Is it possible to tickle yourself? Do people shrink as they age? View 8 weird health facts in our slideshow below.
#1: Does it really take seven years to digest gum? While we’ve all heard this growing up, it’s not based in fact. While your body can’t break gum down and digest it like normal food, it will eventually make it’s way out again when you use the bathroom. So if you accidentally swallow a piece, there’s no need to panic!
#2: Do people shrink as they age? Thanks to the gradual loss of muscle and fat in the body over time, people do indeed gradually shrink over time. To help slow the process, try to maintain good bone health and regular physical activity.
#3: Do eyeballs grow? Most babies seem to have very large eyes, and that’s because they are born with nearly the eyeball size they’ll have as adults. While some growth does happen, it doesn’t keep up with that seen in the rest of our bodies over the years.
#4: Is shedding normal? The average person has more than 100,000 hairs on their head, and loses between 50 and 100 strands per day. While that’s totally normally, any level of hair loss above this may be reason to get checked out. Shedding happens more often than you may think, and can be triggered by certain medications, thyroid problems or even certain diets.
#5: Is it easier to be happy or sad? Without question, happy! And here’s the good reason behind smiling: it takes more than twice as many muscles to frown as it does to smile!
#6: Is everyone born with blue eyes? Most babies do appear to have blue eyes at birth as the pigment melanin needs time to eventually reveal a baby’s true eye colour. But a person’s eventual eye colour will be dictated by their genetic parents.
#7: Do more heart attacks happen on a Monday? Some studies suggest this is true. It could be a partly due to a combination of hard living over the weekend, and the anxiety of returning to work and obligations.
#8: Is it possible to tickle yourself? No, and that’s because you are causing the action. That gives your brain time to prepare, so the end result just isn’t the same.
