Thoughts on Unity in the Body

I learned some really interesting things about the human body when studying in Anatomy and Cell Biology. The discoveries that touched me the most were the ones that showed (parts of) us as interconnected with each other, and that as a general rule we were made for Unity…in our very bodies! I thought I would have fun with this and share some of those cool discoveries with you here… “Did you know…?”

An example of Unity at the cellular level–> Each cell in our body has its own DNA and metabolism, and regulates what comes in (nutrients, oxygen) and what goes out (waste, carbon dioxide). However, each cell is also connected to other surrounding cells through what is called “cell junctions”, different types of channels or proteins that connect cells to each other. These connections are used by cells to share with each other things like nutrients, proteins, electrical activity and other information. A cell alone cannot survive without its connections; it dies if these are removed. If a cell loses its junctions, it can only mean two things: it is either preparing to die (it prevents other cells from dying with it), or it is cancerous (the only type of cell that can survive alone…and cause TONS of damage). In either case, the disconnection means death.

An example of Unity at the organ (histological) level–> If you take one heart cell from a fetus, that single heart cell will beat to the rhythm of that fetus’ own heartbeat. If you take another heart cell from another fetus, with a different heartbeat, and stick those two cells together, at first, the cells will each beat to their own rhythms, and they will look out of sync. Yet within just a few heartbeats, they will adjust to each other’s rhythms and create a whole new heartbeat, and they will beat in synchrony. This kind of mechanism assures the good functioning of the heart as a whole.

An example of Unity between people (bodies)–> Everyone knows that a woman’s menstrual cycle is regulated by hormones that rise and fall at specific times. This should mean that each woman’s cycle is individual. However, this is not completely true. Women who live or work together, after a few months of proximity, end up all having their period in the same time of the month. This is true even for women who are absolutely not related to each other, and who are of different ages. To what I know, scientists still can’t explain how this happens.

We were built for Unity.