Listen Up! Doctors Warn Wearing Headphones Could Cause Blackheads in Your EAR

You've probably been asked at some point or another what the body's largest organ is, and the question may have left you stumped. Is it the liver? Or maybe it's the stomach? Of course, if you've heard the question before, you might remember that the answer is a little outside the box and not exactly the first organ your mind thinks of, and that's because it's not an internal organ at all. In fact, the answer is your skin.

Our skin protects us from the outside world and helps keep our body secure and hydrated. It regulates our body temperature and controls a variety of automatic responses that allow us to feel the world in the first place. It makes up about a seventh of our total body weight, and it is constantly growing, changing, and replacing itself to keep us healthy.

But our skin goes further than that.

When you notice that either you or someone you're talking to doesn't look well, how do you reach that conclusion? Whether you're looking in the mirror or talking to a friend, coworker, or family member, there are certain signs and symptoms we have all learned over time that help us distinguish whether somebody is healthy or ill, and many times, this is entirely thanks to your skin.

The condition of your skin reflects your overall health. This is why beauty products and routines prize "glowing" skin above dry or sallow skin, and it's why moisturizers or creams with SPF are so important to use regularly. Our skin is our first defense against the outside world, keeping pathogens out while regulating many processes within. Dark spots may indicate unhealthy cell growth, scar tissue indicates recovery from an injury, brown or yellow skin can generally indicate various sickness or disease, and dry skin tells us that our bodies are dehydrated. If our skin were always the same or didn't reflect any problems that may be occurring underneath, we would be a lot worse off.

You may take your skin for granted most of the time, which is understandable, because it's just sort of there. In fact, the first time some people even truly notice or spend time really thinking about their skin is when something goes wrong.

For many of us, this change came with the onset of puberty. Suddenly, our once smooth and clear skin turns into our greatest enemy. Red and white bumps and blotches begin to pop up everywhere. Unsightly hair starts to grow everywhere but on the top of our heads (for men). We sweat, constantly, and then we smell. Sometimes, we don't even recognize our own face in the mirror.

Acne and other forms of skin blemishes can pretty much ruin our lives, first when we're young (even if everyone else is going through it, too), but then again well into our adult lives if we are not blessed with good skin.