As the largest organ in your body, your skin is amazing in its abilities. It protects us from every evil microbe looking for a place to grow and multiply. It heals our injuries from the smallest paper cut to burns to major skin injuries from car accidents or other life hazards. It grows hair that keeps us warm. It sweats to cool us down. It shivers when you’re cold. It protects everything beneath it–muscles, tissues, organs, ligaments, and cells. It’s our first layer of defense against all the hazards floating around us, intent on harm. It also gives us shape to our bones, resulting in what we see in the mirror. Just how does this amazing organ work? MDPen, a supplier or microneedling products and microneedling serums to practitioners, aims to dive into that question.

THE ANATOMY OF YOUR SKIN

Your skin makes up the integumentary system, which consists of three layers:

1. The epidermis. The outermost layer of skin and the first point of contact for defense and protection from the elements and germs, the epidermis also is responsible for your skin color and tone. Special cells called melanocytes live here, which produce the pigments that color your skin. This layer is waterproof, which is why we don’t swell when we bathe. These cells have the miraculous ability to regenerate, unlike other cells in our bodies. This is the layer that heals our wounds.
2. The dermis. The middle layer of your skin that lies right below the epidermis, the dermis is what harbors the connective tissue, collagen (the healing protein), elastin (what gives your skin its stretchiness), hair follicles, lymph nodes, and sweat glands. This is the layer microneedling, a procedure for stimulating collagen production, targets.
3. The hypodermis. The deepest layer of your skin, the hypodermis consists of fat and connective tissue. This layer is what connects your skin to your underlying fascia (tissue) of the bones and muscles. Some classify this layer as not an official layer, but since the matter is blurred, we’re including it here. This layer of skin is also home to most of the fat that concerns people. The hypodermis houses our fat-storing cells whose job is to store fat as energy reserves in case of famine, insulate our body from the cold, and acts as a cushion in cause of traumatic impacts. The location of fat storage is based on hormones and our age, which is why men accumulate fat in different areas than women.

Connective tissue holds all of these layers together. Your skin constantly peels away; then it’s replaced from cells below. The epidermis is also the source of your glowing suntan in July. As specialized cells receive more and more sunlight, more melanin is produced, which is the protein that colors your skin. Hence, the darker you become. However, too much sun exposure can lead to wrinkling as the cellular structure of skin is destroyed. An irregular accumulation of melanocytes in the skin leads to freckles and moles.

THE BEATINGS YOUR SKIN TAKES

In its role as protector of our bodies, your skin takes some beatings, which results in various skin conditions.

• Rashes. These are usually just simple skin irritations that go away after a few days.
• Dermatitis. A step above the rash, dermatitis is the word for skin inflammation. Eczema is the most common form of this.
• Psoriasis. This affects the skin but is not a result of the skin. It’s an autoimmune disease that leads to skin rashes.
• Dandruff. This is excess flaking of your dead skin on the epidermis.
• Acne. Acne is when your pores are clogged by bacteria, dirt, or oils where skin follicles emerge and inflame.
• Warts. Warts are viruses that attack your skin and cause excess skin to grow.
• Sunburn. When you’ve received too much sun, your skin turns a bright red (yes, it’s angry at you) and eventually peels as it dies and falls off. Melanoma is a dangerous skin cancer caused in part by sun damage.
• Ringworm. This is a fungus that attacks the skin and has nothing to do with worms.
• Scabies. Scabies are tiny mites that burrow into the skin, forming itchy rashes.

THE POWER OF HEALING

Your skin is amazing. It prevents all your other cells from drying out and dying. It heals. It stretches due to elastin. It protects. Skin health is vital to life. You have blood vessels throughout all layers of skin except the epidermis that provide your skin cells with nutrients that it needs to survive and do its job. The epidermis is nourished almost completely by oxygen in the surrounding air. Your body is mind-blowing in its capabilities.

One of the most breathtaking abilities your skin has is its power to heal. In the dermis resides a powerful protein called collagen that provides structure and strength to your skin and thus your body. It binds to water to keep your skin hydrated. Collagen is the most abundant protein in your body found in many tissues of the muscles, bones, tendons, blood vessels, and the digestive system.

When you are wounded, your body goes into protection mode. First, it has to stop the bleeding. Platelets, cells fragments in your blood, rush to the scene of the crime and form a scab. White blood cells, the cells that fight infection, surge to the area to protect us from all the bad guys floating all around us. Then tissue begins to grow and rebuild. Broken blood vessels are repaired. Red blood cells help create collagen, the tough fibers that form the foundations for new tissue. Then new skin forms over this tissue.

As the wound continues to heal, the edges pull inward and the wound gets smaller until all that’s left is a scar, which forms because the new tissue doesn’t grow back the same as the old tissue.

MICRONEEDLING AND THE POWER OF SKIN

microneedling is a noninvasive skin procedure that harnesses the amazing power of your skin to heal itself in order to eliminate fine lines, wrinkles, and skin sagging. It uses “micro-injuries” that cause this healing process to kick in. After a microneedling procedure, tissue begins to rebuild, using collagen and elastin to plump out your skin and smooth out the lines and wrinkles. microneedling is also effective in improving skin discolorations, stretch marks, and acne and other scars.

MDPen helps microneedling practitioners improve the lives of their patients through microneedling. Looking younger, feeling better about your appearance, and eliminating insecurities because of scars leads to a more fuller, more energetic, more confident, and more enjoyable life. When you feel good about how you look, this translates to all areas of your life. MDPen values every person’s right to look and feel amazing, and we do everything we can to help you do just that. Along with our skin care products, which are vegan formulations containing organic ingredients that are paraben, petrochemical and SLS/SLE free, and are never tested on animals, MDPen maintains a network of microneedling practitioners in your area. Visit us online to find one near you.

Although microneedling as we know it today has been around since 1995, in the grand scope of things, this is not a long time. Technology today is amazing, and MDPen is grateful for such advances in skin care and skin care procedures.

So the next time you look in a mirror, be grateful for your skin, and the amazing power it holds. Your skin is what makes you, you. It forms the foundation for everything else in your body. It allows us to go about our days, relatively carefree of germs and injuries to our bodies. Our skin frees us to do other things with our time instead of fight infections or heal our bodies. We are free to engage in all kinds of activities such as reading a book, skydiving, playing on a swing set, running through a field full of flowers, skiing, surfing, climbing mountains, or walking with friends. MDPen wishes you the best life ever. Contact us today!