Have you ever wanted to be creeped out by your own skin? Well, look no further! We've put together some of our favorite spooky facts about the skin - and just in time for Halloween! Make sure to read all the way to the end so you don't miss the best (or worst?) skin fact of all!
1. A tan is your skin's protective mechanism.
If you're a regular here on our blog, you definitely have heard about the importance of sunscreen, and this eerie fact is just one more supporting factor to our claims. Everyone's skin has cells throughout their body called melanocytes. These melanocyte cells produce melanin, and sun exposure makes them produce more and more, which protects the rest of your skin (specifically the nucleus) from UV radiation by absorbing some of the excess rays. So, in short, your healthy skin cells sacrifice themselves for the rest of the skin, and your tan is just a byproduct of that sacrifice.
2. Your skin is h-e-a-v-y.
Skin is the body's larges organ, which might not be a surprise to most. But do you know just how heavy your skin is? Your skin can cover about 2 square meters - that's roughly the size of a standard door! And, on average, most adults' skin weighs 20 pounds or more, which is about the average weight of a watermelon! This may not be nightmare-worthy scary, but it is pretty creepy to think about if you ask me!
3. Humans shed one million skin cells in a day.
Over a 24-hour period, humans shed about 1 million skin cells, and over the course of the average human lifespan, a person can shed about 77 pounds of skin. That's even crazier when you think about how many people there are in the world, or even in your town! Love may be in the air, but human skin is right there alongside it!
4. Poison used to be part of a woman's skincare routine.
Could you imagine applying poison to your skin today? That's exactly what women in the Victorian era did. Pale skin was desired, so women would apply arsenic to their faces to make their skin appear fairer. Not to mention mercury, which was used as a magical cure for hair-loss, or to keep the eyes watery and sparkling. It's a good thing us humans have stopped using these freaky skincare products!
5. Books can be bound by human skin.
This may sound like something we took straight from "The Silence of the Lambs" - but it's true! In fact, there are a few libraries who have these skin-crawling books (no pun intended). One of the most famous examples of this is Houghton Library's copy of Destinées de l'Ame (On the Destiny of the Soul) at Harvard University. Not only that, but Brown University's John Hay Library has three human-skin bound books: two 19th Century editions of "The Dance of Death", and one anatomy book. Seems fitting, right? We're just kidding, but we think this is truly a disturbing skin fact, which makes it a favorite for sure!
What was your favorite spooky skin fact? Tell us in the comments below, and maybe share it with some fellow trick-or-treaters this Halloween. Really give 'em something to be spooked about!