Total Body Regeneration
Ninety-nine percent of you wasn’t a part of you seven years ago.
There’s 100 trillion cells in an average adult human. Each cell has a hundred trillion atoms…and most haven’t been with you very long.
On the fast track, the cells lining the small intestine get replaced every few days; skin cells, every couple of weeks.
At the other end of the spectrum are egg cells…
|
A female is born with 2 million of them, and she’ll keep the same cells for a lifetime (the ones that never leave the ovaries, at least…)
Atoms in brain and nerve cells, like the neuron to the left, have a low turnover rate, too. Bone cells last longer: they’re replaced every seven years, using atoms from digested food and other tissues that the body recycles. The incoming atoms are transported to bone tissue by blood cells, which themselves are replaced every four months. |
In all, 99% of the atoms that are you—your favorite freckle, your liver, your right arm—weren’t a part of you seven years ago.
Stardust
Just as amazing is the journey these atoms took before they made their way into your body.
|
Except for helium and hydrogen, every element was manufactured in the heart of a star.
These elements weren’t birthed into space until the dying star spewed them into the cosmos. Over time, they coalesced into new suns, and planets, and eventually…you. So, like, you’re made from the dust of a star. |
|
For previous Amasnic Factoffs, visit the Amasnic Factoff Archive!!!
Read More: cells, atoms, science, biology, stardust, supernova
Related Articles
