Amazing facts about the
HUMAN HEART
Every Valentine’s Day
homes and businesses dress
up their decor with cupids
and hearts to celebrate a day
all about love and affection.
The heart shape has been
used to symbolically represent
the human heart as the
center of emotion and romantic
love. Hearts symbolizing
love can be traced back to the
Middle Ages.
Those familiar with human
anatomy realize that an
actual heart bares very little
resemblance to the ideographic
heart shape used in
art and imagery. Similarly,
the human heart really has
nothing to do with human
emotions. Despite this, there
are many interesting components
of the heart, and a man
or woman truly cannot love
or live without one.
The heart as an organ is
relatively small in size. It is
roughly the size of a fi st and
weighs only 11 ounces on
average. Although diminutive,
the heart is responsible
for pumping 2,000 gallons of
blood through 60,000 miles of
blood vessels each day. It accomplishes
this by beating 72
times a minute in a healthy
adult. All of the cells in the
body receive blood except for
the corneas in the eye.
The heart works harder
than any other muscle in
the body. In a fetus, it begins
beating at four weeks after
conception and will not stop
until a person’s time of death.
Even then, sometimes the
heart can be revived. A heart
can also continue to beat outside
of the body provided it
has an adequate oxygen supply.
Although many people
refer to all of the blood vessels
in their body as “veins,”
they’re actually a combination
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,38 FEBRUARY 7-13, 2020 BTR
of veins and arteries.
Veins carry fresh, oxygenated
blood to the body
through arteries. The main
artery leaving the left heart
ventricle is called the aorta,
while the main artery leaving
the right ventricle is
known as the pulmonary artery.
Blood traveling back
to the heart fl ows through
veins after it has passed the
lungs to pick up oxygen. The
thumping noise that is heard
while the heart is beating is
actually the chambers of the
heart closing and opening as
blood fl ows through.
While the heart may not
be the cornerstone of emotions,
it can be affected by
feelings. Studies have shown
that a “broken heart” is a
real occurrence, according to
Live Science. Bad news or a
breakup with a loved one can
put a person at increased risk
for heart attack. This type of
trauma releases stress hormones
into the body that can
stun the heart. Chest pain
and shortness of breath ensue
but can be remedied after
some rest.
Conversely, laughter and
positive feelings can be benefi
cial for the heart. Research
has shown that a good laughing
fi t can cause the lining
of the blood vessel walls —
called the endothelium — to
relax. This helps increase
blood fl ow for up to 45 minutes
afterward.
Although having a big
heart colloquially means
that a person is loving and
goes out of his way for others,
physically speaking, a
big heart is unhealthy. An
enlarged heart can be a sign
of heart disease and compromise
the heart’s ability
to pump blood effectively.
Left untreated, it can lead to
heart failure.
There is good reason to
get amorous with a loved one
on Valentine’s Day or other
times during the month. Being
intimate can provide a
physical workout, in some
instances doubling a person’s
heart rate and burning
up to 200 calories. That’s the
equivalent of a brisk 15-minute
run. Also, a study of 2,500
men aged 49 to 54 found having
an orgasm at least three
times a week can cut the likelihood
of death from coronary
disease in half, according to
The New England Journal of
Medicine.
The heart is an amazing
organ responsible for sustaining
life. Although it is not
directly tied to love and emotions,
without the heart such
feelings wouldn’t be possible.