Download Pool Tip #23: Wrinkled Fingers (PDF format, 18KB)

Ever wonder why your fingers wrinkle after being in the pool for a long period of time? It’s not due to dehydration as many swimmers suspect.

Keratin, a protein manufactured in the epidermis (the outermost layer of the skin) which normally blocks moisture, dirt and bacteria from being absorbed, cannot protect the skin from protracted exposure to water.

Epidermal skin cells absorb pool water due to osmotic pressure and the lack of protective keratin. The cells swell, enlarge and wrinkle. Luckily, your fingers won’t stay wrinkled forever. When the water evaporates after you leave the pool and dry off, epidermal cells return to their normal size and unpucker within a few minutes.