Impress and amaze your friends and colleagues with these 10 fascinating “brain facts”!
- The average brain, which weighs about 3 pounds, has approximately 100 billion neurons.
- There are about 100,000 miles of blood vessels in the brain.
- You continue to make new neurons throughout life as long as you use your brain in mental activities.
- The brain uses about 20% of the total oxygen of the body at rest.
- Excessive stress can alter brain cells, structure and function.
- You can’t tickle yourself because the brain can distinguish between unexpected touch and your own.
- While awake, your brain generates 10-23 watts of power-or enough energy to power a light bulb.
- Every time you blink, the brain “kicks in” to keeps things illuminated so the world doesn’t go dark during the blink (which happens about 20,000 times a day).
- The average number of thoughts you experience each day is about 70,000.
- The brain is 75% water.
*Reference: Exercise and the Brain: It will make you want to work out. Len Kravitz, PhD. Idea Fitness Journal Feb 2010.