Axial Bones
Axial bones make up over 30% of our bones with there key role being to protect us.
A large proportion of our bones.
The axial skeleton includes 80 of the 206 bones in your body, all in the upper body. This includes three groups the skull, the vertebra, and the thorax.
Protection is there main function.
Thus the main purpose of the axial skeleton is one of protection, with the three groups protecting the brain, spinal cord and heart and lungs respectively. As with all bones, this area also provides a stable platform for a variety of movements.
These three areas are constructed as follows:
The Spine:
A flexible structure of 26 bones, the spine provides structure from which all upper-body structures branch, and of course also protects the spinal cord. The spine has five sections the coccyx, the sacrum, the lumbar, the thoracic and the cervical.
The Thorax:
This is your chest, and includes the ribs, and the sternum. There are twelve ribs the top seven are called true ribs because they connect directly to the sternum, while the next four are called false ribs because they attach to the sternum indirectly or not at all.
The Spine:
Housing your brain, this is obviously a vital structure. It comprises 22 cranial or facial bones, plus the three in each ear. In babies these are mostly separated by cartilage, but as you age they fuse together. The only moving joint is thus the mandible (jaw bone).
