Bones

- Humans are born with around 270 bones while at birth. But some of those bones get fused off to form 206 bones. The total structure of our bones is called as a skeleton. A skeleton can be divided into two parts - Axial Skeleton and Appendicular skeleton. Our skull, throat, rib cage and vertebral column form the Axial skeleton which maintains the posture of our body. Our hands, legs and pelvic are together called as Appendicular skeleton.

- Bones are so crucial for our living. They keep our body together; they would let us sit, stand and move; they would produce the blood cells in the marrow; they would also store the iron and calcium that are essential for us; they act as a protection for the internal organs. Besides they release a hormone called 'Osteocalcin' which helps the bone building and stimulates the production of insulin.

- Most of our bones lie in our hands and legs. Each of our hands contains 27 bones and our feet contain 26 bones. So a total of 106 bones are placed in our limbs. Every bone in our body is connected to some other bone... with one exception. It's the 'Hyoid bone' which is situated at the jaw. The Hyoid bone in the humans is so unique that its moment is mostly responsible for our speech!

- Though our bones let us move forward. It's not the bones that move directly. The muscles that are spread around the bones would move them forward. As bones are made out of at least one third of calcium... regular intake of calcium through diet is necessary to keep them healthy.

- The Femur or the thigh bone is the strongest and longest bone in our skeleton. On the other hand, a bone called 'Stapes' that lies in our middle ear is the smallest bone in our body. It is the bone that receives the sound vibrations from the environment.

- Like any other organs, bones too are prone to diseases. Arthritis and Osteoporosis are two common diseases that might affect our bones. Arthritis is the disease that affects our joints. The Joints in the body gets inflamed due to arthritis making them stiff and painful to move. Osteoporosis is a condition where the density of the bones deteriorates, that might prone us to fractures.