Bones
Support the body, protect the organs, anchor muscles, store calcium and phosphate, and produce blood cells in the marrow. Bone is living tissue, continuously remodelled — the skeleton is substantially replaced over roughly a decade.
The numbers
- Adult count
- 206
- At birth
- about 270
- In the hands and feet
- 106 — more than half
- Share of body mass
- ~15%
Worth knowing
The count falls with age because separate bones fuse: the skull plates, the sacrum and the coccyx all begin as multiple pieces. More than half of all bones are in the hands and feet — 27 per hand and 26 per foot. The femur is the longest and strongest, and the stapes in the middle ear is the smallest at about 3 mm.
A common claim that is wrong
The count of 206 is a convention, not a constant. A minority of people have extra sesamoid bones or an additional rib, and the figure depends on whether such variants are counted.
Structural reference only — this is not medical advice, and individual variation in every figure here is substantial. Anything concerning your own health belongs with a clinician rather than a reference page.
Common questions
- What does the bones do?
- Support the body, protect the organs, anchor muscles, store calcium and phosphate, and produce blood cells in the marrow.
- Bones — key numbers
- Adult count: 206. At birth: about 270. In the hands and feet: 106 — more than half. Share of body mass: ~15%.
- Is it true that…
- The count of 206 is a convention, not a constant. A minority of people have extra sesamoid bones or an additional rib, and the figure depends on whether such variants are counted.
Related pages
Sources
- Typical range compiled from manufacturer specifications — At One Place