Why does scratching yourself feel so good and is difficult to stop? When scratching yourself why does it feel so good? When stopping scratching yourself, why does it feel unpleasant?

Question

Why does scratching yourself feel so good and is difficult to stop? When scratching yourself why does it feel so good? When stopping scratching yourself, why does it feel unpleasant?

In: Biology

Answer 1

Scratching is a way to get rid of parasites and other irritants from your skin. It is evolutionarily beneficial to get rid of them. It is not very harmful to scratch yourself from time to time without a reason. So evolution errs on the side of false positives and makes you want to scratch yourself when there is any sensations that _might_ mean there are parasites on your body. And you get a chemical reward from your body for keeping good care of your health.