What Is Superficial Fascia?

Just beneath the skin, or epidermis, is a layer of tissue called superficial fascia, or hypodermis, that could contain a little or a lot of jiggly adipose fat. This formative layer of connective tissue is largely responsible for giving final shape to the body, particularly in the facial and torso regions. Superficial fascia is found elsewhere in the body, though — coating organs and circulatory junctions in protective sheaths of padding.

The principal role of this tissue is to bind the skin with deeper levels of tissue called deep and visceral fascia. These deeper levels then bind with muscle tissue to provide a multi-faceted network of interlapping shock-absorbent tissue. Along the way, superficial fascia also helps to regulate body temperature, store fat energy and water, streamline nerve messages and blood flow as well as provide needed cushioning for the fragile epidermis. During periods of immediate weight gain, like pregnancy, the hypodermis's "viscoelasticity" helps the skin accommodate the stretching.

The areas of the body with the heaviest pockets of superficial fascia vary largely by the person's age and gender, but they are largely contained to the face, jowls, scalp, buttocks, abdomen, pectoral area, and the upper arms and legs. A thin, subcutaneous layer of this tissue is present under most of the body's skin. Although it may be paper-thin, even places like the eyelids and ears have this fatty tissue.

This subcutaneous tissue can be found across the animal kingdom, giving insulation and fat storage to beasts, ranging in size from buffalo to rabbits. Its construction can be described as a matrix of fibro-areolar tissue, colored either white or yellow. This tissue is composed of a variety of cellular constructions, from lamellar and granule cells to plasma cells and plasmatocytes. All are latched together like a rippling web to contain a large portion of the body's stores of fat.

When people endeavor to lose weight, stores of fat contained within the superficial fascia are burned up, giving the layer less foundational support and returning the tissue to its truest skeletal and muscular form. This layer of fascia is not the only place to contain fatty adipose tissue, either. Though one of the major locations, the body's peritoneal cavity also contains many opportunities for the body to collect and store fat for later use as fuel. In the latter case, the fat is considered visceral fat; whereas, fat found in the hypodermis is called subcutaneous fat.