Blog 5 Mathematics in the Body

Math is an intergral part in the learning and understanding of the concepts of anatomy. Math is used to determine relative size of cells, tissues, etc. Many of these things are much too small to compare to anything else (i.e. as big as an airplane, thin as paper, etc.). Math is used to calculate the timing of our bodily movements. Many diseases slow reaction rate of a person, and math is used to detect these changes. The amount of anything in our body is usually at a set amount. Too much or too little of anything can prove detrimental to the health of our bodies. White blood cell count and the number of bones during childhood compared to adulthood are all put into a mathematical sense. Math is used in the description of bodily motion, i.e. a 45 degree tilt at the pelvis, or a flexion at the elbow of 10 degrees, etc. Heart rate, time it takes for a stimulus to be reacted to, etc. are all things that involve math in anatomy. The measurement of depth, such as for incisions for dissection or making slides for the microscope take math into account. And lastly, proportionality is something a healthy body needs, and math is a key tool to see if our body is in its best shape.

Blog 4 Current Event

In a study carried out by Oncken and colleagues revealed that the use of nicotine gum by pregnant women is helpful in a way. Smoking can cause a premature birth or a low-birthweight baby being born. The study put two groups into observation. One was given the nicotine gum and the other a placebo gum. The main thing was to get smoking women to reduce the amount of cigarettes smoked during the time of pregnancy. The group that received the nicotine gum averaged a loss of 5.7 cigarettes per day. The placebo group exhibited a loss of only 3.5 cigarettes a day. The infants from mothers in the nicotine gum group were significantly heavier than those in the placebo group, on average. Still, Oncken and colleagues recommended not to use the gum regularly on a daily basis during a pregnancy because of evidence that the nicotine can cause cell anamolies that may cause sudden infant death syndrome.

http://www.revolutionhealth.com/articles/nicotine-gum-has-benefits-in-pregnant-smokers/reut-20081007elin023

Blog 3 - Tissues

The phrase "fearfully and wonderfully made" can apply to the construction, maintenance, and the overall structures and functions of tissues. There are two basic types of tissues: epithelial and connective tissues. Epithelial tissues are divided into 2 categories: simple or stratified. In each, they can also be categorized into 3 more groups: squamous, cuboidal, or columnar. By now, we can see that the great amount of tissues that make up our body are quite complex. The epithelial tissues have an apical surface that borders a lumen or cavity of which the tissue surrounds, and a basement membrane. How the cells of these tissues know what to do and where to produce themselves is quite complex, hence"fearfully made". The connective tissues are the "wonderful" tissues because they connect body parts. Instead of having almost no blood supplied to them, these tissues are mostly vascularized, with an exception to the tendons and ligaments. These tissues form the shape of our bodies, allow us to move with fluidity and grace, at least for most people. Tissues also know how to fix themselves quite well. If damaged, they do either of two things: regenerate cells of the same type of tissue that was injured, or the use of fibrosis which forms scar tissue. Which type of recovery occurs is based on the body's perception of the type of tissue that was damaged and the severity of the damage. Thus, our tissues know very much on how to heal itself as well as building itself into complex organs that allow our bodies run the way they do everyday.