The human body is a fascinating machine, and there are various quirks and facts that can surprise us. For instance, babies are born with around 270 bones, but eventually, their cartilage fuses, leaving adults with 206 bones in total. Meanwhile, our nose and ears continue to grow throughout our lives due to the breakdown of cartilage. If you try to tickle yourself, you may find that it doesn’t work due to the brain’s mechanism to distinguish between self-touch and other-touch. At night, our brains remain active as they process and consolidate information from the day. Finally, our hair holds onto drugs and toxins for years, making it a valuable tool for testing criminal cases.
1. Babies are born with more bones than adults
At birth, babies have around 270 bones. But as they grow up, those bones eventually fuse together to form 206 bones that adults have. This happens largely because babies have more cartilage than bone, and cartilage is softer and grows more quickly than bone.
2. Your nose and ears continue to grow throughout your life
Many people believe that their nose and ears get larger as they age, and it turns out that’s actually true. As we get older, the cartilage in our noses and ears begins to break down and lose its shape. As a result, our noses and ears droop and elongate.
3. You can’t tickle yourself
Have you ever tried to tickle yourself? Chances are, you weren’t very successful. The reason for this is that the brain has a built-in mechanism to distinguish between self-touch and other-touch. When you try to tickle yourself, your brain recognizes that the sensation is coming from your own hand, and it doesn’t generate the same response as when someone else is tickling you.
4. Your brain is more active at night than during the day
Even when you’re sleeping, your brain never truly shuts down. In fact, it’s quite active during the night. This is because while you’re sleeping, your brain is processing and consolidating all the information you’ve taken in during the day.
5. Your taste buds change every two weeks
Your taste buds are constantly regenerating, and they completely replace themselves every two weeks. As a result, your sense of taste may change over time.
6. Your body has enough fat to make seven bars of soap
Believe it or not, the average adult human body contains enough fat to make seven bars of soap. Of course, you wouldn’t want to use that fat to make soap, but it’s still an interesting fact.
7. You can live without a surprisingly large number of organs
The human body is surprisingly resilient, and we can actually live without some of our organs. For example, you can survive with only one lung, one kidney, and even without a spleen.
8. The strongest muscle in your body is your tongue
While your biceps and quadriceps may be more well-known muscle groups, your tongue is actually the strongest muscle in your body relative to its size. It helps you speak, chew, and swallow, and it’s constantly working.
9. Your heart beats around 100,000 times a day
Over the course of a day, your heart beats around 100,000 times. That’s a lot of work for such a small organ!
10. Your hair can hold onto drugs and toxins for years
Your hair is a record of your body’s history, and it can hold onto drugs and toxins for years. That’s why hair analysis is often used to test for drug use and poisonous substances in criminal investigations.