What is the Thickest Organ in the Human Body?
The skin is the thickest organ in the human body, although its thickness varies across different areas.
While the skin is the largest organ by surface area and weight, its thickness isn't uniform. The thickness of the skin varies depending on the location on the body. For instance, the skin on the back is considerably thicker than the skin on the eyelids. Even at its thickest point, however, it only measures a few millimeters. This is significantly thinner than many internal organs in terms of absolute thickness, but its sheer size and coverage make it the thickest in terms of overall volume and mass.
Several sources confirm the skin's status as the largest and heaviest organ:
- Better Health Channel: States that "The skin is the largest organ of the human body." http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/skin
- StatPearls: Confirms that "The skin is the largest organ in the body, covering its entire external surface...Of these regions, the back has the thickest skin because it..." https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470464/
- Medical News Today: Highlights that "Skin is the largest and heaviest organ of the body." https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/thin-skin-vs-thick-skin
- NCBI Bookshelf (InformedHealth.org): Reinforces that "But it is still our heaviest and largest organ, making up about one seventh of our body weight..." https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279255/
- MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia: Indicates that "The skin is the largest organ of the body." https://medlineplus.gov/ency/imagepages/8912.htm
These references consistently emphasize the skin's status as the largest organ, implicitly indicating its significance in terms of overall thickness considering its extensive coverage of the body.
