The brain is one of the most astonishing and intricate parts of the human body. Here are some strangely interesting facts about your gray matter.
1.Your brain is extremely powerful
The human brain is responsible for keeping your body running all day long. It not only helps people think and learn new things, but it also controls your movement and speech, too. The brain is part of the central nervous system and receives tons of information. Make some room in your noggin for these surprising brain facts you need to know.
2. The brain itself can’t feel pain
Ever wonder how brain surgeons are able to perform surgeries on patients while they’re awake?Even though the brain has layers of coverings and blood vessels that contain pain receptors, the brain itself has zero. When a person has a headache, for example, it’s often thought of as pain stemming from the brain, but this is actually not the case. The muscles and skin surrounding the brain, however, can feel pain. Don’t miss these 16 signs your headache pain could actually be something worse.
3. Your brain is greedy
Your brain might account for only about 3 percent of your body weight, but it receives about 30 percent of the blood being pumped by your heart. This shows how much attention and support it requires in comparison to the other seemingly important areas of your body. The brain is like a spoiled and demanding child, but yet it is extremely smart and efficient,it takes the brain about 1/10,000th of a second to respond to something and generate an action.
4. You actually do use most of your brain (most of the time)
The film Limitless with Bradley Cooper is just the latest version of the myth that we only use 10 percent of our brain.This misconception came about because the brain is so adaptable that sometimes minor damage causes only subtle problems.The fact is, most of your brain is constantly working—to sense, process, think, move, and even dream.Even when you head to sleep at night, your brain is still hard at work. Here are some more things you never knew about your brain.
5. Brain waves are even more active while you’re dreaming
When you’re fast asleep, you might think that your brain is “shut off,” but it’s actually doing a whole lot more than when you’re walking, talking, eating, and thinking.When awake, people utilize alpha and beta waves, which gives us day wakefulness, a certified family nurse practitioner and staff clinician at Foundation Physicians Group.Sleep, however, especially in the initial stages, uses Theta activity, which is greater in amplitude than Beta.
6. Adult brains still make new neurons
While most of our neurons have been with us since birth, and age does take a toll, your brain still makes new neurons. This process, known as neurogenesis, occurs in a special region called the dentate gyrus.These neurons are thought to be important for learning, memory, and responding to stress. These brain facts have been highly debated, but a 2019 study published in the journal Nature Medicine that looked at the brain tissue of 58 recently deceased people found that the adult brain can indeed generate new neurons. How can you boost neurogenesis in your own brain? Wingeier says through healthy living—things like sleep, exercise, and a balanced diet. Here are the foods you should be eating to boost your brain power.
7. Exercise is just as good for your brain as it is for your body
Professional athletes know how important fueling their brain is to ensure they’re able to put maximum effort and energy into their workouts.This is because of the mental stimulation that comes with exercise, but also because a healthy cardiovascular system means better plumbing for the brain
Especially when you try a new fitness class or regimen for the first time, your brain is working hard at learning the motions and controlling your muscles. Check out all the ways exercising benefits your brain.
8. You can “see” through your ears
Neuroplasticity, or the brain’s ability to reorganize and change itself throughout a person’s lifetime, is a truly remarkable thing. In one 2011 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, University of Montreal researchers compared the brain activity of individuals who were born blind and those who had normal vision. They found that the part of the brain that’s normally wired to work with our eyes can instead rewire itself to process sound information instead of visual perception. Pretty cool, right?
9. Brain scans can “light up” when a person is in love
Some may think that being “in love” is only an idea or merely a term people use, but brain scans reveal otherwise.For people who are romantically in love, functional MRI brain scans can show activity where dopamine, the ‘feel-good’ neurotransmitter, is present. Other areas in the brain associated with pleasure and reward can also show greater activity for people who have fallen in love.
10.When you’re awake, your brain produces enough electricity to power a small light bulb
According to computer scientists at Stanford University, a robot with a processor that is virtually as intelligent as the human brain would need at least 10 megawatts of electricity to work properly.Neurons in the brain do make enough electricity to run a light bulb—100 billions of cells generate this amount of energy. And the brain works fast, too—so fast that it’s speedier than the world’s greatest computer.The information going to your brain from your arms and legs travels at 150 miles per hour.
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Astro 