Hamilton Herald Masthead

Editorial


Front Page - Friday, April 18, 2014

Do you know the amazing human body?


HEALTH CORNER



Once upon a time, I went to school to be in the healthcare field. I love taking care of people, and the human body just amazes me.

I’m actually much better at taking care of other people than myself. I think women tend to do that!

I remember being in school, which was a whirlwind of information of the human body, and always wanting to learn the odd facts about the body, the things that you would not even think about.

A human’s body is really an amazing science project. The things the scientist and doctors already know and are still learning about the human body is astonishing.The odd facts are always the ones that stuck with me the most. I figured I would share some of my favorite facts about the body that you have probably never even thought of.

There are over 60,000 miles of blood vessels in your body. Just try to imagine your blood actually travels through this amount of blood vessels as well. 

A person’s body gives off enough heat in 30 minutes to bring half a gallon of water to boil. Okay, this one leaves me speechless. To think about how hot water is when it is boiling, and to compare that with the amount of heat my body is putting off in 30 minutes.

Your heart pumps about 2,000 gallons of blood everyday. Can someone please tell me how this is obtainable? The body is truly working overtime constantly every day for us to live.

The acid in your stomach is strong enough to dissolve razor blades. This is truly alarming. When I think of acid dissolving something, I think of the sick and twisted movies that I have seen that use acid as torture. To know that I have acid that strong in my body is scary. Talking about wanting to take some Tums!

To go with number four, a person gets a new stomach lining every four to five days. If you didn’t, the strong acids would not only digest your food but also your stomach. Who knew I was getting a new stomach lining every four to five days?

Scientists say the higher the I.Q., the more you dream. If this one is true, I must be genius! I dream all the time and can remember most of my dreams as well. You hear that, brother? I’m a genius!

The width of your arm span stretched out is the entire length of your body. Well, this explains a lot. My husband also says that my arms must of stopped growing in the 3rd grade, which explains why I’m so short! Thanks mom!

Your brain is more active and thinks more at night than during the day. Well, at least now I know why I can never fall asleep. I feel like it’s impossible to turn my brain off come 10 p.m.

One of my favorites – I’ve written an article about this before – is that it’s been proven that human laughter is an effective painkiller! Now I know why I never need pain killers; I love to laugh!

People with darker skin will not wrinkle as fast as people with lighter skin. I can attest to this one. My best friend is a dark skinned woman, whereas I’m as white as they come! We live about the same lifestyles, about same age and same habits. She has no wrinkles where as some days I get sick of counting mine!

About 10 percent of the world is left-handed – and I have three of them living with me! It’s not easy for a right-hander to teach a left-hander how to write.

Children who are breastfed tend to have a seven-point higher IQ than those that are not. I’ve breastfed and formula fed, but I find this interesting because I’ve always thought my child that nursed a long time comprehended more than my other two. Very interesting, to say the least.

If the small intestine were stretched out thin, it would have an average length of 18 to 23 feet. Think about your entire intestine squished inside your body and your food having to travel through it.

A human sheds 600,000 particles of skin every hour. Basically, this means if you’re always thinking you need to dust your house like me, then now you know it would be virtually impossible for it to stay clean. 

Nerve ending impulses can travel as fast as 170 mph. This is why you can react so quickly to things or feel pain so quickly.

The interesting, weird, odd, fun facts about your body can go on for days. These are some my favorites. To think of what my body is capable of reminds me that I’m truly a well-built machine. This is why it’s so very important to take the best possible care of your body. All of these things change or slow down with time, but proper care will keep everything sharp and finely tuned as long as possible. Next time you’re not busy, take a second and learn something about your body that you didn’t already know.