Your Brain: 5 Facts About This Amazing Organ During Brain Injury Awareness Month

By Dr. Trina Ting

What is your brain? It’s THE vital organ that runs the entire show: without it, life cannot exist. When the brain doesn’t work well, we lose pieces of ourselves: our memories, emotions, our ability to speak and perhaps even move. It is a jelly-like organ, weighing on average about 3 lbs in a human adult, divided into two parts, called our left and right hemispheres that have different functions in our body. Here are some other fun facts about this amazing organ:

1. The brain generates enough electricity to power a 25 watt lightbulb

Electrical currents are the way that our neurons (brain cells) talk to each other, sending signals between each other that allow us to recall names, faces, and be able to engage the rest of the body to act. This electrical activity powers our neurons.

2. The brain has 100000 miles in length of blood vessels – enough to circle the earth 4 times

The brain is highly vascular: meaning, it requires lots of blood flow to bring the oxygen it needs to work every day. We know that depriving the oxygen of brain for longer than 6 minutes can result in brain death. We also know that this is why exercise is so important not just for your muscles, but for your brain to reduce the likelihood of dementia and other brain diseases.

3. It is a myth that we only use 10% of our brain a day

We use all parts of our brain every day, to do different things. One parts controls how we see, one part controls how we speak and another even how we hear. Our senses and therefore how we experience the world is interpreted through the brain. We use all parts of our brain every day. Living a full and diverse lifestyle through travel, education and social activities can allow our brain to be utilized thoroughly every day!

4. The brain itself cannot feel pain

Open brain surgery can be done with the patient alert because the brain itself has no nerve endings for pain. The funny thing is that all of the pain sensors throughout the entire body send all the messages to the brain for interpretation. We all perceive pain differently due to our unique brain being able to read these messages. Chiropractic care works by changing the nerve signals of pain to the brain, and treating the pain sensors at the source of the injury.

5. It is NOT true that people with bigger brains are smarter

A killer whale’s brain looks almost identical to a human brain, and is 3x larger. While they sure are smart, humans can still many more things than an orca whale. Learning is what builds new connections in the brain, and this can still happen even late in life, despite the brain shrinking with age. You can still get smarter as you age, despite some areas of your brain reducing in size!

June is Brain Injury Awareness Month in Canada. Brain injuries can include damage to the brain from falls, strokes, and brain bleeds, as well as concussions. Read more about bringing awareness to this health issue here: https://braininjurycanada.ca/en/

Take good care of your brain! Wear a helmet, get moving daily and avoid cardiovascular disease which would reduce blood flow to the brain. You are only as healthy as this vital organ.