While you are breaking the sweat at the gym or just soaking up in the bathtub, there are quirky things that our bodies do to help us in some way or the other. This happens in the form of bodily reactions such as sweating and itching that act as protective mechanisms in times of need. It is because our body’s built-in defense mechanism becomes active in case of emergencies.
Let’s take a look at some of our body’s little quirks and how they help us in our day-to-day lives:
1. Goosebumps
Goosebumps are our body’s way retaining heat.
It is an automatic response by our body when we are feeling cold or scared. Goosebumps are seen when the muscles around the hair follicles contract making the hair stand on end. The upright hair retain heat, thus creating a fluffy layer of warmth.
2. Itching
Our body responds to bug bites and allergic reactions with itching.
Everybody itches, whether it is bug bites, allergic reactions or that colorful wool sweater that your grandma gave you. As soon as we feel an itch, our body’s natural response is to rub the spot back and forth till the itching goes away. Nerves in our skin sends signals to the brain indicating that something is not quite right, leading to our scratching.
3. Sweating
Sweating helps our body to cool down.
When you are running, biking, swimming or generally putting your body in a situation where it needs to cool down, your body starts to sweat. Sweating helps to cool us down when our body temperature rises. It evaporates off our skin taking a bit of our body heat away and hence, cooling us down .
4. Blushing
The blush is our body’s automatic display of emotion
The blush is one of those automatic emotional displays that is entirely out of our control. This happens due to the increased blood flow and oxygen delivery in our body whenever we feel embarrassed. It is an unusual response from the facial veins that is caused by the release of adrenaline hormone which increases heart rate and makes our cheeks rosy pink.
5. Yawning
Yawning regulates the amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen in our blood.
Boredom, hunger, fatigue: Yawn!! It is our body’s way of making sure we stay alert. Yawning regulates the amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen in our blood. When our body is low on oxygen, our mouth opens wide and tries to suck more oxygen in and moves more carbon dioxide out of the blood.
6. Sneezing
Sneezing helps to force germs out of our body.
If you just sneezed, something was probably irritating or tickling the inside of your nose. In such a case, our brain sends out signal to remove that irritation from the nose, thus making us sneeze. If we have a cold, our body produces a clear, sticky liquid called mucus that prevents germs from entering into our body and sneezing helps force it out of our body.
7. Adrenaline Rush
Adrenaline Rush turbocharges us during those moments of intense stress and fear.
Defined as the sudden increase in the secretion of adrenaline hormone in our body, Adrenaline Rush makes us turbocharged during those moments of intense stress and fear. This fight-or-flight response could be a key to treating phobias and anxiety disorders, according to scientists.
8. Crying
Crying, not only cleanses our body but also improves our vision and relieves stress.
We’ve all had a good cry at some point of our lives. Crying not only cleanses our body but also improves our vision and relieves stress. It is a signal to convey that we are vulnerable and helps us to connect with others. Thus, it heals us both psychologically and physiologically.
