Question

How many bones are in a baby’s body?

Answer 1

Hint: Bone is a type of connective tissue that constitutes the framework of the human skeleton. It is a rigid organ that provides support and structure to the body.

Complete answer:
Bones are the mineralized connective tissue that is made up of calcium and bone cells. It has four types of cells- Osteoblasts, Osteoclasts, Osteocytes, and bone lining cells. Osteoblasts are the cells responsible for the formation of new bones. Osteocytes are the cells that are present in the bone. They form a network and send signals at the time of bone injury or any pain or crack. Osteoclasts are the large cells that have originated from the bone marrow and dissolve or degrade the bones during remodeling. The bone lining cells line the surface of bones.

Bones form the internal framework of the human body- the human skeleton. The framework gives shape and structure to the body, allows it movement, and provides protection to various organs in our body. It also forms blood cells and stores minerals in the bones. An adult human skeleton consists of 206 bones.
The human skeleton can be broadly divided into two categories- Axial skeleton and appendicular skeleton. The axial skeleton has 80 bones from the head and trunk. It has 22 skull bones, 3 pairs of occipital bones of the middle ear, 12 pairs of the rib cage bones, one hyoid bone, one sternum, and 26 bones of the cervical vertebrae. The appendicular skeleton system has 126 bones from the limbs and the pectoral and pelvic girdle. It has 2 clavicles and 2 scapula bones in the pectoral girdle, and the pelvic girdle has 2 fused bones called the hip bone. The upper limb contains one humerus, one radius, one ulna, 8 carpals, 5 metacarpals, and 14 phalanges in each limb. The lower limb contains one femur, one tibia, one fibula, one patela, 7 tarsals, 5 metatarsals, and 14 phalanges in each limb.

A newborn baby has more bones than an adult body. The number of bones varies from 270-300 in a human baby. The bones of babies are made up of cartilage, which is another connective tissue. It is soft and flexible, and thus, the bones of babies are weak. As the individuals grow, the cartilage is replaced by the bones, and the bones become stronger and longer. The bones start fusing and are reduced to 206 by the adult stage. The unfused bones lie in the baby’s skull and their arms and legs. The unfused bones are made up of cartilage and are soft and flexible. These unfused bones in skulls facilitate the movement of the baby outside the mother’s body. The unfused bones in the arms and legs help in their continuous growth. They also protect the babies from any injury as they do not break easily.

Note: The development of bones in a human body occurs till the age of 25. After this, no new bones are added, and their growth is seized. Bone density is the number of bone minerals or the amount of bone tissue in the body. In humans, the maximum bone density is seen at the age of 21.