We've all experienced that strange sensation of stepping out of the bath or swimming pool, and noticing grooves which have formed on the tips of our fingers. Have you ever wondered why that happens? It's not just because our skin absorbs water and swells up, as you might think. It's actually also down to our nervous system being at work, causing our blood vessels to constrict.

So, what's happening is that the blood vessels in our fingers narrow down, making our fingers shrink in size, while the skin remains the same. As a result, the skin wrinkles and those grooves appear. It's all controlled by our nervous system.

Does that wrinkling serve any purpose for our bodies? Why do our toes wrinkle too then? There you have it, now you know why our fingers wrinkle in water!

In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.

First broadcast: 20/3/2024

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