The Itchy and Scratchy show

What's that itching your skin?

The skin is a remarkable organ, the largest that we possess. It is also the only body organ that is easy to see and feel. So when something goes wrong with our skin, it is quickly evident to us, and often other people. Babies get rashes, teenagers get acne, older people develop skin tags, the luck of the draw determines whether eczema or psoriasis blight us, and we all can be subject to rashes, or the attention of parasites.

Yet most of the time our skin goes about its work without fuss, growing to a thick layer where protection is needed, for example on the soles of the feet, or a thin layer where sensitivity is required, for example, on the lips. It can grow hair, as on our heads, or be hairless, like the palms of our hands. much of of skin contains sweat glands to allow of to sweat, and regulate our body temperature. Oh, and it helps stop what's inside us from falling out, and protects us from the sun.

In order to perform its alloted tasks, skin our constanly renews itself from the inside out. The process takes around two months, but in diseases such as psoriasis, skin loss is greatly accelerated. Generally unnoticed by us, 30,000 - 40,000 dead skin cells fall from our bodies every minute. Over a lifetime, that's a whole heap of skin, around 80 - 100 pounds of it in fact, yet whilst we wear our skin it weighs only 7 pounds. Were we able to count the number of living organisms on our skin, we would find that each of us hosts a greater number than the number of people on earth.

Many women colour their skin with make up, the majority of men shave the hair from their face daily, and people of both sexes decorate their skin with tattos, or pierce it with jewelry. Yet despite this, generally all we need to do is protect or skin against the elements, and keep it clean, and it will function without problem.

When things go wrong with our skin, it can often be spectacular, and if it affects the parts of the skin that are usually visible to others, such as the face, or hands, can be a source of great worry. A pimple on the nose can drain the confidence of the most shining beauty. Skin problems often show themselves by being itchy, or painful. That's your skin demanding attention, and requesting that the source of the irritation be identified and dealt with. Identification of the problem however is often not easy, and medical advice should be sought.