Human Lips are More Sensitive Than the Tips of Your Fingers

December 29, 2017
Fun Fact Friday Sensitive Lips - Soma Technology

Fun Fact Friday Sensitive Lips - Soma Technology

Human Lips are More Sensitive Than the Tips of Your Fingers

Lips serve multiple purposes including; the source of articulation for sound and speech and an opening for food intake. Lips are made up of many nerve endings. Containing many nerves, our lips are very sensitive to touch, warmth, and cold. It is also the large number of nerves that classify the lips as an erogenous zone. Erogenous zones are parts of the body that have heightened sensitivity and stimulation.

The structure of our lips is composed of skin, muscles, and mucosa. The skin of lips are made up of three to five thin layers. The skin contains melanocytes which are cells that help produce our skin pigment. Is there a reason why everyone has different lip colors? Yes, the redness in lips is actually produced by the blood vessels inside. With lighter colored skin, the lips contain fewer melanocytes. Darker colored lips contain more melanocytes. With darker skin, the redness effect is less dominating because there is more melanin. The skin on our lips helps create a barrier between the exterior skin of our faces and the interiors mucous membrane inside our mouths.

Unlike the rest of our skin, the lip skin is not hairy and does not have any sweat glands. Therefore there is no protective layer of body oils or sweat that keeps it smooth. This is why we get chapped lips easily. Have you ever seen chapstick with UV protection in it? Have you ever wondered why? Unlike the rest of our body, our lips need more protection especially from UV rays and harsh, cold, dry air. Protect your lips with chapstick!

It is said that kissing is a great exercise for both the mouth and the facial muscles. To kiss someone, 34 facial muscles and 112 postural muscles are used in the process. A kiss is an expression or sentiment of love, romance, and passion. But at the same time, kissing can also have health benefits. Generally kissing has a stress-reducing effect on a person. It can improve relationship satisfaction or even lower cholesterol levels. So this New Year’s Eve when the ball drops, consider how important your lips are as you pucker up to kiss your loved one!

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