Fascinating Facts About Bones

The human body is an amazing thing and scientists are always making new and incredible discoveries about what it’s capable of. Here are some fascinating facts about our ingenious bones:

1. The Smallest Bone

The smallest bone in the body is called the stirrup bone. This is one of the 3 bones inside the middle ear and it only measures between 2-3mm. It is a u-shaped bone that takes in sound vibrations and transfers them to the cochlea for interpretation by the brain.

2. The Strongest and Largest

The toughest bone in the human body is the femur. It goes from the hip to the knee and can take forces of up to 2,500 pounds! Only extremely strong force can break it, for example being hit by a car or a long fall but it can take many months to heal properly.

3. Most Bones

The area in the body with the most bones is the hands. There are 27 bones in each hand which makes up more than half of the total number of bones in the whole body.

4. Most Fragile

The easiest bones to break are those found in your small toes. Almost everyone suffers a break in a toe at some point in their lives, even a small one that may go unnoticed as just a sore stubbed toe for example. There is little that can be done apart from waiting for it to heal. Seek the advice of cheltenham osteopaths if you feel something not right about your musculoskeletal system. For more information, visit www.cmosteopaths.co.uk

5. Most Often Broken

The most common bone to break is the ankle. Sprains are just as common. Such injuries can happen anywhere – whilst playing sport, on icy pathways, just walking or when dancing.

6. Most Common Disease

The most common bone disease is osteoporosis which happens through low bone mass and a break-down in the bone’s structure. It is a disease that can be prevented but also treated once diagnosed. Bone mass decreases when bones lose their vital minerals, making them weaker and more susceptible to fracturing.

7. Strangest Bone Condition

Medically known as massive osteolysis, it’s more commonly referred to as disappearing bone disease or Gorham’s disease. After a fracture, when the bone is regenerating, the bone begins to absorb itself and disappears. Weirdly, many cases of the disease have ended in patient remission and the disease itself just disappears!

8. Most Broken Bones

Evel Knievel was an American stunt motorcycle rider who performed long jumps in incredibly dangerous conditions. As you can imagine, he broke a lot of bones – 433 fractures to be precise over the course of his career.