLED SEBUM.  

O:  THE SWEAT GLANDS IN THE DERMIS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING SWEAT.  MY DADDY’S SWEAT GLANDS WORK VERY HARD.

D:  I DON’T THINK THAT JOKE WAS NECESSARY.

O:  THE SWEAT COMES UP FROM THE SKIN BY TRAVELING THROUGH PORES, WHICH ARE SUPER SMALL HOLES THAT CAN BE FOUND IN THE SKIN.  

D:  AND THE COMBINATION OF SEBUM OIL AND SWEAT PROTECT THE SKIN AND KEEP IT WATERPROOF.  IT’S WHAT HELPS PREVENT OUR SKIN FROM ABSORBING WATER AND GETTING SUPER SOGGY WHEN IT GETS WET.       

O:  THE LAYER AT THE BOTTOM OF OUR SKIN, CLOSEST TO THE INSIDE OF OUR BODIES, IS CALLED SUBCUTANEOUS FAT.  AS THE NAME SUGGESTS, THE LAYER IS MOSTLY FAT.  

D:  THAT MIGHT NOT SOUND LIKE A SUPER IMPORTANT PART OF THE SKIN, BUT IT SERVES A VERY IMPORTANT ROLE BY HELPING TO KEEP OUR BODIES WARM, AND HELPING PROTECT OUR INSIDES FROM BUMPS AND OTHER INJURIES WE MIGHT GET FROM IMPACT, LIKE IF WE FALL DOWN OR GET HIT BY SOMETHING.  

O:  THIS LAYER OF SKIN ALSO CONTAINS HAIR FOLLICLES.  HAIR FOLLICLES ARE AREAS WHERE THE ROOTS FOR THE HAIR ON OUR BODIES CAN BE FOUND.  AS YOU GET OLDER, HAIR GROWS FROM YOUR HAIR FOLLICLES AND POPS OUT OF YOUR SKIN.  

D:  OUR SKIN IS CAPABLE OF REPAIRING ITSELF.  WHEN THE REPAIR HAPPENS THE NEW SKIN IS JUST LIKE THE DAMAGED SKIN.  SOMETIMES THOUGH, WHEN THE DAMAGE IS VERY BAD, THE SKIN WILL BE REPLACED BY SOMETHING CALLED SCAR TISSUE.

O:  SCAR TISSUE IS SKIN THAT IS A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT COLOR THAN THE SURROUNDING SKIN.  SCAR TISSUE ALSO DOESN’T CONTAIN ANY HAIR FOLLICLES OR SWEAT GLANDS.  

D:  THE AVERAGE ADULT HAS ABOUT 21.5 SQUARE FEET OF SKIN.  THAT’S ROUGHLY THE SIZE OF A TWIN SIZE BLANKET.  OUR SKIN, ALONE, WOULD WEIGH ABOUT 6 TO 8 POUNDS.  

O:  YOUR SKIN WORKS HARD TO KEEP YOUR BODY AT A COMFORTABLE TEMPERATURE.  IT DOES THIS WITH THE HELP OF A PART OF THE BRAIN, CALLED THE HYPOTHALAMUS, WHICH ACTS LIKE A THERMOMETER INSIDE THE BODY. 

D:  IF YOU’RE RUNNING AROUND ON A HOT DAY, LIKE OLIVIA TENDS TO DO AT SUMMER CAMP, THE HYPOTHALAMUS SENDS A SIGNAL TO YOUR BLOOD VESSELS TO RELEASE, OR GET RID OF, HEAT.  IT DOES THIS BY BRINGING WARM BLOOD CLOSE TO THE SURFACE OF THE SKIN.  

O:  IF YOUR FACE HAS EVER TURNED RED WHEN YOU GOT REALLY WARM, IT’S BECAUSE OF BLOOD MOVING CLOSER TO THE SURFACE OF THE SKIN IN YOUR FACE TO HELP COOL YOU OFF BY RELEASING HEAT.  

D:  ANOTHER THING THAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU HEAT UP, IS THAT THE SWEAT GLANDS MAKE A TON OF SWEAT.  WHEN YOUR SWEAT RISES TO THE SURFACE OF THE SKIN, IT EVAPORATES, CHANGING FROM A LIQUID INTO A GAS, OR VAPOR).  AS IT EVAPORATES, YOU COOL DOWN A BIT.  

O:  ON THE OTHER HAND, IF YOU’RE SUPER COLD, YOUR BLOOD VESSELS NARROW, KEEPING WARM BLOOD FAR FROM THE SKIN’S SURFACE, KEEPING YOUR BODY AS WARM AS POSSIBLE.    

D:  AS AMAZING AS HUMAN SKIN IS, THERE ARE ANIMALS OUT THERE THAT HAVE VERY UNIQUE SKIN FEATURES.

O:  POLAR BEARS ARE BEAUTIFUL BEARS THAT ARE COVERED IN WHITE FUR.  BELIEVE IT OR NOT, THE SKIN UNDERNEATH ALL OF THAT FUR IS BLACK.

D:  FROGS DON’T DRINK WATER.  THEY GET ALL OF THE WATER THEY NEED BY ABSORBING IT THROUGH THEIR SKIN.  THEY ALSO ABSORB ALL OF THE AIR THEY NEED THROUGH THEIR SKIN.  

O:  PEOPLE OFTEN THINK THAT SNAKES HAVE SLIMY SKIN.  IT TURNS OUT THAT SNAKE SKIN ISN’T SLIMY AT ALL, BUT IT IS DRY AND SMOOTH INSTEAD.  

D:  THE ANIMAL WITH THE MOST INCREDIBLE SKIN MIGHT JUST BE THE CHAMELEON.  CHAMELEONS ARE ABLE TO CHANGE THEIR SKIN COLORS.  THEY DO THIS TO COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER, CONTROL THEIR BODY TEMPERATURE, AND DISGUISE THEMSELVES FROM PREDATORS.  

O:  HERE’S SOMETHING TRULY AMAZING.  CHAMELEON’S SEEM TO KNOW HOW THEY ARE SEEN BY DIFFERENT PREDATORS, SO THEY CHANGE THEIR COLORS ACCORDINGLY.

D:  WHEN EXAMINED CLOSELY, IT APPEARS AS THOUGH CHAMELEONS DON’T JUST CAMOUFLAGE THEMSELVES TO MATCH THEIR SURROUNDINGS THE SAME WAY ALL THE TIME.  THEY ACTUALLY MAKE DIFFERENT CHANGES, DEPENDING ON THE PREDATOR.  

O:  FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN A FISCAL SHRIKE APPROACHES, THE CHAMELEON TRIES REALLY HARD TO CHANGE IT’S COLORS TO MATCH THE BACKGROUND, BECAUSE THE FISCAL SHRIKE, WHICH IS A BIRD, HAS GOOD EYESIGHT.  

D:  BUT IF A BOOMSLANG, WHICH IS A SNAKE, SLITHERS NEARBY, THE CHAMELEON WILL CAMOUFLAGE, BUT NOT AS MUCH AS IT DID FOR THE FISCAL SHRIKE.  THAT’S BECAUSE THE BOOMSLANG HAS POOR EYESIGHT, SO THE CHAMELEON DOESN’T NEED TO TRY AS HARD TO DISGUISE ITSELF.

O:  THE SKIN OF A SPERM WHALE IS SUPER DUPER THICK.  THE SKIN OF A SPERM WHALE IS USUALLY MORE THAN A FOOT THICK, SOMETIMES AS THICK AS 14 INCHES, OR 35 CENTIMETERS.  SPERM WHALES ALSO HAVE THE LARGEST BRAINS AND LARGEST TEETH OF ANY LIVING ANIMAL.  

D:  THE SKIN OF HUMANS IS MUCH THINNER THAN SPERM WHALE SKIN, BUT OUR SKIN THICKNESS ALSO VARIES ON DIFFERENT PARTS OF OUR BODIES.  WHERE ON OUR BODIES CAN OUR THICKEST AND THINNEST SKIN BE FOUND?

O:  THE THICKEST SKIN CAN BE FOUND ON OUR PALMS AND ON THE BOTTOM OF OUR FEET.  SKIN IN THOSE AREAS IS ABOUT ONE AND A HALF MILLIMETERS THICK.  FOR COMPARISON, THE SKIN OF A SPERM WHALE IS STILL ABOUT 230 TIMES THICKER THAN THE SKIN ON OUR PALMS OR BOTTOMS OF OUR FEET.  THE THINNEST SKIN ON OUR BODIES CAN BE FOUND ON THE EYELIDS AND AROUND THE EYES.  THE SKIN IN THIS AREA IS ONLY 0.2 MILLIMETERS THICK.  

D:  SINCE OUR SKIN IS IMPORTANT, IT’S A GOOD IDEA TO DO WHAT WE CAN TO KEEP OUR SKIN HEALTHY.  THAT CAN BE DONE BY CLEANING THE SKIN FREQUENTLY WITH MILD SOAP AND WATER.  IF WE GET A CUT OR SCRAPE, IT’S A GOOD IDEA TO COVER THE AREA WITH A BANDAGE, OR WITH GAUZE, TO PREVENT IT FROM GETTING INFECTED.  WELL, THAT’S A WRAP FOR THIS WEEK’S EPISODE.

O:  240 - SKIN.

D:  GREAT JOB OLIVIA, AND GREAT JOB EDWARD, SLOANE, AND LOGAN FOR THE VERY SKIN-TERESTING EPISODE TOPIC SUGGESTION.  BEFORE WE SIGN OFF FOR THE WEEK, WE HAVE A COUPLE OF AWESOME LISTENERS TO THANK.

O:  WE WANT TO THANK CAPPA AND VIRGINIA FOR THE AMAZING FIVE STAR REVIEW.

D:  IT SAYS “THE BEST PODCAST EVER.  WE LOVE YOUR PODCAST SO MUCH.  VIRGINIA’S FAVORITE PODCAST IS THE ONE ABOUT PEE AND POOP.  MY NAME IS CAPPA.  MY FAVORITE EPISODE IS THE ONE ABOUT THE TITANIC.”

O:  YOUR FAVORITE EPISODES ARE SOME OF OUR MOST POPULAR EPISODES EVER.  AS WE RECORD THIS EPISODE, CURIOUS ABOUT PEE AND POOP IS 6TH, AND CURIOUS ABOUT THE TITANIC IS 15TH OF ALL OUR EPISODES IN DOWNLOADS.  THAT’S 6TH AND 15TH OUT OF CLOSE TO 300 TOTAL EPISODES.  

D:  JOIN US NEXT WEEK, WHEN WE WILL GET CURIOUS ABOUT VEGETABLES FOR LISTENERS IN CANADA.  AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND GETTING CURIOUS WITH US.