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Skeletal System Assignment 'D*' Level
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The full first assignment of the Unit 1 on Sport (development, coaching and fitness) course. Marked at Distinction* level.
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The human skeleton is what supports our whole body from collapsing, it is our internal framework.The primary function of the human skeleton is to support the rest of the body although it has many
other uses such as giving us our shape, allowing us to move and assisting in the production of blood
cells. Despite having 206 bones in the adult skeleton, our bones only weigh about 14% of our whole
body weight.
The 206 bones are split into 2 skeletons, the Axial Skeleton which is made up of 80 bones including
the cranium, vertebra bones and ribs amongst other bones. This is the skeleton that consists of your
skull and torso/trunk. The other type of skeleton is the Appendicular Skeleton which consists of the
other 126 bones; examples of appendicular skeleton bonds are Ulna, Femur and Humerus.
The bones in the Axial skeleton are also known as single bones due to the fact that they are the only
bone in the body with that shape and size. The axial skeleton may also be known as the “trunk”, this
is because it includes all of the bones that are in the core/trunk of our body.
However, bones in the appendicular skeleton tend to be reminiscent of each other; for example, the
bones in the right arm are identical to those in the left arm. The appendicular skeleton hangs from
the axial skeleton. It is made up of 2 arms, 2 legs, our pelvis and our shoulders. The main role of the
appendicular skeleton is to enable movement as it is un-fused although some protection of organs is
brought by bones from the appendicular skeleton.
Small bones start from marrow, a soft and jelly like tissue. The outside of bones gets stronger
because of strong rods called osteons. Bones can also gain their strength through a large increase in
the intake of calcium or phosphates. Bones can’t move on their own and it is actually our muscles
that pull on our bones to move them. However, due to the fact that muscles can only pull and not
push, all muscles must come in pairs to pull the bone back the other way. From birth we have
around 300 bones so as we get older and grow; the bones fuse together, meaning we lose out on
nearly 100 bones. Age and Gender are the 2 main factors that affect the shape and size of a human
skeleton, males tend to have larger skeletons and adults have larger skeletons than most children.
Joints.
Movement is enabled by the human skeleton having a series of joints. A joint is formed when 2 or
more bone surfaces meet. It is said that there are over 400 joints in the human body, each allowing
movement and flexibility. Joints then tend to be subcategorised by their structure and function, for
example, synovial joints have synovial fluid as part of their structure so that’s where their name
comes from.
The first set of joints to look at is functional joints which include immovable joints, slightly moveable
joints or freely moveable joints. Immovable joints are held by fibrous tissues and there is no
movement at all, a good example is the bones in the cranium. Slightly moveable joints are held
together by cartilage, this allows a little movement but not much, for example, the vertebrae bones
can rotate a little due to the cartilage in between each vertebra. Freely moveable joints are also
known as synovial joints such as the joints in our hips and knees, these accommodate the most
movement.
A hinge joint is the most common type of joint amongst the limbs, they are formed when 2 or more
bones meet but can only move along one axis. A good example of this is our elbow joint which
, allows us to extend our forearm away from our upper arm. Hinge joints also allow flexion in the
opposite direction to the extension, for example, flexing our arm to bring our forearm closer to the
upper arm.
A pivot joint is a joint where the only movement it allows is rotation. For example, the joint between
the first and second cervical vertebrae allows rotation of the skull.
Ball and socket joints are joints that allow the most movement out of all joints due to their structure.
Shoulder and hip joints are common examples of ball and socket joints as these are the appendages
that need the most movement, movement of the arms and legs.
Condyloid joints allow movements in all planes but axial rotation; this works from the end of one
bone being oval shaped and it fitting into a similarly sized hollow hole. A common example would be
the wrist bone in a human skeleton, otherwise known as the site where carpals join to the radius
bone.
Gliding joints occur between the surfaces of 2 flat bones held by ligaments. Common examples
would be bones in your wrists. These allow gliding movements.
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