Dry skin

What role does water play in our bodies?>

Water, like air, is an essential element for life. Water represents around 65% of the total weight of an adult, so a person weighing <st1:metricconverter productid="70 kg">70 kg</st1:metricconverter> contains around <st1:metricconverter productid="49 litres">49 litres</st1:metricconverter> of water, 15% of which is concentrated in the skin.

The role of water in the skin is vital. A reservoir from which the other organs draw water, the skin also provides a link with the outside world: water moves from the dermis to the surface, impregnating the different layers by diffusion. This water flow is called IWL (Imperceptible Water Loss). Naturally protected by a hydrolipidic film on the surface, the corneal layer (the upper layer of the epidermis) curbs this evaporation process. If this physiological barrier is damaged in any way, IWL speeds up, which leads to the skin becoming dry.

Feelings of tightness and discomfort then arise, of differing intensity and persistence, and may be accompanied by scaly skin. These problems stem from a variety of causes: environmental factors, constitutional reasons or genetic predisposition, leading to different forms of cutaneous dryness, reversible or not, which require appropriate solutions. All types of dry skin are not identical and they all have different needs.