The skeletal system is made up of all 206 bones in the human body they are all connected by joint and ligaments. The cranium also known as the skull is made up of 8 interlocking bones, the craniums job is to protect the soft tissue of the brain, the lower jaw bone is also connected to the cranium by a hinge, this hinge enables us to bite and chew. Each human body has got 12 pairs of ribs which 2 pairs are floating. The skeleton is very strong this is so it can protect all of the important parts in the body.
The skeleton can grow in size, repair its own injuries and broken bones but it takes quite a bit of time to heal, it lubricates it own joints to enable us to move and bend easily the skeleton also supports its own internal organs which are mainly supported by the rib cage the main things the rib cage has to protect is the heart and lungs. The skeleton has got 4 main functions these are to support the body, protect the body, movement and blood cell production. Wherever the skeleton is joined together there are muscles at the joint which relax and contract which allows us to move.
Red and white blood cells are made in the bone marrow which is found at the end of the femur and humerous (funny bone) also in the ribs, sternum, pelvis and the vertebrate (spine). When a baby is in the womb the bones begin to grow they start off as cartilage as the baby becomes older the bones start to turn hard this happens by a process called ossification, the bones will grow properly if the right vitamins and minerals are taken: vitamin D helps the bones to grow, calcium is a mineral which is needed to help keep the bones to stay strong. Even as a fully grown adult, their bone structure is always changing as their mineral and vitamin supplies are being replaced.
There are 4 main types of bones in the body: 1. long tubular bones 2. short bones 3. flat bones 4. irregular bones Long Tubular Bones: depending on how long they are, they affect our height. Short Bones: are a lot shorter than the long tubular bones these short bones are normally found in the hands and feet. Flat Bones: are normally found somewhere i the body forming a flat protective surface such as the cranium (skull) because this is made up of 8 flat interlocking bones which protects the soft tissue of the brain.
Irregular Bones: these bones are in irregular shapes like the spine. In the body there are 3 different kinds of joints, the first kind of joint are fixed joint or otherwise known as immoveable, this joint cannot be moved it either overlaps or interlocks for example the cranium. Another kind of joint is slightly moveable joints; these joints as you can tell from the name can only move slightly these are bones such as the ribs which can only move a little bit like when we breathe in and out. Another type of joint is the free moveable joints which are otherwise known as synovial joints, these joints are able to mover freely and are in places such as the hips, shoulders and knees.
There are also the ball and socket joints. These kinds of joints are the most moveable kind within the human body. For example the hip and shoulder joint are only able to move up and down and side to side. Knee and elbow joints are like hinges just like a door they can only move in one motion. In the neck there is a vertebrate this is a pivot joint, this kind of joint only lets the neck move in a rotational way. There are also joints called gliding joints with these joints there is little movement in all directions for example joints in the hand. With as saddle joint there is movement in most directions such as forwards, backwards, right and left but there is no rotational movement like the thumb can.
The short term effects on the skeletal system from doing exercise are not too obvious because as the bones are slowly growing, doing exercise the body sends shockwaves through the bones, theses shockwaves trigger off physiological changes in the body. The long term effects on the skeletal system can be good depending if you exercise properly, if you do exercise properly then it can improve the condition of your bones and make them stronger, also improve joints and ligaments, it also prevents osteoporosis in later life. If you exercise too early in life it can have some long term effects like if a young child starts weight training it can stunt their growth and this can lead to conditions such as osgodd-schalatters.
What happens is you start exercising and after a few sessions of exercising the muscles and bones in the body become used to doing that certain level of exercise and start to grow this then shows with the muscle such as the biceps becoming larger and then you continue doing this repeatedly then eventually after a year or so you will physically and mentally be more fit, it will stay this way for a long time.