- I regularly consider hair to be on this list
on a daily basis!
Yeah, (laughing), no, it's useless.
The human body is a really cool thing.
Evolution has created this system
that works in harmony with the brain,
and every part of you has a useful function.
Or does it?
Well in case you already guessed it,
based on the title of this video,
the answer is, nah.
Believe it or not, you have multiple body parts on you
right now that actually serve no function,
but you still have them for some reason.
So let's find out exactly what those body parts are.
Here are 10 Useless Body Parts
You Have For No Reason!
Number One, our wisdom teeth.
Yeah, I just got my wisdom teeth out,
but the doctor gave me happy pills, I feel great!
As you know, wisdom teeth are the rear-most teeth
that usually arrive in peoples' mouths
between the ages of 17 and 25.
Everybody has them but most people just end up
getting them pulled.
So why do we even have them in the first place?
Most of the time, when they come in,
they actually negatively affect the already-existing teeth
because there's simply no room for them.
Not to mention the fact that they can become impacted,
which is just a whole bundle of fun.
They currently serve no benefit or use to us,
other than for doctors who get to bill you
for pulling them out.
It's believed that wisdom teeth may have been important
for our earlier human ancestors
in order to break down certain vegetation
when ingesting them.
However, today, they're really just a reason
for you to go full chipmunk while on pain meds.
Number Two are male nipples.
Ohhhhhh that's what those are!
The nipples' main use for a woman is obvious.
It's to feed newborn babies like other mammals do.
But on a man, they literally serve no purpose.
They're just kind of chilling there,
taking up space on your body.
Now although they have no functional reason for being there,
genetically, for roughly six week between conception
and until sexual differentiation,
every human fetus looks identical.
Scientists have determined that the female template
is the default for all humans.
So we all begin forming with nipples,
and since having them does not change our ability
to further evolve or reproduce,
there's no need for natural evolution to remove them.
Well, I can tell it's cold in here right now.
There's a function it serves.
Number Three is coccyx.
The coccyx, also known as the tailbone,
is the last set of vertebrae in the spine.
Other than absorbing the impact of you falling
flat on your butt,
it serves no purpose for being there in your body.
The most likely reason that we all have these
is because our ancient ancestors may have had,
believe it or not, some form of tail.
It's useful for balancing when walking on four legs.
However, as we evolved and started to walk on two legs,
the tailbone basically became useless.
Now, you can get it surgically removed,
but it's unnecessary as it's not hurting you in any way,
it just kind of exists.
That is, unless, of course, you have
a longer one than normal, in which case
you may want to have your tail nub removed,
lest you be mocked at the beach.
Or keep it, wag that nub!
Number Four are your sinuses.
Huh, okay, I have allergies in the summer
and I get stuffed up in the winter.
I can't win!
This one might just surprise you,
because you probably thought your sinuses
were actually useful to you in some way.
But the truth is, nobody can actually explain
why we still have them.
Research suggests that for survival
an earlier generation of humans may have had
a heightened sense of smell due to having nasal sinuses
lined with odor receptors.
But today, these large cavities in our heads
just fill with mucous and causes headaches.
Now some scientists have hypothesized
that sinuses may exist to moisten the air
that we breathe, or perhaps even enhance our voices.
But no solid evidence has ever been collected
regarding this.
Number Five is the gallbladder.
The gallbladder causes a whole lot of issues
for a whole lot of people,
and there's simple no reason for it existing.
A small pouch that's just under the liver,
the gallbladder is basically a warehouse of bile
that's been secreted by the liver,
squeezing it out into the small intestine when it's needed.
(retches) Excuse me, aw, geezus.
Though the bile does have a benefit,
helping to break down fat for digestion,
the gallbladder isn't essential at all.
In fact, it does a lot more harm than good.
It's prone to conditions like gallbladder cancer,
cholecystitis, which is inflammation of the gallbladder,
and gallstones, which are very painful
and can lead to pancreatitis.
Gallbladder doesn't quite do it anymore.
I feel like we should rename this to "Nightmare Pouch"!
Number Six are the tonsils.
Part of the lymphatic system,
which is an essential part of the immune system,
tonsils are a pair of small lymph nodes in the throat.
Ahhhhh, see 'em back there?
There's one on each side in the back of the tongue,
and they're actually one of the first lines of defense
against respiratory infections.
However, their existence is technically redundant.
There are literally hundreds of lymph nodes in your body,
so when your tonsils become infected or inflamed,
as they often do, it comes as no surprise
when the doctor says, "We gotsta just cut 'em out!"
It's a procedure that will literally make no difference
to your wellbeing.
Number Seven are extrinsic ear muscles.
Yep, your ears have muscles!
In case you ever want to do...
Ear pushups?
The extrinsic ear muscles are three muscles,
the superior, the posterior and the anterior,
that surround the outer ear.
On animals like rabbits and dogs,
these muscles make sense because they're used
to move the ears independently of their heads.
But us, not so much.
Scientists believe that ancient humans may have used them
for some other ability.
But for us, no.
If you've ever seen someone wiggle their ears,
this is due to those muscles existing.
You see that?
Aw yeah, you see those skills?
But in truth, they serve no secondary purpose,
and quite frankly, beyond entertainment,
they serve none at all.
Number Eight is the appendix.
The appendix is a five- to 10-centimeter long
worm-like protrusion that is attached to the large intestine
almost exactly where the large and small intestines meet.
But what's unique about this particular body part
is that unlike the other body parts in this list,
where scientists kind of have an idea where it came from,
when it comes to the appendix, they literally have no clue.
Their best guess is that it used to have some function,
but that function was probably lost through evolution.
Basically, its only purpose now is to become
a ticking time bomb, where one day,
it could become inflamed which causes appendicitis,
and if you don't get it taken out you die.
Luckily, since you don't need it at all,
you can get this taken out at any time.
Number Nine is the arrector pili.
Have you ever seen a dog or a cat puff out their fur
when they're afraid or angry?
Well that's what this is!
When an animal puffs out their hair or fur,
most often it's to insulate their bodies
for warmth or to scare off other creatures.
Get away, I'm bigger than I look! (hisses)
The arrector pili are a bunch of smooth muscle fibers
attached to the hair follicles that allow them to do this.
So, it makes sense for animals.
But for humans?
Well, if you're hairy enough to do what a cat or dog does,
then that's a whole 'nother set of issues.
Human beings have these muscles,
and our bodies are able to contract them
in order to make our hair stand on end.
Or, in other words, goosebumps.
However, since we clearly don't have enough hair
on our bodies to form decent insulation,
the arrector pili that we do have are basically useless.
Unless you're this guy.
He has more than enough arrector pili to stay warm.
And Number Ten is body hair.
Speaking of body hair, what exactly does it do?
I mean, we do so much to deal with it.
Shave it, wax it, pluck it off of us,
I mean, I hate body hair so much I'm glad it left my head.
(sarcastic laughter) It was totally a choice.
From an evolutionary standpoint, our ancestors
had more hair than us in order to protect them
from the elements and to stay warm.
Additionally, scientists hypothesize that
it may have helped protect from infections
received from tactile contact.
Today, however, it merely serves for cosmetic use,
AKA, Beard Gamestrong!
Look at that, look at that.
It's like a reverse chia pet.
Or a reverse Play-doh machine, you push down,
hair comes out here.
Okay I'll stop.
So those were Ten Useless Body Parts You Have
For No Reason.
I want to give a big thank you to Audible
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What, yeah, it's my book,
but there's some cool facts in there,
give me some slack!
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