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Friday 13 October 2017

Saliva

Saliva is the watery substance made in the mouths of humans and many animals, which aids the digestion of food.

HUMAN SALIVA 

The average human mouth produces 1.8 pints (1 litre) of saliva a day.

Saliva forming on the lips of that of a human baby. By Pereru 

In a lifetime, the average person produces more than 40,000 pints of saliva-enough to fill two large swimming pools.

The average talker sprays about 300 microscopic saliva droplets per minute, about 2.5 droplets per word.

Your body typically produces the most saliva in the late afternoon, and the least at night.

We produce a lot of saliva just before vomiting in order to protect our teeth from erosion due the acidity of vomit.

Human saliva comprises 99.5% water, plus electrolytes, mucus, white blood cells, epithelial cells (which can be used to extract DNA), glycoproteins, enzymes (such as amylase and lipase), and antimicrobial agents such as secretory IgA and lysozym.


The composition of saliva is similar to tears - they're both made of proteins, salt and hormones.

Human saliva contains a natural painkiller called opiorphin that can be six times more powerful than morphine.

The anticipation of a kiss increases the flow of saliva to the mouth, giving the teeth a plaque-dispersing bath.

Human saliva has a boiling point three times that of regular water.

Humans can't taste food without saliva. Chemoreceptors in the taste buds of your tongue require a liquid medium in order for the flavors to bind into the receptor molecules. If you don't have liquid, you won't see results.

Dieting can cause bad breath since less saliva is produced which leads to dry mouth.

Spitting is the act of forcibly ejecting saliva or other substances from the mouth. It is often considered rude and a social taboo.

 By Infrogmation of New Orleans - Photo by Infrogmation, 

Art restorers use saliva to clean oil paintings.

ANIMAL SALIVA

Vampire bat's saliva contains an anticlotting agent that has been used as a treatment for blood clots in humans. According to scientists, it is the best known medicine for keeping blood from clotting.

Some swiftlets build nests from their hardened saliva. These nests are considered a delicacy in China, where they are used to make soup.

Ants communicate by sharing saliva.

Mosquito bites are itchy because the bug's saliva is injected into the skin, causing a histamine reaction.

The saliva of a chameleon is 400 times more sticky than human saliva.

Cows can produce up to 180 litres of saliva in one day  They produce five times as much saliva as milk.

Camels spit when provoked. The "spit" from a camel is more than just saliva. It is a mixture of the camel’s stomach contents as well.


SALIVA IN HISTORY

In ancient Japan, an early version of sake was made by villagers who chewed a mixture of chestnuts, millet and rice, before spitting the mixture into a tub, allowing it to mold. The spit of Japanese villagers was a vital component of brewing the drink—the enzymes in their saliva aided the fermentation process.

The first envelopes with gummed flaps were produced in 1844. In Britain, they were not immediately popular because it was thought to be a serious insult to send a person's saliva to someone else.

In the 1890s the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov (September 26, 1849 - February 27, 1936) studied digestion, utilizing his medical abilities to divide a dog's stomach enabling him to collect its gastric juice. During this work he noted the way in which dogs salivate when stimulated by the routine of feeding. In a well-known experiment he trained a hungry dog to salivate at the sound of a bell. This prompted him to pursue further experiments concerning conditioned reflexes in the nervous system.

Pavlov's work laid a foundation for the scientific analysis of human behavior. In 1904 he was awarded the Nobel prize for physiology or medicine for his work on digestive secretions.

Source Thoughtco

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