Scientists have not yet established the precise function of fingerprints, there exist several explanations regarding their purposes. Fingerprints were said to be there to help in gripping or holding onto things. The ridges and the valleys of the fingerprints promote friction that allows us to hold objects. 

That is why gripping objects becomes harder, especially when the hands are wet or sweaty. The other idea is that it heightens sensation. Ridges and valleys in fingerprints increase vibration perception which we feel while touching objects. This enables us to see the texture and shape of objects around us better.

We can also use fingerprints for our protection against diseases. Our skin secretes some sweat and oils that contain antimicrobial elements. There are those compounds that aid in killing off the bacteria and other microbes that come across our skin. These compounds might be distributed more uniformly on the surface of the skin of a fingerprint if it has valleys and ridges.

Here are some additional details about fingerprints:

Formation of fingerprints started after 13 weeks of the foetal development period.

Normally, fingerprints are fully developed at about 24th week of gestation.

Fingerprints do not change throughout a person’s live until it is destroyed upon suffering some injury or sickness.

 Fingerprints are made up of two types of patterns:

 Loops, whorls, and arches. The loop is the most commonly found mark among others which include whorls and arches. The minutiae include dots, double ridge ends, as well as bifurcations points. Even identical twins do not share the same fingerprints.