MadSci Network: General Biology
Query:

Re: Will completely covering the skin with paint cause a person to suffocate

Date: Sat Aug 11 09:21:32 2001
Posted By: Jim Bridger, Faculty, Biology, Prince Georges Community College
Area of science: General Biology
ID: 997391717.Gb
Message:

Thomas:  You are correct!!  We get our oxygen from our lungs which then 
goes into our blood which delivers it to each of our cells.  Our skin does 
not supply any useable oxygen to our bodies.   Our skin is VERY important 
for a number of reasons (protection, detection, prevention of dessication, 
Vit D production , temperature regulation, etc) but not for O2 supply.  If 
one was to cover our skin with paint, or anything that would not allow our 
sweat glands to function properly, we would die.  What would happen would 
be that the body would get extremely hot and if hot enough, our enzymes, 
which catalyze all of our chemical reactions would become denatured and 
would cease to function. (They are proteins and protein, just like egg 
white, changes molecular shape when heated and therefore can no longer 
function)  When this happens, all of our physiologically important 
reactions stop and once we run out of ATP, which is our main energy source, 
we would die.  We could no longer use the O2 coming to the cells in order 
to make the ATP so in a sense we would "suffocate" but not in the 
traditional definition of the word.  Due to the decrease in ability to make 
ATP, all of our body systems would shut down, including breathing and heart 
beating. I guess the moral of this story is, "Don't believe everything you 
see in the movies!"  Good question Thomas!  J. Bridger


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