Stretch out your hand, with the palm facing up. Notice those prominent lines on your palm, and those ones on your fingers, especially where they meet with joints?
Ever wondered why they are there? What their functions are? And what they mean? Do read on curious mind, as this article provides the answers to your musings.
What Are They?
Your hands are the most hardworking part of your body, and are capable of several actions – including holding, stretching, lifting, typing and writing. To be able to do these different tasks and change their shape constantly, the skin covering them should be able to adjust itself to these complex positions. That is where the lines on your palms come into play.
These lines are technically called creases, or palmar flexion; creases to be more specific, and are also required to divide your palm into sections for flexion.
And Their Functions?
These creases help in folding the skin on your hand when you change its shape, say when you make a fist or bend your hands. If you did not have these creases, you would have loose skin hanging out from your palms under your fingers.
Take a look at the lines carefully, and bend your hand into a slight curve, you will notice that each one of these lines is at a place where your hand bends. The same goes for the lines on your elbow, knees, wrists etc.
They prevent the skin from rolling up into clumps, and provide an avenue for the skin to tuck into when your joints contract, while they also enable the skin to unfold when your joints extend. This is the reason why you have strong and prominent creases where the bones of your finger meet your thumb.
They may also provide us with better grip by giving our skin more friction, and help to keep the skin from tearing easily. If you notice, the skin of the palm is very thick so that it doesn’t tear itself when we squeeze or stretch.
A scientific study even suggests that they may enhance our sense of touch. The ridges are thought to pick up vibrations as we run our fingers (or toes) over a surface, giving our brains more physical input about whatever it is that we are touching.
Babies develop these flexion creases on the palm of their hands when they are yet in the womb, at around the 12th week of gestation. The thickness and number of creases on the palms depends upon factors such as race and genetic history.
Read More: The First 98 Days in Your Mother’s Womb that Shaped Your Identity
