Have you ever noticed that as a cut or wound heals, and scab forms over the wound, it begins to itch rather badly? In fact, if one isn’t careful, one would scratch mindlessly until the scab breaks, blood oozes out, and the wound is exposed once more with the process of healing starting all over again!
According to mentalfloss.com, there is a scientific explanation for this.
The Restorative Power of Your Body
Your skin protects you by keeping germs out of your body. But when something hard or sharp breaks through your skin, it makes a cut, or a wound. You start to bleed because skin and blood vessels are cut open. Your body works fast to close up the wound so germs can’t get inside and make you sick. But sometimes the wound itches as it heals.
Your skin also has special nerves that get irritated when skin and tissue grow and stretch to fill in a wound. Those irritated nerves send a signal to your brain that you have an itch, and that makes you want to scratch it. But don’t scratch! You could scratch right through the scab and cause your wound to bleed. Then the healing would have to start all over again!
Now that you know, will you be inspired to keep your fingers away from a healing wound? Well, one can only hope!
