What are the Functions of the Skeleton?
Test your knowledge of the functions of the skeleton by answering the following questions, and if you don't know the answers then read the text below to find out.
1. The ____ _______ protects the heart and lungs.
2. Most bones contain _____ bone marrow.
3. The skull protects the _______.
4. The bones of the skeleton provide a system of levers which allows __________ of the body.
What are the functions of the skeleton?
The Skeleton serves several important functions. It ...
- Provides a framework that supports the body.
- Protects the organs within the body cavities from mechanical injury, e.g. the rib cage protects the heart and lungs, the skull protects the brain.
- Contains and protects the red bone marrow, where red blood cells (or erythrocytes), white blood cells (or leukocytes) and lymph cells are formed.
- Provides a storage site of inorganic salts such as calcium and phosphate.
- As the site of attachment of muscles, the bones of the skeleton provide a system of levers, which can be used to create motion in the body.
Reference : Human Physiology - Silverthorn (Amazon link)
Resources :
In this section we've added a few alternative study aids to help you along.
- Articles - Here you'll find a range of short articles on basic anatomy and physiology topics, complete with a few 'test yourself' questions for each one.
- Images and pdf's - Just in case you get tired of looking at the screen we've provided images and pdf files that you can print out and use for 'off-line' practice.
- Word Roots - When you learn the word roots, prefixes and suffixes contained within anatomical and medical terms, you can often work out what they mean. This can be a useful skill as you progress in your studies, so we've provided a dictionary to help you!
- Games - Finally in the resources section, we've added some simple games to make anatomy and physiology practice a little bit more fun.