Julia B. 
Many people are incognizant about the fact that skin – the cutaneous membrane of human body – is the largest among all other organs. First, you should learn the general structure and function of this organ before you could understand the relationship of acne and human skin. Skin accounts for around two square meter of total body surface area and one eighth of the total body weight. Being microbe and water resistant from both sides, it is our primary line of defense against any uncongenial surroundings. Your skin type will determine which cosmetics or soap is harmful for you, or what precautions you should take to improve your skin health.
Structure of Skin
Growth of acne and human skin’s basic cellular structure are closely related. Our skin mainly consists of two layers: the outer layer (epidermis), comprising of dead skin cells and below that lies dermis, which is made up of living tissue and blood vessels. Dermis contains hair follicles and knobby shaped sebaceous glands that produce sebum (oil),
and these are together known as pilosebaceous unit. Blemishes are originated due to the disorder of this unit. An exorbitant production of sebum touches off chain of events, which in turn causes the formation of acne lesions.
Different Functions of Human Skin
When thinking about acne and human skin, we might take three most important functions into account:
- Corporeal barricade: Dead skin cells are continually being shed from the skin surface while these are replaced by new cells. This layer of dead skin cells incorporates a water impermeable protective barrier to the skin.
- Protecting Us from Infection: Our outer skin is populated by numerous bacteria. But, they cannot cause any infection to our body as it is protected by the dead cell layer. When we enter adolescence from childhood, sebaceous glands under the skin become active and secrete sebum which is fungicidal in nature and helps us by preventing any fungal infection.
- Maintains Body Temperature: Human skin contains thousands of sweat glands, sebaceous glands, and network of blood vessels. These act to control the body temperature level in any climatic condition. During summer season, sweat glands and sebaceous glands ooze liquid substance, which brings down the body temperature by evaporation.
Types of Human Skin
It is really essential to learn how the possibilities of formation of acne and human skin types are interrelated. Basically, human skin could be categorized into five basic types:
• Normal Skin: This is the skin we always aspire for. This type of skins is characterized by their softness, firmness, and gentle elasticity. These are neither too oily nor too dry and carry a few blemishes and appropriate wrinkles as per the age of individual. You have no need to take any special precautionary care about pimples or any other blemishes.
• Oily Skin: Oily skins in general look glossy, thick in grain, and often greasy to touch. Due to some hormonal overactivity, the sebaceous glands in these skins secrete huge amount of sebum through hair follicles. If you have this type of skin problem for a considerable period, you might face revenant lesions like blackheads, whiteheads, pimples, nodules, cysts, and other blemishes in your body. Usually people having oily skin, suffer from acne problems in their teenage and middle age.
• Dry Skin: Although oily skins are more prone to acne formation, nonetheless dry skin could easily be affected by acne, especially in winter. In these cases acne is more prevalent under the skin surface. In winter because of declining temperature and humidity, dry skin lacks moisture. Your skin might become flaky and scratchy. Owing to lack of sebum and adequate moisture, this type of skin faces a lot of problem with blackhead and whitehead lesions. In severe situation the dry skin cracks and dirt particles, bacteria, and other organisms set foot in and proliferate to aggravate the intensity of acne breakout.
• Sensitive Skin: People having sensitive skin are more prone to suffer from acne and human skin of this type is allergic in nature and has a tendency to get irritated at mild environmental changes. If you have sensitive skin you must be careful enough regarding beauty products and food items. Anything stimulative toward your skin might result in itchy rashes and acne symptoms.
• Combination Skin: You might have different types of skin at different parts of your body. It is quite frequent to have oily skin at the T-zone – the area circumscribing forehead, nose, and chin – while other parts of the face including the eye area and cheeks are dry or normal.
As much as you know about your own skin, you would maximize the chance to do away with acne from your beautiful and happy life.
