What is the most popular skeleton costume that children wear on Halloween? Yes, you guessed it right. It’s a skeleton costume. Though it is worn to appear as a ghost and scare off people, it IS one of the most important systems in your body without which you wouldn’t survive even for a day. Now, this is scary.
FUN FACT: There are 206 bones in our body !!
Let’s start from our head and then slowly move on to our toes.
- The first one is the cranium, protecting the brain from bumps and knocks. The lower part of the skull is called as mandible. It is the largest and strongest bone of your face. Together, they make up the skull.
FUN FACT: Who do you think has more bones in the neck? A giraffe or a human? They both have the same, 7 bones !!
- Moving down, comes the scapula, a triangular-shaped bone, in your shoulder protected by surrounding muscles. It is commonly called as the shoulder blade. Then comes the rib cage, protecting our lungs and the heart. In fact, contrary to other bones, rib cage is very delicate and can be damaged by accidents, sports or even an extremely powerful sneeze. The rib cage has 12 pairs of curved ribs on both sides.
FUN FACT: The teeth are not bones even though they might look similar !!
- Then we move on to the part of our body which we use every day, from brushing our teeth to eating dinner. Presenting the arm !! Our hand has 3 bones, humerus (upper bone of the arm), radius and ulna from the lower arm. Every human body has one radius and one ulna in each arm. These two bones connect with the elbow joint and the wrist. Following the wrist, comes our palm. The palm consists of 3 sets of bones which are carpals, metacarpals and phalanges.
FUN FACT: Did you know that a baby has more bones than an adult? The small bones fuse together as you grow, to form a single bone !!
- Moving further south on our body map, here come the legs. The femur (the thigh bone), is the longest, heaviest and the strongest bone in the entire human being. All of the bodyweights is supported by the femurs during many activities such as running, jumping, walking and even standing.
FUN FACT: Though the bones of everyone might look the same from outside, it is in fact different on the inside and depends on bone density, diet, exercise etc. Kids, don’t forget to eat healthy and play.
- Then there comes patella !! Commonly known as the knee cap, it is a thick circular triangular bone which covers and protects the surface of the knee joint.
FUN FACT: Our bones are 5 times stronger than steel !!
- Moving on to the combo just like Idli-Sambhar, in our skeletal system we know it as fibula and tibia. Fibula is the outer and thinner bone of the lower leg. Its main function is to provide attachment for muscles. However, it doesn’t give much support and strength to the leg. Tibia is a large bone located in the lower part of the body; also called skin bone is the strongest weight-bearing bone.
FUN FACT: Did you know that the bone, the size of the phone can withstand 9000 kilograms !! Shocking indeed!
- Our foot comes at the end. It consists of 2 groups of bones, tarsals and metatarsals.
FUN FACT: Did you know that half of the bones in your body are in your hands and limbs !!
Let’s have a quick check for understanding:
Q1. Which two bones make up the skull?
a) cranium and mandible
b) cranium only
c) mandible and scapula
Q2. What does our rib cage protect?
a) heart
b) lungs
c) both a and b
Q3. The fibula is the longest bone in our body.
a) True
b) False
Q4. The shinbone is the other name of which bone?
a) Femur
b) Tibia
c) Carpal
d) Fibula
Q5. Palms have 2 groups of bones and Foots have 3 groups of bones.
a) True
b) False