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The incredible journey of life, from birth through infancy, childhood, puberty, adulthood,
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and a slow maturity to old age.
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Using the latest medical imaging, state of the art modeling, and 3D computer graphics,
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we embark on an extraordinary voyage through the body.
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This is not just the story of one life, it is the story of all our lives.
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Told from a unique perspective, deep inside the living body.
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40 weeks have passed since a sperm fertilized an egg, and a new life was created.
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A single cell has developed into a fully formed baby, but the warmth and tranquility of the
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womb is about to be shattered.
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We are about to be born.
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It's impossible to know exactly what it's like to be born, even though we've all been
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through it.
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It's certainly surprising, it's probably painful.
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What scientists do know is that at the moment of birth, we experience a surge of adrenaline
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even more intense than during a heart attack.
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This surge of adrenaline helps us live.
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It kick-starts our lungs into drawing their first breath.
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Our lungs have never breathed before, they are still filled with amniotic fluid.
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We're in danger of drowning.
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On top of the kidneys, the adrenal glands flood the bloodstream with adrenaline.
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Muscles we need to breathe suddenly go into spasm.
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Our lungs splatter into life, and we take our first breath.
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It's the most important breath of our life, the first of 700 million.
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Water rushes down the trachea, through thousands of branching tubes into nearly 30 million
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tiny air sacs, the alveoli.
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These absorb oxygen into our blood, and draw out the carbon dioxide we exhale with every
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breath.
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Now the umbilical cord, the physical link between mother and baby, is cut.
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We are on our own.
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A baby's organs must adapt to life outside the womb.
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It's a challenging and risky time.
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Our heart, no bigger than a walnut, has already been pumping for eight months, but in the
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first days of life, there's a problem with it.
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It has two holes, one in the aorta, and one in the heart.
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In fact, these holes are not defects, they are a remnant of our life before birth, when
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blood circulated through a system of blood vessels to the placenta.
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The holes used to divert most of the blood away from our inactive lungs, but now the
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lungs are fully functioning, they seal up forever.
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Now the heart is working normally, it pumps blood through tens of thousands of miles of
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blood vessels.
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Our other organs are also coming online too.
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The liver performs over 500 varied jobs, from generating body heat to processing toxins.
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The kidneys function is to maintain the balance of water in the body.
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Our digestive tract must clear itself out, ready to take its first meal.
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Our bowels are full of digested amniotic fluid and dead cells, a sticky green black tarry
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material called meconium.
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It's corrosive stuff.
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In some babies, meconium can end up in the lungs and attack the delicate lining, though
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here in the gut, meconium is harmless and is flushed out within hours.
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The first gulps of breast milk accelerate this process.
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The trauma of birth might now be over, but the business of adapting to life outside the
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womb has only just begun.
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A newborn baby in the first months of life.
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This is the time when we start to make sense of the world around us and begin to explore
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it.
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Infancy is a period of rapid growth, both outside and in.
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The human body is a miracle of microscopic design, tiny, perfectly formed organs, each
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made up of billions of perfectly functioning cells.
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These cells are the building blocks of the body.
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They make us what we are, a hundred thousand billion cells, all working in perfect harmony.
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Inside every cell is the same extraordinary engine, a machine that tells each cell how
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to grow and what functions it must perform.
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It's DNA and it's unique to every person.
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DNA is a chemical blueprint for who we are, the instructions that create each new person
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and sends them on the journey of life.
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DNA not only determines our looks and character, but also sets out the timeline of our lives.
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It decides when we grow, when we develop, when we age and even when we die.
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But our life is also shaped by the environment around us and the people we share it with.
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Our life outside the womb is still a challenge.
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Even though our mothers keep us warm, we can't regulate our body temperature.
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It was 38 degrees in the womb.
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Here at home, 18 degree room temperature is a shock to the system.
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The problem is, the region of the brain we use for temperature control, the hypothalamus
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is immature.
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Our infant brain is under pressure.
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It is already making 100 trillion simultaneous calculations every second.
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Our hypothalamus just can't cope with the additional task of keeping us warm as well.
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Right now, we are in danger of hypothermia.
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An infrared camera shows the struggle to keep warm.
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We are losing precious body heat.
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The yellow areas show where we lose the most.
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Luckily we are born prepared.
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We have a special layer of tissue that keeps us warm.
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It's fat.
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Not just any old baby fat but brown fat, normally found in hibernating animals.
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Much more than just an insulating layer, this fat is packed with special cells which actively
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generate heat.
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Usually most of this fat melts away as the hypothalamus matures and takes over the job
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of temperature control.
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Just days old, we know almost nothing about our world.
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Everything we do, we do by instinct.
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Even breastfeeding.
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Our mother's milk gives us all the nutrients we need and we drink half a litre of it every
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day.
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It's much more than the ultimate superfood.
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It also protects us from hidden danger.
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Outside the womb, there are bacteria everywhere, invisible and potentially deadly.
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Our day old skin is under constant attack.
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There are ten times more bacteria than human cells in and on our body.
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Our immune system is underdeveloped and we can't fight infections off ourselves.
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Finally our mother fights them for us, through her milk.
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The close contact between mother and baby means she absorbs the same germs that are
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attacking us.
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Her mature immune system creates antibodies to kill off these bacteria.
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Even in a masterpiece of natural design, she passes those antibodies to her baby in
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breast milk.
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Until our own immune system develops, she will keep us safe.
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Breastfeeding builds a deep bond between mother and child, a bond that will guide us through
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infancy and into the outside world.
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At this age, even a simple trip to the supermarket is a sensory overload.
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It's noisy, bright and smelly.
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By up inside the nose, the specialized olfactory nerves dangle in the stream of air we breathe.
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They detect chemicals and send an electrical signal to the brain.
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Our brain interprets the signals as smells.
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Our sense of smell is very sensitive.
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We quickly learn to recognize smells and can identify our mother with a nose.
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The strange new world is also very noisy.
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They're bombarded with hundreds of strange new sounds.
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Sound waves make the eardrum vibrate.
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On the other side of the eardrum, these tiny bones, the ossicles, vibrate in sympathy.
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They're the smallest three bones in our body.
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They're so small, they could fit on a fingertip, nor do they get any bigger.
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They stay this size all our life.
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But without them, we would never hear a thing.
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The ossicles are the ears amplifiers.
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They amplify the volume 22 times.
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The amplified vibrations enter the inner ear, the cochlea.
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It's lined with delicate hairs.
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When vibrations pass through, the hairs vibrate.
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At the top, low-frequency hairs.
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The base, fragile hairs for high-frequency sounds.
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Each one 200 times thinner than a hair on our head.
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Over time, loud noises will damage these hairs.
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But at this age, they are perfect.
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Our hearing will never be this good again.
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For eyesight, the story is different.
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The world is blurred and without color.
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Our eyes are underdeveloped.
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We can't point our eyes where we want to.
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And our immature lenses cannot focus.
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The lens flips the image it receives.
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Our brains correct the image later.
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Babies can't yet see in color because the retina, the screen at the back of the eye,
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is also immature.
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The retina has two types of special cells, rods and cones.
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They turn light into electrical signals.
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The ones that detect color, the cones, are still developing.
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So we see mostly in black and white.
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From the retina, the signals travel along two thick nerves to the back of the brain,
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where we process visual information.
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When the image arrives, the real challenge begins.
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Our immature brain hasn't yet learned to interpret the data.
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That's changing fast.
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By two months, we can distinguish colors and shades.
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At four months, we can identify facial patterns.
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And by eight months, we have 20-20 vision.
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Babies eyes undergo another amazing change.
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When we are born, our eyes are blue.
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But gradually, cells of the iris begin making pigments.
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The iris changes into a startling pattern of color, a pattern that is unique to each
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of us.
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Over the first three months, we grow by a quarter our original body weight every month.
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Fortunately, that growth rate slows.
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If it didn't, we would all weigh a frightening 134 tons by our fourth birthday, around the
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same as a blue whale.
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At eight months, all our senses are working properly.
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We're beginning to explore the world.
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And the sense we use most is touch.
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When we touch something, receptors in our fingertips send electrical impulses through
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sensory nerves in our skin, up our arms, along the spinal cord, and into the brain.
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The impulses travel fast, 320 kilometers per hour.
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Sometimes even this is too slow.
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The body reacts to painful sensations, like extreme heat, by taking a shortcut.
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The spinal cord intercepts pain messages and immediately sends back a reflex response,
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and we move our hand away.
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We have sensory receptors all over our skin, but some areas are more sensitive than others.
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The hands, face, and mouth.
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There are 9,000 sensory receptors on the tongue alone.
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This is why babies use their mouths to explore their world.
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There's another reason for all that gnawing.
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Our baby teeth are coming through.
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Milk teeth form deep in the gums while we're still in the womb.
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Now one by one, they are bursting through.
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It's painful, but it's progress.
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At last we can eat solid food.
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Digestion starts in the mouth.
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The teeth grind up the food.
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Next, special glands under the tongue pump out saliva.
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It helps break down the food.
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The saliva also lubricates the food on its 12-hour, 4-meter journey through the gut.
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It'll pass from the stomach into the small intestine, and finally, the large intestine.
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Waves of contracting muscle keep our food moving throughout the journey, in a process
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called peristalsis.
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The contractions are so powerful, we can even eat upside down.
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This is a unique view of where the food is heading.
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For the first time, a new camera shows a high-definition view of the journey to our
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stomach.
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Food enters the stomach through a hole at the top.
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The stomach is a bag of muscle.
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It churns, squashes and squeezes the food into liquid.
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At the same time, acid breaks down the food.
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The acid is so corrosive, the stomach continually coats its interior walls with mucus for protection.
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Without its stomach ulcers would form.
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After about an hour, the stomach squeezes the broken-down food through a tiny hole called
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the pyloric sphincter.
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The food enters the small intestine, a 3.5-meter coil of tube.
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This is where we absorb most of the nutrients.
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First, the pancreas pumps out a juice that neutralizes the stomach acid.
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Then bile from the liver breaks down the fats into tiny droplets.
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Smaller droplets are easier for the intestine to absorb.
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The interior wall of the small intestine is lined with millions of microscopic projections
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called villi.
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These increase the surface area of the gut, making it easier to absorb nutrients.
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After an hour and a half, the small intestine has absorbed most of the nutrients from the
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food.
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What's left enters the large intestine through this, the ileocecal sphincter.
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It's a valve that prevents our food going back.
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There are few nutrients left to absorb now.
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The large intestine's main job is to extract water.
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What remains is a mixture of waste food, dead cells and lots of bacteria.
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These bacteria in the large intestine aren't an infection.
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They produce enzymes that break down complex carbohydrates in our food.
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Carbohydrates we couldn't otherwise digest.
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Finally, after about 12 hours, we expel what remains of the meal.
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By the age of one, we start to interact with our world.
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We are more independent from our mother, and now we can crawl.
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We begin to explore the world on our own.
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We can crawl because our bones have got stronger.
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They need to be.
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We're getting pretty heavy.
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At birth, our skeleton is mostly cartilage, the same material our ears are made of.
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Cartilage is flexible.
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It's what enables us to squeeze through the birth canal.
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But after birth, our soft skeleton is a problem.
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Cartilage is too weak to support the growing body and protect vital organs.
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So it gradually hardens into bone.
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Cells called osteoblasts lay down minerals that turn soft cartilage into hard bone.
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Some bones also fuse together.
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When we are born, we have gaps between the plates of our skull.
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These allow the skull to deform during birth.
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Through our first year, these gaps called fontanels gradually close, until our skull
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is finally complete.
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As our skeleton develops, so does our desire to get around.
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We're about to hit one of the major milestones in our life, learning to walk.
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The key to walking isn't strength, it's balance, and the secret to standing is hidden
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deep inside the ears.
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Beyond the ossicles, the bones used for hearing, there are three looping structures.
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Each loop is about the size of a small coin and orientated in three planes.
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These semicircular canals are part of the ear but have nothing to do with hearing.
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They're filled with liquid and they work like a spirit level.
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They tell us what's up and what's down.
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The liquid inside sloshes against sensory hairs lining the tubes.
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The hairs send data to our brain about how we are oriented and our direction of movement.
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They help us balance and stand on two feet and once we've mastered balance, we're one
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step closer to learning to walk.
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Now there's no limit on where we can go and what we can do.
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From a baby to a toddler, we're about to begin our formative years, a time when we
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will put our growing brain and developing immune system to the test.
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From infancy to childhood, we're still growing fast and learning to stand on our own two
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feet.
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Next is a uniquely human challenge, learning to talk.
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Most of us learn to talk by our first birthday but by two years old, we're learning ten new
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words a day.
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This is the Broker's area, the region at the side of the brain involved in processing language.
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With it, we can create sentences and communicate complex thoughts.
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Language is what separates us from other animals.
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By talking, we can exchange thoughts and ideas.
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We can teach our children not just by showing, but by telling.
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As our brain develops, we gain other uniquely human qualities.
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We're aware of our own identity and individuality.
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We learn to think for ourselves.
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We become conscious of ourselves as an individual.
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And we're forming memories that will last a lifetime.
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Human childhood is unique.
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Few other mammals spend such a huge portion of their lives preparing for adulthood.
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To do so would be a costly waste of time.
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By the equivalent age in their lifespan, most mammals like dogs would already be reproducing.
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Not so with us humans.
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The timeline set by our DNA clock puts a delay on our sexual development.
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To give us enough time for one thing, learning.
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It takes well over a decade to learn the complex skills we need to become adults and
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eventually parents ourselves.
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Throughout childhood we are primed to learn.
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Our brain is a mass of 100 billion nerve cells called neurons.
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Between them, they generate enough electricity to keep a light bulb burning for a day.
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The neurons communicate using electric impulses.
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Each impulse is a tiny fraction of a thought and memory.
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When we hear a new word, our ears convert the sound into electrical impulses in our
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brain.
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The brain can learn because the connections between the brain cells, the neurons, aren't
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permanent.
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The brain rewires itself.
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The neurons send out tendrils, constantly forming new connections.
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Where they meet is a synapse.
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Chemicals called neurotransmitters bridge the gap to allow the impulse to continue the
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chain.
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The new connections form a pattern, a new memory.
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We learn by making new connections between brain cells and then reinforcing them through
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repetition.
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The stronger the reinforcement, the more likely the memory will stick.
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What does the word veteran mean?
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And when later, someone asks us to recall that memory.
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The same pattern of brain cells fires.
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And we remember the answer.
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Because the brain grows quickly in childhood, millions of new connections are being made
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all the time, making this the perfect time to learn.
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Learning takes many forms, not only in the classroom, but also in the world at large.
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We learn by experience, and sometimes these experiences are unpleasant.
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Because we're programmed to try out new things when we're young, we take risks with our body.
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Fortunately, it's a finely tuned machine, capable of repairing itself when injured.
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A cut knee is part of childhood.
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As soon as the skin is broken, the body's repair mechanism swings into action.
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Blood capillaries constrict to reduce their diameter and slow the bleeding.
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Next, platelets, a type of blood cell, make the blood in the cut become viscous and clot.
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Eventually the clot forms a plug that stops blood leaking out.
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Our cells multiply at a prolific rate, not only to increase the number of cells in the
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body, but also to replace worn out tissue with newer, stronger, bigger versions.
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It's the same process of cell growth that heals wounds.
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In fact, we're so good at healing in our youth, even the scar disappears.
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Childhood is also the time when our horizons expand.
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We interact with more and more people.
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But this increased sociability exposes us to an increased risk of infection.
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Fortunately, our body has an arsenal of defenses against germs.
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Eyebrows and eyelashes, ear hairs and nasal hairs catch airborne bacteria.
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Sweat, tears and mucus wash them off and skin constantly sheds its top layer of cells, taking
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bacteria with it.
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The mouth is especially vulnerable.
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Recent discoveries have shown that pathogens found here are so potent that if they ended
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up in vital organs like the heart, they could even prove fatal.
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Fortunately, the body has a secret weapon.
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Saliva contains lysozyme, an enzyme specially developed to destroy bacteria.
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Though tiny, saliva glands create nearly one and a half liters of saliva every day.
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When a pathogen like chicken pox does break through these external defenses, our immune
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system must react to prevent serious infection.
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Thousands of tiny viruses travel through the blood.
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The virus hijacks a cell and manufactures thousands of copies of itself.
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Then the infected cell ruptures, spreading yet more viruses around the body.
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The outward signs of chicken pox are a rash and a high temperature.
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The fever that comes with infection is a sign that our body is fighting back.
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The heat slows down the spread of the disease.
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These don't reproduce so well when it's hot.
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The immune system kicks into action.
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White blood cells latch onto the infected cells and pump in poisonous proteins.
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It kills the cell, but it kills the viruses too.
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The crusty skin pustules are the remnants of the battle between the immune system and
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the chicken pox.
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Each one contains cell debris and thousands of dead viruses.
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It may be unpleasant, but getting diseases like this when we're young is vital for our
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developing immune system.
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Our body creates memory molecules against the virus's antibodies.
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We used to rely on antibodies from our mother's milk.
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Now we make our own.
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If we catch the same disease when we're older, the antibodies enable our body to recognise
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the virus instantly.
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White blood cells wipe it out before it ever takes hold.
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This makes childhood the ideal time for vaccination.
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Vaccines are harmless doses of certain types of virus like rubella, mumps or polio.
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They prompt the body to create antibodies, just as it would if infected.
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By the age of 11, childhood is nearly over and we're about to change like never before.
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We're on the brink of adulthood.
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But first, the hormone surge of puberty.
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Puberty doesn't stick to a schedule.
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It begins at any time, depending on our DNA clock, our lifestyle, even our diet.
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Whether female or male, for all of us, it begins in the brain.
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At the base, the hypothalamus.
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The same region that controls our body temperature.
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Puberty starts when the hypothalamus releases the protein kisspeptin into the brain.
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Kisspeptin triggers the release of other hormones throughout the body.
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This stimulates the sex organs to mature.
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In girls, that means ovulation.
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For the first time on television, a high-definition view of the ovaries, these off-white organs.
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This unique footage from Gold Coast IVF Fertility Center shows something incredible.
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An egg inside a protective blister of fluid.
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At ovulation, the blister ruptures.
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The egg inside will travel down the fallopian tube, where it will be either fertilized or
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lost in menstruation.
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From the onset of puberty, ovulation occurs once a month, but the ovaries begin another
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equally important role.
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They start releasing hormones into the bloodstream, including oestrogen.
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They have dramatic and lasting effects on both emotional and physical development.
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Both boys and girls experience a growth spurt.
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But each day when we look in the mirror, we see a new face looking back.
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And the entire body changes beyond recognition.
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Girls become women, boys become men.
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Real brains also release kisspeptin during puberty.
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The flood of new hormones stimulates the testicles to start producing sperm.
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00:49:38,120 --> 00:49:43,800
The testicles also generate a tenfold increase in testosterone, the hormone that turns a
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boy into a man.
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The larynx opens up and tilts forward.
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00:49:57,920 --> 00:50:03,960
The vocal cords stretch wider.
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00:50:03,960 --> 00:50:07,320
The longer cords vibrate at a lower pitch.
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The voice deepens.
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And also stimulates the growth of body hair and doubles muscle mass.
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These are changes we can see and hear, but we're changing inside too.
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In the brain, nerve cells undergo extensive rewiring.
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The result is a transformation of our mood and character.
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00:50:44,600 --> 00:50:51,960
Both sexes suffer a torrent of new emotions, and one new emotion beats them all.
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00:50:51,960 --> 00:50:59,080
For the first time, both sexes find the other sex attractive.
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00:50:59,080 --> 00:51:04,960
From the inside out, our bodies are overwhelmed by new sensations.
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00:51:04,960 --> 00:51:15,520
Our pulse races, our blood pressures rise.
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00:51:15,520 --> 00:51:21,120
Our lips gorge, our cheeks flush with blood.
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00:51:21,120 --> 00:51:28,720
These are all signals that we desire someone.
403
00:51:28,720 --> 00:51:36,520
And sometimes, that desire turns out to be mutual.
404
00:51:36,520 --> 00:51:48,000
In adolescence, another major life milestone, our first kiss.
405
00:51:48,000 --> 00:51:53,960
In the first two decades of life, the human body accomplishes something close to miraculous.
406
00:51:53,960 --> 00:52:03,040
We're nearly four times our original height.
407
00:52:03,040 --> 00:52:08,120
We're 21 times heavier.
408
00:52:08,120 --> 00:52:14,560
We've digested nearly nine tons of food.
409
00:52:14,560 --> 00:52:25,480
Our heart has beaten over a billion times, and our lungs have drawn 200 million breaths.
410
00:52:25,480 --> 00:52:39,440
Finally, we're ready, in mind and body, to become an adult.
411
00:52:39,440 --> 00:52:45,640
From teens to twenties, the rapid growth of childhood and puberty gives way to a new
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phase of life, adulthood.
413
00:52:58,160 --> 00:53:08,200
The twenties are our peak years, both outside and in.
414
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Our body has stopped growing taller, but it will never stop changing.
415
00:53:15,920 --> 00:53:19,480
Trillions of cells make up our organs and tissues.
416
00:53:19,480 --> 00:53:25,560
Over time, these wear out or get damaged.
417
00:53:25,560 --> 00:53:30,040
New cells grow and divide to replace the old ones.
418
00:53:30,040 --> 00:53:37,120
Over time, whole organs are renewed.
419
00:53:37,120 --> 00:53:48,320
We get virtually a brand new body every two years.
420
00:53:48,320 --> 00:53:53,000
Some tissues regenerate even faster.
421
00:53:53,000 --> 00:54:01,320
That's why we need to come here, for our hair and nails.
422
00:54:01,320 --> 00:54:08,800
These are made from modified, dense skin cells.
423
00:54:08,800 --> 00:54:13,640
Each hair grows from a hair follicle embedded in the skin.
424
00:54:13,640 --> 00:54:23,720
The modified cells grow here, then die as new cells push them upwards.
425
00:54:23,720 --> 00:54:35,280
We grow an incredible 11 kilometres of hair over our whole body every year.
426
00:54:35,280 --> 00:54:40,800
Our hair grows whether we want it to or not, however other parts of our body are partially
427
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under our control.
428
00:54:49,240 --> 00:55:00,360
Choices we make now, like taking exercise, affect us for the rest of our life.
429
00:55:00,360 --> 00:55:05,800
Exercise strengthens the heart.
430
00:55:05,800 --> 00:55:15,080
It's the body's hardest working muscle.
431
00:55:15,080 --> 00:55:18,320
Exercise also makes our heart muscle more efficient.
432
00:55:18,320 --> 00:55:31,520
Each contraction pumps more blood, so the heart can beat slower.
433
00:55:31,520 --> 00:55:37,520
It's a similar story in the lungs.
434
00:55:37,520 --> 00:55:40,960
Exercise stimulates extra capillaries to grow.
435
00:55:40,960 --> 00:55:51,040
So we absorb more oxygen with each breath.
436
00:55:51,040 --> 00:56:00,480
We also inhale bigger breaths, so every tiny air sac in the lungs gets filled.
437
00:56:00,480 --> 00:56:04,200
The surface area of all these sacs is huge.
438
00:56:04,200 --> 00:56:13,480
If you laid them all flat, they would cover a tennis court.
439
00:56:13,480 --> 00:56:18,000
Working out also strengthens our skeleton.
440
00:56:18,000 --> 00:56:20,280
Exertion puts pressure on the bones.
441
00:56:20,280 --> 00:56:27,120
That encourages the bone cells to renew bone fibres.
442
00:56:27,120 --> 00:56:32,280
Specialised cells called osteoclasts eat away at old or damaged bone.
443
00:56:32,280 --> 00:56:38,360
Other cells, osteoblasts, rebuild it with newer, stronger material.
444
00:56:38,360 --> 00:56:45,600
The result, dense, strong bone.
445
00:56:45,600 --> 00:56:51,360
At the same time, our muscles also build.
446
00:56:51,360 --> 00:56:57,120
This is a new imaging technique that combines the highest resolution CT scans with cutting
447
00:56:57,120 --> 00:57:04,760
edge computer power.
448
00:57:04,760 --> 00:57:15,280
It's called volumetric, and it shows how over 650 skeletal muscles make up to a third of
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00:57:15,280 --> 00:57:33,520
our adult body weight.
450
00:57:33,520 --> 00:57:39,480
Muscles are made up from bundles of fibres.
451
00:57:39,480 --> 00:57:44,000
A good workout rips these fibres apart.
452
00:57:44,000 --> 00:57:49,480
When our cells repair the damage afterwards, they add extra material.
453
00:57:49,480 --> 00:57:55,880
The muscles grow back bigger and stronger through choices we made.
454
00:57:55,880 --> 00:58:08,040
Unfortunately, some choices are less beneficial.
455
00:58:08,040 --> 00:58:22,840
Some choices expose us to damage that even our youthful cells can't repair.
456
00:58:22,840 --> 00:58:40,800
Colors are part of life in your 20s.
457
00:58:40,800 --> 00:58:52,280
We all know smoke can damage the lungs, but smoke is not the only hazard here.
458
00:58:52,280 --> 00:59:05,960
From the day we were born, our ears have been gradually damaged by loud noise.
459
00:59:05,960 --> 00:59:16,600
The problem is deep inside the ear, past the ossicle bones inside the cochlea.
460
00:59:16,600 --> 00:59:25,360
These fine hairs, the stereocilia, turn sound into nerve impulses, but they are very fragile.
461
00:59:25,360 --> 00:59:30,440
Loud noise destroys these irreplaceable cells.
462
00:59:30,440 --> 00:59:36,040
The hairs that respond to high frequencies are most affected, possibly because loud,
463
00:59:36,040 --> 00:59:45,000
high pitched sounds shape their foundations more violently.
464
00:59:45,000 --> 00:59:59,240
The effect is still too small to notice, but the frequency range of our hearing is already shrinking.
465
00:59:59,240 --> 01:00:01,880
Another source of damage is alcohol.
466
01:00:01,880 --> 01:00:12,520
Though social drinking is very much part of growing up, alcohol is a poison.
467
01:00:12,520 --> 01:00:19,280
As we absorb it into our bloodstream, it affects both our organs and our state of mind.
468
01:00:19,280 --> 01:00:25,400
A few drinks raise the heart rate and blood pressure.
469
01:00:25,400 --> 01:00:40,040
It makes us feel relaxed, we lose our inhibitions and our fine coordination.
470
01:00:40,040 --> 01:00:44,920
These sensations are the result of chemical reactions inside the brain.
471
01:00:44,920 --> 01:01:00,040
Especially in this region, the cerebellum, the region responsible for coordination and balance.
472
01:01:00,040 --> 01:01:05,160
Alcohol causes a chemical imbalance in the neurons.
473
01:01:05,160 --> 01:01:14,840
While some synapses accept signals more often, others become blocked.
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01:01:14,840 --> 01:01:25,960
And the more we drink, the more the synapses are affected.
475
01:01:25,960 --> 01:01:34,760
Alcohol also fools the brain into thinking we've drank too much water.
476
01:01:34,760 --> 01:01:49,400
It sends the kidneys into overdrive, expelling valuable liquid into the bladder.
477
01:01:49,400 --> 01:02:07,240
We might not feel dehydrated now, but next morning it's a different story.
478
01:02:07,240 --> 01:02:12,080
After a party, it's the liver that clears up the mass.
479
01:02:12,080 --> 01:02:16,240
The liver is the body's biochemical control center.
480
01:02:16,240 --> 01:02:21,400
It performs over 500 functions.
481
01:02:21,400 --> 01:02:25,320
One of them is to convert poisons into harmless chemicals.
482
01:02:25,320 --> 01:02:30,160
One of the poisons is alcohol.
483
01:02:30,160 --> 01:02:39,400
The process demands water, and the liver doesn't care where it takes it from.
484
01:02:39,400 --> 01:02:42,800
The brain is 75% water.
485
01:02:42,800 --> 01:02:52,240
When the liver demands water, it's the brain that suffers.
486
01:02:52,240 --> 01:03:00,440
Water and essential minerals are sucked out and the brain shrinks away from the skull.
487
01:03:00,440 --> 01:03:08,200
We experience a very particular kind of headache, a hangover.
488
01:03:08,200 --> 01:03:10,280
The best cure?
489
01:03:10,280 --> 01:03:19,400
Drink some water.
490
01:03:19,400 --> 01:03:24,240
Time passes and we get to know our limits.
491
01:03:24,240 --> 01:03:27,760
Now new challenges are on the horizon.
492
01:03:27,760 --> 01:03:34,080
It's time to find love and have children of our own.
493
01:03:34,080 --> 01:03:44,120
Many of us meet our future partner at work.
494
01:03:44,120 --> 01:03:52,360
We may think the attraction is social or physical, but a lot of it is biological too.
495
01:03:52,360 --> 01:04:00,480
We use our eyes to size up our date, but looks aren't everything.
496
01:04:01,000 --> 01:04:06,720
It's also about smell.
497
01:04:06,720 --> 01:04:14,960
Inside our nose, the olfactory nerves do more than detect smells.
498
01:04:14,960 --> 01:04:18,400
They also detect chemicals we can't smell.
499
01:04:18,400 --> 01:04:27,520
Pheromones, odourless hormonal messengers we release in our sweat.
500
01:04:27,520 --> 01:04:30,880
Pheromones are much more than the body's natural perfume.
501
01:04:30,880 --> 01:04:40,240
They carry detailed information about our genetic health and our ability to resist disease.
502
01:04:40,240 --> 01:04:48,960
Our brains detect these signals and help us choose a partner with the best possible genes.
503
01:04:48,960 --> 01:04:52,080
But love is not just an emotion.
504
01:04:52,080 --> 01:05:03,280
It's about chemistry.
505
01:05:03,280 --> 01:05:07,920
When we see our partner, we release adrenaline into the blood.
506
01:05:07,920 --> 01:05:22,400
For heart pounds, we can't sleep.
507
01:05:22,400 --> 01:05:27,720
And then as we get closer and more involved with our lover, another hormone comes into
508
01:05:27,720 --> 01:05:29,720
play.
509
01:05:30,720 --> 01:05:38,240
Our brain floods with dopamine, the feel-good hormone.
510
01:05:38,240 --> 01:05:43,320
As potent as cocaine, it induces euphoria and it's addictive.
511
01:05:43,320 --> 01:05:49,720
It leaves us wanting more.
512
01:05:49,720 --> 01:05:56,400
Eventually after a time together, we start thinking about the final stage of love.
513
01:05:56,760 --> 01:06:02,440
Commitment, marriage and even kids.
514
01:06:02,440 --> 01:06:07,200
Love, both chemical and emotional, wins the day.
515
01:06:07,200 --> 01:06:13,160
It's a relationship we hope will last a lifetime and the process of long-term bonding is chemical
516
01:06:13,160 --> 01:06:15,320
too.
517
01:06:15,320 --> 01:06:19,160
Sex isn't just about procreation or recreation.
518
01:06:19,160 --> 01:06:29,360
It also strengthens the bond between lovers.
519
01:06:29,360 --> 01:06:35,280
During orgasm, both partners' pituitary glands flood their bodies with oxytocin, the bonding
520
01:06:35,280 --> 01:06:40,720
hormone.
521
01:06:40,720 --> 01:06:48,960
It's the very same hormone that binds us to our mother as a newborn baby.
522
01:06:48,960 --> 01:07:03,240
The more sex we have, the more oxytocin we produce, the stronger the bond between us.
523
01:07:03,240 --> 01:07:09,200
Some anthropologists believe oxytocin could be evolution's way of creating a bond that's
524
01:07:09,200 --> 01:07:19,200
strong enough to keep parents together through the trials of parenthood.
525
01:07:19,200 --> 01:07:23,200
And the time for parenthood is now.
526
01:07:39,200 --> 01:07:57,760
An egg, the largest cell in the human body, ripens and bursts from the ovary.
527
01:07:57,760 --> 01:08:03,400
It begins the same monthly journey hundreds of others made before it.
528
01:08:03,400 --> 01:08:17,080
While earlier eggs were lost in menstruation, this one is destined to become a baby.
529
01:08:17,080 --> 01:08:22,880
Three hundred million sperm, the smallest cells in the body, enter the vagina during
530
01:08:22,880 --> 01:08:35,640
ejaculation.
531
01:08:35,640 --> 01:08:38,600
They have a tough journey in front of them.
532
01:08:38,600 --> 01:08:42,280
First they must survive the hostile environment of the vagina.
533
01:08:42,280 --> 01:08:51,240
Its secretions are acidic to prevent bacterial infection, but they also kill sperm.
534
01:08:51,240 --> 01:09:06,200
Most of the sperm are killed before they reach the cervix.
535
01:09:06,200 --> 01:09:13,920
The surviving sperm swim on into the uterus and fallopian tube.
536
01:09:13,920 --> 01:09:26,960
The contractions in the walls of the fallopian tube help the sperm towards the egg.
537
01:09:26,960 --> 01:09:41,880
Only a few hundred make it this far, and only one will succeed in fertilizing the egg.
538
01:09:41,880 --> 01:09:45,760
This truly is survival of the fittest.
539
01:09:45,760 --> 01:10:08,400
Only the most viable sperm with the best DNA will survive to pass on its genes.
540
01:10:08,400 --> 01:10:11,680
So far there's no sign of what has happened.
541
01:10:11,680 --> 01:10:22,120
We're totally unaware that we're about to embark on a new chapter in our life.
542
01:10:22,120 --> 01:10:27,320
Over the next forty weeks, a single cell will develop into a baby.
543
01:10:27,320 --> 01:10:35,160
Often the first symptom is morning sickness.
544
01:10:35,160 --> 01:10:40,400
No one knows for sure what causes the nausea, but one theory is that it protects the fetus
545
01:10:40,400 --> 01:10:45,480
from toxins in food.
546
01:10:45,480 --> 01:10:59,540
These could harm its tiny organs during this critical phase of development.
547
01:10:59,540 --> 01:11:04,520
Another theory is that nausea is a side effect of the mother's immune system, as it weakens
548
01:11:04,520 --> 01:11:13,960
to avoid attacking the developing embryo.
549
01:11:13,960 --> 01:11:17,360
The fetus is effectively a parasite.
550
01:11:17,360 --> 01:11:23,040
It saps the mother's energy as it draws what it needs from her body.
551
01:11:23,040 --> 01:11:30,800
It has its own life support system, the placenta.
552
01:11:30,800 --> 01:11:44,640
Here the mother's blood passes nutrients across a membrane into the fetal blood.
553
01:11:44,640 --> 01:11:51,920
Thanks to this constant nourishment, the baby grows over 850 grams in ten weeks, and the
554
01:11:51,920 --> 01:12:12,500
uterus expands up to a thousand times its normal size just to hold it.
555
01:12:12,500 --> 01:12:16,420
That extra space has to come from somewhere.
556
01:12:16,420 --> 01:12:23,920
The mother's body has to realign itself internally.
557
01:12:23,920 --> 01:12:25,980
This woman isn't pregnant.
558
01:12:25,980 --> 01:12:31,960
Even so, all her organs are a tight fit.
559
01:12:31,960 --> 01:12:42,900
In a pregnant woman, those organs get squeezed to the back or pushed up into the chest.
560
01:12:42,900 --> 01:12:47,960
Not only are the organs squashed, but now they are working for two.
561
01:12:47,960 --> 01:12:53,120
The lungs and heart have to work harder than ever before.
562
01:12:53,120 --> 01:12:57,860
To make space, muscles and tendons in the spine relax.
563
01:12:57,860 --> 01:13:05,740
It curves out of normal shape.
564
01:13:05,740 --> 01:13:11,240
The stomach too is compressed and rotated through 45 degrees.
565
01:13:11,240 --> 01:13:16,860
It can only hold small amounts of food and drink, yet all the while, the growing baby
566
01:13:16,860 --> 01:13:31,080
is demanding more.
567
01:13:31,080 --> 01:13:38,520
Finally after nine months, it's time to give birth.
568
01:13:38,520 --> 01:13:43,840
Getting out a three kilogram baby is quite challenging.
569
01:13:43,840 --> 01:13:49,120
Softened tendons allow the pelvis to open up the birth canal, but even so, it's a tight
570
01:13:49,120 --> 01:13:56,200
fit to push the baby out.
571
01:13:56,200 --> 01:14:00,840
Volumetic shows the claustrophobic route it must take, with a tight twist to get round
572
01:14:00,840 --> 01:14:10,360
the tailbone.
573
01:14:10,360 --> 01:14:13,800
Sometimes it's too tight a squeeze for mother and baby.
574
01:14:13,800 --> 01:14:43,120
The only option for a safe delivery is a caesarean section.
575
01:14:43,120 --> 01:14:49,560
From a newborn baby to becoming a parent ourselves.
576
01:14:49,560 --> 01:14:56,360
Raising kids puts a huge strain on us physically and emotionally.
577
01:14:56,360 --> 01:15:02,480
Life will never be the same again.
578
01:15:02,480 --> 01:15:09,280
At 20s are behind us, our body is about to enter a new period of change.
579
01:15:09,280 --> 01:15:16,440
As the aging process takes hold.
580
01:15:16,440 --> 01:15:22,040
The story of human life continues.
581
01:15:22,040 --> 01:15:28,040
From the peak years of early adulthood to the joy of becoming a parent.
582
01:15:28,040 --> 01:15:31,920
As our children grow older, so do we.
583
01:15:31,920 --> 01:15:37,800
Our body is about to face the next challenge.
584
01:15:37,800 --> 01:15:52,560
By this time of life, our body has already peaked.
585
01:15:52,560 --> 01:15:58,200
We have been aging for many years, but it is only now in our forties we really notice
586
01:15:58,200 --> 01:16:02,680
our changing appearance.
587
01:16:02,680 --> 01:16:09,680
Our body is changing and beginning to show its age.
588
01:16:09,680 --> 01:16:15,320
The cumulative effect of years in the sun causes the first symptom.
589
01:16:15,320 --> 01:16:24,960
Our skin is getting wrinkles.
590
01:16:24,960 --> 01:16:32,840
Since birth, we have been replacing our skin at an astonishing rate.
591
01:16:32,840 --> 01:16:38,680
We can make up to 40,000 new skin cells every minute.
592
01:16:38,680 --> 01:16:45,880
These replace the dead cells we're constantly shedding.
593
01:16:45,880 --> 01:17:01,240
By 45, we've created more than 180 kilograms of dust from old skin cells.
594
01:17:01,240 --> 01:17:08,720
Our skin cells are never more than a month old, even in middle age.
595
01:17:08,720 --> 01:17:11,960
Wrinkles are not caused by damage to the cells.
596
01:17:12,000 --> 01:17:16,520
The problem is the stuff that binds them together.
597
01:17:16,520 --> 01:17:18,720
Collagen.
598
01:17:18,720 --> 01:17:23,620
Ultraviolet radiation in sunlight triggers a molecular chain reaction which degrades
599
01:17:23,620 --> 01:17:27,760
the collagen.
600
01:17:27,760 --> 01:17:36,520
The fibres get thinner and break.
601
01:17:36,520 --> 01:17:49,800
Our middle aged skin loses its elasticity, becomes saggy and wrinkly.
602
01:17:49,800 --> 01:17:52,520
Our eyesight is also changing.
603
01:17:52,520 --> 01:18:01,840
A few years ago we could easily read without glasses.
604
01:18:01,840 --> 01:18:05,000
The problem is in the lens.
605
01:18:05,000 --> 01:18:11,200
Inner lens cells, along with heart cells and most brain cells, are among the only cells
606
01:18:11,200 --> 01:18:16,560
our body never replaces.
607
01:18:16,560 --> 01:18:25,000
They're exactly the same lens cells we had as a baby.
608
01:18:25,000 --> 01:18:29,200
As we get older, the lenses gradually stiffen.
609
01:18:29,200 --> 01:18:32,680
They focus less well.
610
01:18:32,680 --> 01:18:36,600
Our eyes also start to dry out.
611
01:18:36,600 --> 01:18:40,280
We produce a film that lubricates the eye.
612
01:18:40,280 --> 01:18:50,880
Now we're producing less of it and fewer tears to flush out debris.
613
01:18:50,880 --> 01:18:55,480
Our body shape changes also.
614
01:18:55,480 --> 01:19:00,280
Exercise alone is no longer enough to keep us in shape.
615
01:19:00,280 --> 01:19:03,600
At age 20 it was easy to stay trim.
616
01:19:03,600 --> 01:19:06,800
We could eat what we wanted, do what we wanted.
617
01:19:06,800 --> 01:19:11,800
Now our metabolism is changing.
618
01:19:11,800 --> 01:19:14,520
It's easier to put on weight.
619
01:19:14,520 --> 01:19:19,080
The explanation for this is in our blood.
620
01:19:19,080 --> 01:19:25,320
In middle age, levels of sex hormones, estrogen and testosterone and the levels of growth
621
01:19:25,320 --> 01:19:30,120
hormones drop.
622
01:19:30,120 --> 01:19:35,760
As a result, our body begins shedding muscle, around three kilograms during each decade
623
01:19:35,760 --> 01:19:39,200
of adult life.
624
01:19:39,200 --> 01:19:46,040
And this affects our metabolic rate.
625
01:19:46,040 --> 01:19:50,520
Less muscle means we burn fewer calories.
626
01:19:50,520 --> 01:20:01,960
So our body needs less fuel to run on.
627
01:20:01,960 --> 01:20:20,400
If we continue to eat like we used to, the surplus food gets converted into this.
628
01:20:20,400 --> 01:20:22,920
Men lay down fat on their hips.
629
01:20:22,920 --> 01:20:30,520
It's the body's way of providing a steady energy supply during pregnancy.
630
01:20:30,520 --> 01:20:35,600
Men lay down fat in a different area, their bellies.
631
01:20:35,600 --> 01:20:38,520
Belly fat evolve for quick energy release.
632
01:20:38,520 --> 01:20:43,400
It helps sustain our male ancestors during hunting trips.
633
01:20:43,400 --> 01:20:49,800
The body's ability to metabolize fat slows down as we age.
634
01:20:49,800 --> 01:20:55,080
It's a process that occurs deep inside our cells.
635
01:20:55,080 --> 01:21:03,920
Inside each cell in our body there are tiny structures called mitochondria.
636
01:21:03,920 --> 01:21:06,200
They are our body's power plants.
637
01:21:06,200 --> 01:21:11,800
They combine nutrients from food with oxygen from the lungs to release energy.
638
01:21:11,800 --> 01:21:17,920
As we get older, the number of mitochondria dwindles and with them the ability to metabolize
639
01:21:18,360 --> 01:21:28,440
fat so efficiently.
640
01:21:28,440 --> 01:21:39,720
Sometimes too many calories and a drop in metabolism can be a lethal combination.
641
01:21:39,720 --> 01:21:43,960
Excess fat is much more than an extra inch on our waistline.
642
01:21:43,960 --> 01:21:53,320
It fills almost every cavity in our body.
643
01:21:53,320 --> 01:21:58,880
For the first time on television, a special high definition endoscope inserted through
644
01:21:58,880 --> 01:22:05,880
the navel reveals the full extent of fat cover inside our abdomen.
645
01:22:05,880 --> 01:22:14,600
The intestines are smothered in yellow fat deposits.
646
01:22:14,600 --> 01:22:25,480
Fat finds its way into the body's internal cavity, even inside our blood vessels.
647
01:22:25,480 --> 01:22:30,920
Deposits build up on the inner walls, narrowing their diameter.
648
01:22:30,920 --> 01:22:35,840
The heart must work harder to pump the blood through the restricted vessels.
649
01:22:35,840 --> 01:22:42,400
In extreme cases, vessels can become totally blocked.
650
01:22:42,400 --> 01:22:55,440
And if fat blocks the arteries that supply the heart, the results can be fatal.
651
01:22:55,440 --> 01:23:05,040
Our heart muscles are starved of oxygen and nutrients and risk going into spasm.
652
01:23:05,040 --> 01:23:12,680
A heart attack.
653
01:23:12,680 --> 01:23:23,600
Heart disease is the biggest killer in the Western world.
654
01:23:23,600 --> 01:23:29,280
As we enter our fifties, our body's metabolism may be slowing down, but our lifestyle is
655
01:23:29,280 --> 01:23:34,360
new.
656
01:23:34,360 --> 01:23:50,920
We have a growing family and a demanding career, and these can create another killer, stress.
657
01:23:50,920 --> 01:23:54,160
We all recognize the outward signs of stress.
658
01:23:54,160 --> 01:23:58,440
Sweaty palms and shortness of breath are dizzy feeling.
659
01:23:58,440 --> 01:24:09,840
But the real damage takes place inside our body.
660
01:24:09,840 --> 01:24:19,240
When we're stressed, the body instinctively shifts into the fight or flight mode.
661
01:24:20,240 --> 01:24:28,560
Adrenaline and cortisol flood from the adrenal gland into the bloodstream.
662
01:24:28,560 --> 01:24:41,400
This makes muscles contract, arteries constrict, and heart pump faster, increasing blood pressure.
663
01:24:41,400 --> 01:24:50,480
We evolve the fight or flight reflex to respond to attacks from predators.
664
01:24:50,480 --> 01:24:57,480
But we can't escape our predator, the relentless pressure of being a working parent, and our
665
01:24:57,480 --> 01:25:00,960
body has no release.
666
01:25:00,960 --> 01:25:08,440
It's the constant triggering of fight or flight that can be damaging to our body.
667
01:25:08,440 --> 01:25:14,160
Stress may cause irreparable harm to our cardiovascular network, speeding up the aging
668
01:25:14,160 --> 01:25:22,760
process in the blood vessels.
669
01:25:22,760 --> 01:25:26,660
The high blood pressure damages cells in the artery walls.
670
01:25:26,660 --> 01:25:34,160
They become stiff and thick.
671
01:25:34,160 --> 01:25:47,520
Especially here, in the biggest artery, the aorta.
672
01:25:47,520 --> 01:25:53,240
Arteries with stiff walls restrict blood flow around the body.
673
01:25:53,240 --> 01:26:00,120
Our blood pressure rises, so our heart must work harder.
674
01:26:00,120 --> 01:26:01,760
It's a vicious circle.
675
01:26:01,760 --> 01:26:07,200
The more stress we experience, the more we damage our blood vessels.
676
01:26:07,200 --> 01:26:12,200
And the more damaged our blood vessels, the less able we are to deal with the effects
677
01:26:12,200 --> 01:26:23,480
of stress.
678
01:26:23,480 --> 01:26:29,840
If stress gets out of control, the heart can become enlarged as it struggles to force blood
679
01:26:29,880 --> 01:26:42,560
through our narrowing, less elastic blood vessels.
680
01:26:42,560 --> 01:26:59,800
High blood pressure can also rupture blood vessels in the brain, causing stroke.
681
01:26:59,800 --> 01:27:06,000
Most of us learn to manage stress, but for women in their fifties, another factor compounds
682
01:27:06,000 --> 01:27:18,960
the problem, menopause.
683
01:27:18,960 --> 01:27:24,680
During menopause, the ovaries run out of eggs.
684
01:27:24,680 --> 01:27:29,960
They also stop producing the sex hormones, oestrogen and progesterone.
685
01:27:29,960 --> 01:27:35,080
It signals the end of a woman's reproductive life.
686
01:27:35,080 --> 01:27:40,840
As the supply of hormones winds down, it upsets the balance in the regions of the brain responsible
687
01:27:40,840 --> 01:27:48,120
for mood, sleep and temperature control.
688
01:27:48,120 --> 01:27:54,080
When the hypothalamus is thrown off course, hot flushes occur, moments when the body can't
689
01:27:54,080 --> 01:27:58,520
set its thermostat correctly.
690
01:27:58,520 --> 01:28:09,920
It's not just the brain that's affected, bone and muscle tissues also weaken.
691
01:28:09,920 --> 01:28:14,320
A woman's body spends its whole life getting accustomed to these hormones.
692
01:28:14,320 --> 01:28:26,800
Now they're gone, and the aging process accelerates.
693
01:28:26,800 --> 01:28:35,840
As children leave home and we retire from work, our body enters a new phase in life.
694
01:28:35,840 --> 01:28:37,880
Old age has arrived.
695
01:28:45,320 --> 01:28:57,760
In 70 years, we have grown from a tiny baby to an adult, from child to parent to grandparent.
696
01:28:57,760 --> 01:29:01,600
The aging process began several decades ago.
697
01:29:01,600 --> 01:29:05,000
Now we are in the grip of old age.
698
01:29:05,000 --> 01:29:10,280
It's the final chapter in the journey of life.
699
01:29:10,280 --> 01:29:17,680
When we retire from work, our lifestyle begins to slow.
700
01:29:17,680 --> 01:29:23,680
Our body is slowing down too.
701
01:29:23,680 --> 01:29:29,680
The outward signs of aging are only part of the story.
702
01:29:29,680 --> 01:29:36,560
Our senses are affected.
703
01:29:36,560 --> 01:29:45,120
We have been losing the sensory hairs we used to hear from our cochlea since birth.
704
01:29:45,120 --> 01:29:48,840
Now most of the higher frequency hairs are gone.
705
01:29:48,840 --> 01:29:55,040
We're even losing hairs in the lower frequencies.
706
01:29:55,040 --> 01:30:00,840
The lubricating pads are stiffening between the ossicles attached to the eardrum.
707
01:30:00,840 --> 01:30:05,600
They're slowly seizing up.
708
01:30:05,600 --> 01:30:12,040
These days we struggle to hear.
709
01:30:12,040 --> 01:30:14,560
Our sight continues to worsen.
710
01:30:14,560 --> 01:30:21,520
The lenses in our eyes become stiffer and even change color.
711
01:30:21,520 --> 01:30:26,800
From clear blue to a frosty yellow brown.
712
01:30:26,800 --> 01:30:34,600
The result of a lifetime's exposure to ultraviolet light.
713
01:30:34,600 --> 01:30:37,360
Most of us are never aware of this change.
714
01:30:37,360 --> 01:30:51,880
Our brain just works harder to compensate for it.
715
01:30:51,880 --> 01:30:59,040
Aging also has a dramatic effect on our skeleton.
716
01:30:59,040 --> 01:31:13,280
Many of us are at risk from osteoporosis.
717
01:31:13,280 --> 01:31:20,000
Bone cells are still hard at work destroying old bone and replacing it with new bone.
718
01:31:20,000 --> 01:31:25,960
But old age upsets the balance between them.
719
01:31:25,960 --> 01:31:39,080
Others are destroying bone faster than osteoblasts can rebuild it.
720
01:31:39,080 --> 01:31:43,680
What remains is a hollowed out cluster of brittle bone fibers.
721
01:31:43,680 --> 01:32:13,280
The bones slowly crumble and broken bones become a very real danger.
722
01:32:13,280 --> 01:32:18,880
It happens in both sexes but the hormonal changes of menopause accelerate bone loss
723
01:32:18,880 --> 01:32:33,240
faster in women.
724
01:32:33,240 --> 01:32:38,280
Aging is one of the great mysteries of life.
725
01:32:38,280 --> 01:32:46,000
Why does our appearance change so very much between the ages of 40 and 70?
726
01:32:46,000 --> 01:32:48,280
It's more than wear and tear.
727
01:32:48,280 --> 01:32:56,760
It's a process affecting every cell in our body.
728
01:32:56,760 --> 01:33:00,520
Every day cells clone themselves in their billions.
729
01:33:00,520 --> 01:33:07,200
The DNA inside is also copied.
730
01:33:07,200 --> 01:33:19,560
As old cells die off, the new ones take their place.
731
01:33:19,560 --> 01:33:25,520
The trouble is, this cloning system isn't perfect.
732
01:33:25,520 --> 01:33:34,680
Any imperfections in the DNA are also replicated.
733
01:33:34,680 --> 01:33:41,640
In a lifetime we make so many copies of our cells that even the tiniest errors accumulate
734
01:33:41,640 --> 01:33:45,240
with time.
735
01:33:45,240 --> 01:33:48,080
It's just like using a photocopier.
736
01:33:48,080 --> 01:34:00,320
Copies made from copies degrade in quality.
737
01:34:00,320 --> 01:34:09,840
In our face, we have totally replaced the bone every two years since we were born.
738
01:34:09,840 --> 01:34:19,000
Our 70 year old face is a 35th copy of our baby face.
739
01:34:19,000 --> 01:34:26,480
The imperfections get exaggerated with each copy.
740
01:34:26,480 --> 01:34:38,080
So by the time we reach old age, our face looks very different indeed.
741
01:34:38,080 --> 01:34:48,800
Another cause of aging is in the very air that we breathe.
742
01:34:48,800 --> 01:35:10,520
We need oxygen to live, but throughout our lives it is slowly poisoning us.
743
01:35:10,520 --> 01:35:16,840
Inside each of our cells, our mitochondria are like tiny power plants, combining nutrients
744
01:35:16,840 --> 01:35:20,680
with oxygen.
745
01:35:20,680 --> 01:35:30,080
They create the energy we need, but just like a power plant, they also produce pollution.
746
01:35:30,080 --> 01:35:34,320
In this case, the pollutant is a form of oxygen itself.
747
01:35:34,320 --> 01:35:44,320
The oxygen molecules change into unstable forms called free radicals.
748
01:35:44,320 --> 01:35:53,400
Over a lifetime, these free radicals slowly suffocate the mitochondria and damage ourselves.
749
01:35:53,400 --> 01:36:01,280
Our cells and DNA become more and more damaged and can't replicate themselves.
750
01:36:01,280 --> 01:36:07,000
Our body can't repair its organs properly.
751
01:36:07,000 --> 01:36:33,040
They fail.
752
01:36:33,040 --> 01:36:48,560
Death, like life, is an amazing biological process engineered into the cells of the body.
753
01:36:48,560 --> 01:36:55,200
Just as our DNA dictates the timeline of our development, it also puts a cap on how long
754
01:36:55,200 --> 01:37:00,600
we can live.
755
01:37:00,600 --> 01:37:11,160
Each time a cell copies itself, it leaves behind a tiny piece of DNA.
756
01:37:11,160 --> 01:37:17,740
After billions of divisions, so much DNA is lost, the cells eventually lose the ability
757
01:37:17,740 --> 01:37:24,000
to divide altogether.
758
01:37:24,000 --> 01:37:26,880
Death is not instantaneous.
759
01:37:26,880 --> 01:37:34,920
It is a gradual winding down of tissues and organs.
760
01:37:34,920 --> 01:37:40,360
It's thought that the heart's final pump flushes the bloodstream with endorphins, the body's
761
01:37:40,360 --> 01:37:47,360
natural painkillers.
762
01:37:47,360 --> 01:37:58,000
Now starved of oxygen, tissues cannot function.
763
01:37:58,000 --> 01:38:04,240
Within ten seconds, our brain's electrical activity drops.
764
01:38:04,240 --> 01:38:11,200
Within four minutes, it is damaged irreversibly.
765
01:38:11,200 --> 01:38:17,040
Our hearing is the last sense to go.
766
01:38:17,040 --> 01:38:23,600
Even after death, some cells stay alive.
767
01:38:23,600 --> 01:38:31,920
It can take 24 hours for skin cells to stop dividing, and an amazing 37 hours before our
768
01:38:31,920 --> 01:38:53,680
last brain cell finds its final impulse.
769
01:38:53,680 --> 01:38:59,320
There is a saying that life goes on.
770
01:38:59,320 --> 01:39:14,720
For some of us, it could even go on for some time.
771
01:39:14,720 --> 01:39:19,000
Current trends suggest that children born in the West today can expect to live into
772
01:39:19,000 --> 01:39:28,040
their 80s and beyond.
773
01:39:28,040 --> 01:39:33,840
And even after we've gone, we live on through our loved ones.
774
01:39:33,840 --> 01:39:42,120
Our children and our children's children carry our genes in every one of their cells.
775
01:39:42,120 --> 01:39:51,520
They also carry memories of us too, the moments they have shared from our extraordinary story.
776
01:39:51,520 --> 01:39:57,720
All journeys must one day end.
777
01:39:57,720 --> 01:40:00,800
And what a journey it has been.
778
01:40:57,720 --> 01:40:58,720
Thank you.
779
01:40:58,720 --> 01:40:58,720
70992
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