Meaning & Functions of the Integumentary System

Integumentary System is the most extensive organ system that has the skin and accessory structures, including hair, nails, glands (sweat and sebaceous), and specialized nerve receptors for stimuli (changes in internal or external environment) such as touch, cold, heat, pain, and pressure. The integument is the body’s largest organ and accounts for 15% of body weight.

The skin has an important job of protecting the body and acts as the body’s first line of defense against infection, temperature change, and other challenges to homeostasis.

The Integumentary system works with all the other systems of our body, each of which has a role to play in maintaining the internal conditions that a human body needs to function properly.

Functions of the Integumentary System:

The Integumentary system has many functions, most of which are involved in protecting you and regulating your body’s internal functions in a variety of ways: