Scratching the surface: Now your dermis is showing!

Your dermis, the layer of skin that lies just under your epidermis,
has an intimate relationship with your epidermis. It comes equipped
with sensory nerves, sweat glands, blood vessels, and hair follicles.
It nourishes the epidermis by providing gases such as oxygen and
carbon dioxide, which reach the epidermis by diffusing through the
basement membrane. The epidermis can’t survive without the
dermis, because it has no nerves or blood supply of its own.
Throughout the dermis are collagen and elastin fibers. Collagen is a
resilient protein that provides rigidity and strength to the dermis.
Elastin is made of a protein structure that is able to coil and recoil
like a spring. This protein is what gives the skin its elasticity.
Also located in the dermis is the hair follicle (refer to Figure 2-1). A
hair follicle is a hair-containing canal; a tube-shaped sheath that
surrounds the part of the hair that is under the skin. It’s located in
the epidermis and the dermis. Blocked hair follicles are often at th
root of the acne problem. In fact, it seems like the hair follicle is
the central focus of this entire book! (To read a detailed descrip-
tion of how a follicle becomes blocked and a pimple forms, skip
ahead to Chapter 3.)
Styes, boils, shaving bumps — I could go on and on — all have
their origins in the hair follicle. In Chapter 19, I go into a few of
these conditions that folks often mistake for acne.
Digging deeper: Your
subcutaneous layer
Fat cells known as lipocytes reside in the subcutaneous layer. Our
visit to the subcutaneous layer will be brief because as far as acne
is concerned, there’s not much action going on here.
But if you’re interested, your subcutaneous layer is what your
outer layers of skin rest upon. Your fatty layer is your body’s insu-
lator, cushion, and natural shock absorber (and it also helps to
keep the diet industry in business!). The subcutaneous layer con-
tains arteries, veins, lymph vessels, and nerves that are larger than
those found in your dermis. If you go any deeper, you’ll come upon
muscles and possibly some of your inner organs. That’s out of
bounds! So I’ll end the anatomical tour right here in Fat City.