We have all been there. A hot summers day and al you wanna do is relax in the pool. After a while when you pull your hand out of the water to reach for your towel, you will notice that the tips of your fingers are no longer the little plump finger tips you entered the pool with. In fact, you hands looks like a a prune. I know that this has always baffled me from early childhood until now and I have finally researched and found the answer I am looking for as to why my fingers get so wrinkly after being in the water for too long.

According to an article called  “Science gets a grip on wrinkly fingers” featured on the official website of nature.com, fingers are not from being in the water too long but in fact, are supposed to help us grip things and hold things more easily in the water. According to another article entitled  “7 Simple Questions You Won’t  Believe  Science Just Answered,” fibers of keratin in our skin are woven into the shape of a gyroid meaning that the skin can expand but keep its shape allowing fibers to swell to fill a bigger volume. The article then goes on to explain that our skin is simply absorbing water and allowing the rest of your hand to stay the same size.

Next time you take a long bath or swim in the pool for a while, don’t freak out thinking you have been in there for too long because your fingers are starting to look like a Shar Pei’s. This is normal, you skin is just making room for the water being absorbed.

Sources:

http://www.nature.com/news/science-gets-a-grip-on-wrinkly-fingers-1.12175

http://www.cracked.com/article_19195_7-simple-questions-you-wont-believe-science-just-answered.htm