Narayana Health
Integumentary System: What It Is, Function & Organs
Dec 6, 2023
2 Minutes Read
Dermatology Blogs
Overview
The integumentary system is the body's largest organ system, encompassing the skin, hair, nails, and associated glands. It serves as a protective barrier against external threats, regulates temperature, and facilitates sensory perception. The most prominent component of skin consists of three layers: the epidermis, dermis, and subcutaneous tissue. Hair and nails are derivatives of specialised skin cells. This complex system is crucial in maintaining homeostasis, defending against pathogens, and providing sensory information about the external environment.
Integumentary System- What is it?
The skin, hair, nails, and glands that secrete oil and sweat are all parts of the integumentary System. An intricate organ protects the body and controls several vital functions. Together, these tissues guard the body from harm and infection while controlling internal functions. The skin protects the internal organs from harm and is the first defence against the external environment.
Function Of Integumentary System
The integumentary system generally protects the body against illness, temperature fluctuations, and the negative effects of potentially hazardous chemicals (such as UV rays). The integumentary System protects and regulates the body's internal activities uniquely. The integumentary System's glands, nerves, hair, nails, and skin function in the following ways:
- Aids in defending the organs and tissues of the body
- Shields against diseases and outside intruders
- It prevents dehydration in the body by storing water.
- Keeps body temperature steady
- Transports and discards the garbage
- Carry out a receptor function for touch, pressure, pain, heat, or cold.
- Stores fat as a fuel source.
Human Integumentary System[/caption]
Organs
Skin - The body's biggest and heaviest organ is the skin. It must completely envelop the outside of the body, from the top of the head to the tips of the toes, to serve as a protective barrier. There are a few main characteristics that all skin shares, notwithstanding the possibility of variances in colour, texture, and thickness across individuals.
Hair -
Hair has the following functions:
- Contribute to skin protection.
- Control your body's temperature.
- Lend themselves to the process of sweat and evaporation.
- Aid in the integumentary System's nerve-sensing processes
Nails - Similar to other body parts, nails are divided into many segments, which include:
- The visible portion of the nail is known as the nail plate.
- The skin underneath the nail plate is called the nail bed.
- The thin band of tissue that overlays the nail plate at the base of the nail is called the cuticle.
- The skin folds on the sides of the nail plate are known as the nail folds.
- The white, half-moon-shaped region at the base of the nail plate is called the lunula.
- The region under the cuticle that is not visible on the nail and is where the fingernail grows is called the matrix.
Glands - Exocrine glands, which produce material outside cells and the body, are found in four varieties inside the integumentary System.
About the integumentary System, there are four exocrine glands:
- Sudoriferous glands: Tiny apertures at the skin's surface allow perspiration to be expelled from these hollow, cylindrical sweat glands located under the skin. When the body temperature rises, the function of sudoriferous glands is to release sweat to aid in bodily cooling.
- Sebaceous glands: Tiny tubular glands in the dermis that release oil into the hair follicle to protect and lubricate the hair shaft and prevent it from breaking off.
- Ceruminous glands: Located in the ear canal, ceruminous glands work in tandem with sebaceous glands to generate ear wax, also medically referred to as cerumen. Cerumen has a vital protective role in the ear, shielding it from external intruders such as germs and fungi and preventing physical harm.
- Mammary glands: One mammary gland is found on each side of the front of the chest wall. Mammary glands are present in both men and women, yet men's glands are less developed. The glands in females work to generate breast milk following childbirth. In young girls, the mammary glands have a semicircular form; however, with time, the glands change their shape.
When to Consult a Doctor
You can also get in touch with the expert Dermatology doctors at Narayana Healthcare based in your city to get immediate attention and medical support during injuries, health disorders or any other health concern.
Skin Anatomy[/caption]
Conclusion
This outermost layer of your body is called the integumentary System. It comprises glands, sensory nerves, hair, nails, and skin. Its job is to shield the body from things that might be detrimental to it, such as temperature fluctuations and infections. The integumentary System collaborates with other systems to keep the body's equilibrium, and can be impacted by several illnesses, just as other bodily systems can. These include autoimmune diseases, skin problems, and types of cancer.
FAQs
Q. Where Is the Integumentary System Located? A. Nearly the whole body is covered with the integumentary System. Only organs such as the eyes remain exposed as they comprise the body's outermost layer.
Q. What Are Some Ways to Maintain the Health of the Integumentary System? A. Maintaining healthy behaviours and avoiding injuries wherever feasible can help safeguard your integumentary System. Protecting the integumentary systems and the skin involves many practices.
- Preserving proper hygiene
- Following appropriate skincare procedures, such as cleansing and moisturising with Mild products
- Putting on sunscreen
- Putting on non-irritating apparel
- Obtaining routine medical examinations
Q. Is the integumentary System necessary for your survival? A. Like most other organ systems, our integumentary System is essential to our survival.
Q. Is oxygen necessary for the integumentary System? A. All dermis and epidermis layers utilise oxygen except the stratum corneum. Blood serves as a partial source of oxygen: the dermis has two levels of parallel-running vasculature.
Q. Why isn't the integumentary system a tissue but an organ? A. Because it covers the body and has many tissue types and a membrane, it is occasionally regarded as an organ. The skin, together with its derived organs and tissues, including hair, nails, glands, and specific nerve terminals, is the biggest organ in the body.
Reference links
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/22827-integumentary-system
- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/integumentary-system
