Human bodies are truly remarkable. From individual atoms to large chromosomes, our bodies’ capabilities seem almost unbelievable.
Infants begin life with roughly 350 bones; as they age and fuse together over time, adults only possess 206. Additionally, there are over 60,000 miles of blood vessels running through our bodies that if laid out would cover twice around the planet!
1. You have a coccyx.
Your coccyx is the triangular-shaped bone found at the bottom of your spine that forms its own end of spinal column and represents a vestigial tail – thus its popular name as your “tailbone.” Comprised of three to five fused vertebrae, it lies directly beneath sacrum at base of spine where it bears weight when sitting down as well as supporting ischial tuberosities in this position; an over-curved coccyx may lead to issues in lower back and neck pain as well.
Adult humans generally have their coccyx fused by age 30, although it may remain unfused for up to the first 20 years of life. Fusion usually completes by this point. When sitting, however, its movements and rotation may change slightly with sitting position changes; connection with sacrum via sacrococcygeal joint; during first trimester pregnancy may even increase to accommodate expanding uterus size.
Though trauma to the coccyx is common, its purpose remains unclear in modern humans. Compression causes significant pain when falling backward onto hard surfaces; alternatively it may produce idiopathic (pain caused by no identifiable source) pain in some individuals. Common sources of Coccyx pain include trauma injury, degeneration and aging.
2. You have a tail.
Your back consists of small bones known as vertebrae that interlock to form your spine, known collectively as your vertebrae. These vertebrae fuse together into your coccyx which is more commonly known as your tail bone. Most mammals possess tails; humans however are an acaudate species lacking one. Animals that do possess tails include fish, amphibians, reptiles and birds.
Human backs consist of five varieties or types of vertebrae: neck (cervical) vertebrae that support the head; thoracic vertebrae which anchor the ribcage; lumbar vertebrae which provide abdominal support, sacral vertebrae which stabilize pelvis and sacral vertebrae which stabilize tail. True tails are extremely rare and most cases result from abnormalities of the coccyx or spina bifida; some individuals may also possess pseudotails caused by other conditions like scoliosis or polio; some people also possess true tails despite not having abnormalities of their coccyx.
Other fascinating human body facts include our 2.5 million sweat pores, teeth that grow throughout life, noses and ears that continue to develop until puberty, being taller in the morning than night, an intestine which acts like an ocean wave when eating and that ear wax is actually just a form of sweat!
Our bodies are truly remarkable creatures with so much to teach us! If you want to delve deeper into understanding more of human anatomy, these guides offer useful information.
3. You glow in the dark.
Human bodies are truly an amazing marvel, full of fascinating yet quirky facts that range from skin regeneration after paper cuts to how ears and noses continue to expand throughout our lives (even after we stop growing taller), there is so much about our bodies that are simply bizarre.
One of the more fascinating body facts is that humans can produce enough energy for cells to emit light and glow in the dark for approximately one minute. However, this phenomenon usually only lasts that long.
Another amazing feat of human biology is hearing your own heartbeat, since your brain can recognize sounds in as little as 0.05 seconds; that is 10 times faster than blinking an eye!
Humans possess a natural diving reflex, which shuts down bodily functions when submerged in water. It is activated by serotonin chemicals found within your system; you can even view your heartbeat by looking at the palm of your hand.
Your tongue prints are distinctive to you and can often be mistaken for fingerprints. Furthermore, over your lifetime you will shed 22 kilograms of skin. Furthermore, an average person farts enough in one day to fill an air balloon!
Even though these facts might seem gross, it’s crucial that they’re understood. Otherwise, you could put yourself at risk: for instance, having an appendix that doesn’t function properly increases the risk of infection to other parts of the body; additionally, you need to understand that earwax is actually sweat.
4. You have a heart.
Your heart is the muscle responsible for pumping blood throughout your body, carrying oxygen and nutrients to all of its tissues while carrying off carbon dioxide and waste products. On average, it beats approximately 100,000 times each day, pumping approximately 2,000 gallons through you in each minute.
Your heart is roughly the size of a fist and rests at the center of your chest, directly behind and slightly to the left of your breastbone. There are four chambers within it – two on either side – separated by pericardium (an outer protective layer), myocardium (an inner muscular wall).
Pink and rubbery lung tissue indicates good lung health; if you smoke however, these healthy-looking lungs could turn black from within if not regularly ventilated properly.
There are over 600 muscles in your body, the Gluteus Maximus being the largest and the stapedius muscle in your ears being the smallest.
Each minute, your skin sheds over 30,000 dead cells that are replaced by new ones. On an annual basis, we produce enough sweat to fill two swimming pools. When we sneeze, our nose moves forward and backward to mix up the air; while your largest cranial cavity contains 2.5 million sweat pores. On average, humans fart enough each day to fill an entire party balloon – how embarrassing!
5. You have a brain.
As humans, our bodies are filled with fascinating and sometimes oddly mysterious details that we must constantly keep an eye on and remember to pay attention to. From learning our skeleton consists of 206 bones to knowing tongue prints are as distinctive as fingerprints and that our bodies shed 22 kilograms of skin each year – there is always something new and fascinating about the human body!
Brain is one of the most complex systems in our bodies, as it controls almost everything we do – emotions, thinking and learning among them. Additionally, it controls body functions such as movement, balance coordination and the fight or flight response. Composed of various parts that perform specific functions – cerebrum which interprets sight, sound and touch interpretation, hippocampus which helps us remember things – it plays an integral part in keeping us functioning normally.
The cerebellum is another area of the brain responsible for movement, balance, and coordination. It is widely believed that your right half of cerebrum helps with abstract things such as music, colors and shapes while your left half deals with analytical tasks such as math and logic. Unfortunately, scientists still do not fully comprehend how the brain operates but do know it contains nerve cells communicating between each other to form complex neural circuits which carry messages throughout its complex network of pathways.
The digestive system has often been called the second brain due to its own nervous system with 100 million neurons embedded into your gut wall! This connection between your gut and brain, known as the gut-brain axis, can be affected by factors like stress, diet or medication and is what triggers sneezes or coughs when eating too quickly or causes hiccups when you swallow too quickly!