Facts About the Human Spine

This long, elastic and curved chain of big and small bones is so strong that can carry the weight of your entire body even after a long day of activity. It carries you even when you are incredibly tired. This is the structure inside our body that provides support and connection to every limb, every bone and makes us keep upright. The spine and all its different ligaments and disks, along with their functions, have many interesting facts that will be shown in these lines.

According to the Mayfield Brain and Spine website, the spine, also known as the vertebral column or spinal column, is made up of 33 bones stacked one on top of the other until the adolescence. These are:

• 7 cervical vertebrae.
• 12 thoracic vertebrae.
• 5 lumbar vertebrae.

A fully grown adult ends up with 24 bones when the sacral’s bones (5 vertebrae) and the coccyx (4 vertebrae) fuse together. The spine allows the body to stand straight, bend, twist and be flexible.

How many parts work in our spine?

According to the Georgia Spine and Neurosurgery Center, a regular healthy column has approximately 220 ligaments, 120 muscles and 100 joints that work together to bring our bodies upright and moving.

How good is my spinal memory?

Amazing, in fact. And that is the reason why having good posture is so hard if you do not make a habit out of it from young age. Strengthening your back muscles and stretching periodically can help your spinal health and prevent chronic back pain.

Not a cord, but a web

According to the Mental Floss website: “the spinal cord is not one unified cord, actually, but a bundle of nerves sending and receiving a vast amount of signals from all over the body”. It connects every body part to the brain through nerve signals, like a huge central for signals, pain and other stimulus.  

Be careful with your spine

Spinal damage can cause some serious damage to even the most essential bodily functions like sweating. When the spinal cord is severely damaged, signals from the sweat glands to the brain are halted, and people with this issue need to be cooled down manually. It can also cause a decrease in the amount of hair that can grow on your skin, and this is because hair grows better when the connection with the brain is constant.

The spine controls itself

In order to properly work and be active, the spinal cord does not need to be directed by the brain. It can even send messages directly to some muscles.