Why do your fingers and toes wrinkle when submerged in water for an extended period of time?
955600
Now for the correct answer. It is due to the process of osmosis. The water outside your body has a higher concentration of dissolved solutes then the inside of your body. This means there is a higher concentration of water in your body than outside your body. Osmosis will cause water to move through a semi-permeable membrane from inside your body to the water outside. Thus there is a net water loss and your skins wrinkles.
167226
The cells in your skin soak up a bunch and water and swell.  The swelling makes a ripple in the skin that looks like a prune.
959960
You have more stimulation in your fingers than your toes.\n\nYou are constantly bending or moving your fingers. This stimulates them and makes your nails grow faster.\n\nYes you do walk on your toes but you are not constantly moving them to create as much stimulation.
456970
The answer to your first question is - no, not entirely. The answer to your second question is - it does, that's why your skin gets "puckered" when you are in the bath for too long.\n\nThe skin has pours that open and close, when you are hot these pours open and you often sweat, this is also how you flush some toxins and bacteria from your system, which is why hot baths are good with mineral oils. It's also one of the dangers of showering in chlorinated water, as the chlorine can seep through the pours of your skin, and slowly poison you.
909892
Your hands and the bottoms of your feet are more "water permeable" than the rest of your body because they have more sweat glands in them but no oil glands.  So when you expose them to water, and even more so with hot water, for extended periods, the water will begin to go back in just as it is able to come out. When the skin soaks up enough water, which sometimes isn't very much, it begins to expand and prune.\nWeather along with humidity and also one's age has a lot to do with how quickly the skin becomes waterlogged.
377933
Even though you can't see it, your skin is covered with its own special oil called sebum (say: see-bum). Sebum is found on the outermost layer of skin. Sebum moistens, or lubricates (say: loo-bruh-kaytes), and protects your skin. It also makes your skin a bit waterproof. That's why water runs off your skin when you wash your hands, instead of soaking it in like a sponge would. \n\nBut 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. So how does this lead to wrinkles?  No one is really sure. \n\nSome people think it's because the skin expands to allow extra water inside. The expanded skin ends up looking really wrinkly. Other people think that it's because the skin is tied down to the tissue underneath in certain places. So when the skin is full of water, it swells up (gets puffy), but only in places where it is not tied down, which makes it look wrinkly.
342866
Because the water conucts the heat away from your body very well and thus lowers your body temperature
937494
Not to long ago I read that those little zit-like things happen on your legs and arms if you're dehydrated. The article said that they'll go away if you drink more water.
385873
Your skin is made up of two layers. The outer layer is called the epidermis and the lower level is the dermis. The outer layer (epidermis) produces an oily substance called sebum. You can see this substance when you touch a window or mirror and your "oily" fingerprint is left there. One job sebum does is it keeps water out of your skin—a job that it does very well. However, after long periods of time in a swimming pool, shower, or bathtub, much of the sebum is washed off and your outer layer of skin starts to absorb water. 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.
513715
I'm not sure but, it is where you have thicker skin due to calluses and that part of the skin absorbs more moisture and become gorged with water and stretches. Then your body starts to remove the extra moisture leaving the stretched skin to look wrinkled.
1132679
Maybe it has something to do with the actions you're making.  When you're timing yourself out of water, you're just sitting there right?  But when your under water, you're treding or moving in some sort?  Try timing yourself when your walking around the house or jumping up and down....the blood takes in more oxygen(which means you need more) when its pumping faster.  Just an idea!
10597
It's not that only your fingers and toes wrinkle, but they do so more easily.\n\nInevitably, a nice long soak in a bathtub sloughs off the excess sebum from your epidermis. As a result, your skin starts to take on water. The top layer of the epidermis is known as the stratum corneum, which is Latin for "horny layer." These are the tough, dead skin cells that are constantly being sloughed off your body in your clothes, your bed, and in the form of dandruff. Disturbing, but true. \n\nYour fingers and toes have especially thick layers of stratum corneum. Once deprived of sebum, they swell up with water, causing wrinkles.
439432
Ok obviously this is for a class - so why don't you consult your text book.  The answer will be in there.  Think about it logically too - your skin, in an of itself is a natual barrier.  It is made of tightly packed cells that are keratinized to prevent too much water getting in.  Get the drift...??
116742
There are many reasons why people wrinkle.  \n\nAs we age the skin loses its elasticity and its ability to "spring back".\n\nSmoking causes premature wrinkling.\n\nExposure to the sun and wind causes wrinkling over time.\n\nSometimes losing a lot of weight causes wrinkling.
928103
It is caused by unclean feet! An acculamation of sweat and dead skin from between the toes. Washing between the toes when showering will eliminate this!\nG.H.
791557
Because the skin cells absorb the water. Its not harmful and will return to normal very quickly after you dry yourself off.
163212
you might have water on the knee, the pressur from the water could keep you from fully extending and bending your leg and the knee joint!