[LiteraryLark]

There's lots of things I find amazing about the human body.

Right now I'm marveling about the size of the human lungs...they're huge! Just Google the size of the human lung. And they weigh about three pounds. Absolutely amazing.

I also learned that...how do I say this...I carved a chunk of skin out of my ankle while shaving and the doctor said that the area of skin on the bone of the ankle heals from the bottom up, so that's why I was still bleeding from the top half of my cut but not the bottom and there's also no way to stitch that area, so the doc put a steri strip on the wound because there's not enough skin to stitch with. Absolutely fascinating.

And the whole process from conception to birth blows my mind.

What do you find fascinating about the human body?

[Nammu]

I find it absolutely amazing that any babies are born. The millions of connections that the dna, the nerves, the bones, the organs and brain have to make to work is mind blowing.

[Breaking Dawn]

What a wonderful thread! Thank you, LiteraryLark! Oh my goodness, yes. The whole system, a beautifully coordinated ecosystem, & none of its members go to school to learn what they do. They already know how to communicate with each other & read instructions in the DNA. I feel reverence & gratitude & love for all the cells & individual communities.

[MuddyBoots]

How more than half our cells don't actually have human DNA (mostly bacteria)

how strong the heart is

think about it: from the moment you are born, your heart starts beating

that heart will last you until the end (providing you don't need a transplant)

it beats so many times a day- it amazes me how it never gets tired..

also digestion is pretty cool. you can eat a big meal and your body knows how to cope with the food

and let's not forget all the brain signals either.

[divine1966]

Procreation. Amazing.

My grandson is 3 months. So he was not here not that long ago yet it feels like he was always here. And how is it that he didn’t always exist and was just created by two people and how he can already laugh and grab toys and looks like both of his parents. And if the conception didn’t happen, he’d simply not exist yet here he is moving, breathing, eating and growing.

Amazing.

[unaluna]

That IS interesting about the ankle skin!

I was gonna say, before i read your post, how the body heals itself. With help sometimes, but still. Cuts DISAPPEAR. That HAS to be magic!

[LiteraryLark]

Originally Posted by unaluna

That IS interesting about the ankle skin!

I was gonna say, before i read your post, how the body heals itself. With help sometimes, but still. Cuts DISAPPEAR. That HAS to be magic!

That always amazes me. So many things of the human body can heal, even the lungs which gives me hope for when I quit smoking.

[unaluna]

Originally Posted by LiteraryLark

That always amazes me. So many things of the human body can heal, even the lungs which gives me hope for when I quit smoking.

Freaks me out tho - i watch Emergency Room shows on TLC, and its amazing how unfazed people are when consenting to amputations - then theyre like - my foot will just grow back, right?

[splitimage]

I find so many things about the human body amazing, Like some of you have said I've found it amazing how an embryo develops into a baby.


But my personal most amazing thing is how the liver can heal itself. I was an active, and heavy drinking alcoholic for many years, and my liver enzymes were sky high, I had a fatty and enlarged liver. In the time I've been sober, my liver has completely healed itself and everything about it is now normal.

[eskielover]

I find the neuroplasticity of the brain to be so fascinating. Stroke & TBI people can relearn skills (physical & mental) that was lost during the stroke or accident/brain trauma. That same ability in the brain helps some of us even with mental illness to learn new skills we can apply in our lives & make changes & heal

[divine1966]

Originally Posted by unaluna

Freaks me out tho - i watch Emergency Room shows on TLC, and its amazing how unfazed people are when consenting to amputations - then theyre like - my foot will just grow back, right?

What?????

[downandlonely]

About the liver, it's cool that you can donate half your liver to someone else. And your liver will grow back to normal size!

[unaluna]

Originally Posted by divine1966

What?????

Im tellin ya!

[Nammu]

Originally Posted by unaluna

Im tellin ya!

I thought you were joking! You’re serious? People have said that?

[MuseumGhost]

I am repeatedly amazed by how fast the body can recover so many healthy processes, and also heal, when someone quits smoking (I'll send you a link for that timeline---it's remarkable!). And, naturally, the younger you are when you quit, the better your chances of healing faster and more completely.

Our skin and bones literally, completely, replace themselves on a certain schedule, and with surprising regularity. Of course, it slows down as we age. But it is astonishing, so amazing.

And I love the immune system. It's not perfect, but it's pretty cool.

[unaluna]

Originally Posted by Nammu

I thought you were joking! You’re serious? People have said that?

Not joking!

[Nammu]

Originally Posted by unaluna

Not joking!

[LiteraryLark]

Originally Posted by eskielover

I find the neuroplasticity of the brain to be so fascinating. Stroke & TBI people can relearn skills (physical & mental) that was lost during the stroke or accident/brain trauma. That same ability in the brain helps some of us even with mental illness to learn new skills we can apply in our lives & make changes & heal

I forget about neuroplasticity.

I always worry about developing dementia. For me, I feel it's inevitable, but I feel like I lose memories as fast as I make them. I'm one of those, "don't ask me about what I did yesterday, because I won't remember.:"

[eskielover]

Originally Posted by LiteraryLark

I forget about neuroplasticity.

I always worry about developing dementia. For me, I feel it's inevitable, but I feel like I lose memories as fast as I make them. I'm one of those, "don't ask me about what I did yesterday, because I won't remember.:"

My grandma had alzheimers so I am very aware of how it is. Even my oldest doggie who lived to almost 19 had doggie dementia. What I found most interesting is that I grew up in a stressful family & lived in a stressful marriage. In school & college I had to work harder than everyone else to get the good grades I wanted to have & retention was very poor. After my parents died & I left my bad marriage at 54, my memory, my retention has just continually improved as I am getting older. That was when a lightbulb came on in my mind & I realized just how much (at least for me) stress must have clouded my ability of my brain to function to its fullest capacity. I could never find the right word, my thoughts & therefore my communication was meandering & my mind put so much energy into fighting against the environments I had been living in that it had no ability to retain a whole lot more. My life before I left is like a black hole with only little memories of things here & there. Second half of life is much better than the first now all that stress has been removed

[LiteraryLark]

Originally Posted by eskielover

My life before I left is like a black hole with only little memories of things here & there. Second half of life is much better than the first now all that stress has been removed

Yes life has been very high stress for a long while.

[Soupe du jour]

That injuries heal and it can fight off infections and viruses. Even the whole growing process is amazing. Pretty cool!

[Aurelius710]

Just how adaptable it can be, depending on environment. I remember a NatGeo documentary about the Sherpas of Mt. Everest (among other groups) and how their lungs changed over time to take in all the oxygen it can at high altitudes. Helps them function up there and if they came down to sea level, it gives them an advantage in endurance sports and activities.

Another documentary talked about free diving fishermen in New Guinea who, over time, developed large spleens on much the same proportion as a whales and dolphins. It made those fishermen biologically suited for the job.

[MuseumGhost]

Oh, Eskie, I can relate to everything you wrote.

During times of profound grief and loss, going through my divorce, and when my depression was at its worst, I was hobbled by terrible brain fog and an almost complete loss of intellectual functioning, beyond basic types of abilities. It was very upsetting I felt changed, utterly.

Now, remarkably, as I have gotten better, much has returned. My focus, retention, and ability to articulate thoughts and make myself understood have gotten so much better, with time.

I am forever humbled, but also deeply grateful for this.

[SlumberKitty]

Scar tissue