Do You Know These Weird Facts About The Human Body?

Your body is a wonderland. John Mayer was right. Except before we go any further, you might want to adjust your definition of wonderland to include gross, squishy, bewildering, and downright bonkers. The following weird facts about the human body will teach you that, despite what he sang about porcelain skin, candy lips, and a bubblegum tongue, the human body is freakier than you might figure.

Weird Skin Facts to Make Your Skin Crawl

Let’s start with the most visible organ on your body: your skin! On the outside, the skin might look like the fleshy sack that keeps all the interior bits together, but it’s so much more than that. 

The skin protects us from the sun and provides a cushiony shield against physical injury. But did you know that the skin replaces itself every single month? Yup, the epidermis, or the top layer of your skin, is totes flaky (figuratively and literally). But even the flakiest friends deserve some love every once in a while, so take your Skin Plush (equipped with a booklet full of more fun skin facts) out on a brunch date and remind them why they shouldn’t cancel on you next time.

You might be thinking, if skin is constantly peeling off, how do tattoos look so intact for years and years? The immune system, not your skin cells, holds the ink in place. Macrophages, a kind of white blood cell, show up at the tattoo site to help heal the wound and eradicate this alien substance. However, since macrophages don’t have the power to break down the ink, they "eat" it and remain on the skin to prevent further damage. Ugh, if only we could all solve our problems by eating.

Weird Stomach Facts That’ll Give you GERD

Stomach acid can do more than just digest some delicious tacos al pastor. It can kill harmful bacteria in less than 15 minutes because it’s more acidic than battery acid, making it capable of melting down metals such as copper or zinc. You’d think the stomach would have an easier time digesting other foods. We’re looking at you, cheese. 

Foods that are high in fat tend to give some people heartburn or acid reflux. Stomach acid becomes backed up in the esophagus, and stomach acid leaks up into the esophagus, causing a burning feeling. Next time you feel the reflux coming on, you may want to hold on to your Stomach Plush extra tight. 

We might take for granted the insanely powerful bodily functions happening within us, but millions of years ago, our body was doing some freaky things for the first time…  

Take a Deep Breath Then Ready These Weird Lung Facts

Let’s travel back 370 million years ago when we had lungs and gills. Boo! Did we scare your hiccups away?

Hiccups are actually the result of our bodies trying to expel water from our lungs so that we don’t choke, except that’s not really as much of an issue for us anymore as we’re not hanging out in bodies of water as much as our fishy ancestors were. You could even say hiccups are your lungs’ ways of making their own sick beats, so show off that you’re their biggest fan by putting an I Lung Rock N Roll Magnet on your fridge!

Weird Eyeball Facts To Make You Squirm

Another squishy part of your body that does weird things is your eyeballs! While your heart distributes blood and oxygen throughout the body, your eyes don’t have a blood supply at all. The eyes get oxygen from the air every time you open your eyes, making them the fastest healing tissue in the body. You should still probably wear some protective goggles when you work in your mad scientist lab, or you know, a normal scenario where you would need goggles. 

Either way, don’t let your eyeballs go unappreciated for their hard work by snazzing up your outfit with an Eyeball Lapel Pin.