Leslie Shelding, age 10, of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, for her question:
HOW DO YOU GET FRECKLES?
The tiny splotches of darker color on your nose and cheeks are freckles, of course. But we could call them kisses by friendly sunbeams, for almost always they are put there by the shining sun. Actually, though, sunshine does not paint brown freckles on the skin. The skin has several layers, and the brownish material was there all the time in a layer beneath the surface. The sunshine merely brought them to.the surface where everybody can admire them.
Your skin is considered a body organ in fact the largest organ because it performs many essential functions. It covers and protects the internal organs and contains sense organs and nerve endings which enable you to transmit messages to your brain regarding danger, pain and pleasure. The skin keeps itself oiled and helps to keep the temperature of the body steady.
The outer layer of skin, the epidermis, is constantly being rubbed off and replaced by the layer underneath. Throughout the body's lifetime, the under layer, called the dermis, continually creates new cells. This much deeper layer is responsible for the miraculous healing power of the skin and is made of living cells with nerves and blood vessels. The dermis also contains hair roots, sweat glands and the stuff for making suntans.
Determining the skin's color are certain cells which manufacture a brownish substance called melanin. The amount of melanin in a person's skin depends mostly on the color of his parent's skin. It also depends on the quantity of sunlight the person gets and substances called hormones.
The manufacturing centers that produce melanin, called melanocytes,are distributed between the epidermis and the dermis. At times these active melanocytes are not evenly distributed throughout the skin. When exposed to sunlight the active melanocytes produce melanin, but lazy melanocytes fall down on the job. As a result, islands of pigment, otherwise known as freckles, form.
Usually light skinned people are more prone to freckle than dark or olive skinned persons because they have more melanin closer to the surface.
Freckles have a tendency to pop out during the summer sunshine and fade as winter progresses. Nevertheless, many youngsters heartily bemoan the presence of their freckles and spend all sorts of money on cosmetics to hide them. Happily, the natural look is the style today and freckles are part and parcel of a healthy, glowing vitality.