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There are various theories of why fingers and toes wrinkle in water. Most biologists suggest that the tough outer layer of skin made up of dead keratin cells is responsible. Keratin is a protein found in hair, nails, and the outermost layer of our skin.
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www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/wrinkles.html
www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/wrinkles.html
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When hands are soaked in water, the keratin absorbs it and swells. The inside of the fingers, however, does not swell. As a result, there is relatively too much stratum corneum and it wrinkles, just like a gathered skirt.
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www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-do-finger...
www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-do-fingers-wrinkle-in
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Why do fingers wrinkle in the water? Kids Ask ... When I was little, my mom used to say "You've been swimming for too long, your fingers will prune!" Wrinkly fingers and toes, or pruning as some people call it, happen when your skin soaks up water. Our skin has a kind of...
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healthcorner.walgreens.com/display/128.htm
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Especially the tips of your fingers and toes have shriveled up like prunes. What happened to your skin to make it wrinkle? ... As it absorbs water it swells, but since the epidermis is "tied" down to your dermis in certain spots, it expands more where it is not "tied" down and this causes your skin to wrinkle.
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www.discoverymagazine.com/digger/d01dd/d0110dd.html
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Have you ever stayed in a pool or bathtub so long that your fingers got wrinkly? This is normal — and can even affect your toes. But why does it happen? ... But staying in water for a long time washes away the sebum. Then, the water can penetrate the outer layer of your skin. This causes your skin to become waterlogged.
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kidshealth.org/kid/talk/qa/wrinkly_fingers.html
kidshealth.org/kid/talk/qa/wrinkly_fingers.html
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Can you please tell me why your fingers and toes wrinkle in the bathtub, but the rest of your body doesn't? ... Since the underlying tissue doesn't absorb water, the stratum corneum can't spread out and it buckles like asphalt on the highway in the summer sun.
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www.straightdope.com/columns/read/539/why-do-your-finge...
www.straightdope.com/columns/read/539/why-do-your-fingers-and-toes-wrinkle-in-the-bathtub
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(They'll do anything for Science!) The outcome was the same: Wrinkled fingers in the salt-free water, smooth fingers in the salt- saturated water. So why did your fingers wrinkle when you were in sea water? I can't be certain, but I have a pretty good guess.
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www.madsci.org/posts/archives/feb99/917326845.Gb.r.html
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A.� The dead keratin filled cells of the outer skin absorb water, however, the underlying live ones don’t. The outer layer swells with the water, increasing its surface area. ... So, although it looks like our fingers and toes are shrivelling, they’re actually expanding.
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www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Article1250.html
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