17 unknown in Human Body

2025-07-24 17:58:26

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by Krista Torres https://www.buzzfeed.com/kristatorres/mind-blowing-things-about-the-human-body?new_user=true&newsletter_modal=true? BuzzFeed Staff

There are a lot of "unknown" things in this world — and many parts of how the human body functions are still a mystery. So, here are some of the top things medical professionals on Reddit have said that we still don't know:

1. "We don't know precisely how our bodies can distinguish gas from poop. We have some ideas; we know there are a ton of nerve endings in the area, but the precise mechanism of our bodies telling our brains 'this is a fart, let loose' isn't really understood. What blows my mind is that it's distinct enough that we even pass gas while asleep. That difference must be wired DEEP!"

Person from behind wearing a striped shirt and jeans, with hands placed humorously on their backside

Peter Dazeley / Getty Images

—u/BIGJFRIEDLI

2. "I’m a derm. We don’t know what exactly causes itching, like the molecular pathways for it. That’s why it can be so hard to find a good treatment when a patient comes in for itchy skin."

Person with painted nails has hands on chest, wearing a patterned top

Stefania Pelfini, La Waziya Phot / Getty Images

—u/criduchat1-

3. "I’m an anesthesiologist. We still don’t really know why inhaled volatile anesthetics like sevoflurane, the main anesthetic agent used to maintain general anesthesia, work. We kind of have an idea of maybe how it happens, but we don’t really know. It’s commonly said in my field that whoever figures this out will win the next Nobel Prize in medicine."

A medical professional in scrubs and a cap holds a mask over a patient's face in a hospital setting, with monitors visible in the background

4. "I'm a sleep specialist. While we do have some good theories about some of the functions of REM as far as how it affects the brain and health, we still don't fully understand the purpose of dreaming. Like, why do we dream at all, and why do dreams have a narrative instead of random incomprehensible imagery? Unfortunately, this is unlikely to even be solved."

Person peacefully sleeping with their head resting on a patterned pillow, illuminated by soft light

5. "One of the few ABSOLUTES in medical science is that nobody born blind has ever developed schizophrenia."

A woman with a white cane walks confidently down a park path, wearing sunglasses, a short-sleeve shirt, jeans, and a backpack

6. For many medicines, it is not clear how they work, or even if they work (for example, look at the actual efficacy trials of name-brand antidepressants). When you look at them in aggregate, they look like they barely work. Yet, basically everybody knows somebody whose life was saved by a specific antidepressant."

Woman partially visible holding a small "happy" paper piece between teeth, wearing hoop earrings and polka dot top

7. "Yawns. We are still guessing on why it happens."

Person yawning and stretching in bed, wrapped in a light blanket, appearing relaxed and waking up in the morning

8. "Had a pathologist tell me that the interesting part of his job wasn't finding out how someone died, it was seeing everything that can be wrong with someone internally, and the person has no idea. There are so many life-threatening or life-altering, horrible things that a person can have and not know it, but still be completely functioning. A good friend died unattended, so they did an autopsy. His body had cancer in three different places."

Person in scrubs covering a hospital stretcher with a white sheet in a sterile medical environment

9. "Allergies, specifically food allergies. And why do adults develop them after never reacting to them before?"

Person sitting on a bed, sneezing into a tissue, with a neutral background, capturing a moment of dealing with a cold or allergies

10. "Psychiatry is still shockingly infantile in our understanding of human disorders. It's constantly in a state of flux, we don't understand a lot about the meds we currently use, and the diagnostic criteria for disorders still change as we realize, 'Hey, maybe all these behaviors aren't the same source disorder.' It's incredibly hard to diagnose when the criteria are largely based on self-report and subjective observations."

A person in a white shirt sits with clasped hands, facing a healthcare professional taking notes on a clipboard in a clinical setting

11. "What kind of ramifications menopause really has on the female body."

A healthcare professional in scrubs shows a patient a diagram on a tablet while sitting in a clinical setting

12. "Not MD but PhD. Right now, we are working on the connection between our intestinal microbiome and neuropsychiatric disease and brain aging. For instance, people with inflammatory bowel disease are more likely to develop dementia and experience co-morbid anxiety and depression, but we don't know why."

Diagram of gut-brain axis showing the connection between brain and gut. Illustrates microbiota inside the gut

13. "OBGYN here: We still don’t know exactly what makes labor start. We know all about the mechanics and physiology, but we don’t know what makes the average uterus say it’s 'go time.'"

Person in hospital bed grimacing in discomfort, clutching chest. Another person holds their hand, offering support. Hospital room background

14. "We know next to nothing about fibroids, which many women have at some point in their lives. Considering the largest one removed was around 100 pounds, it is not exactly a minor issue. There are theories about different hormones and what things put you at higher risk, but aside from having surgery to have your existing ones removed, there is basically no information on what you can do to prevent them from coming back."

Diagram of a uterus showing a distinct submucosal fibroid inside

15. "Ask any medical professional about immunology, so little known, so complex."

Scientist in a lab coat and gloves examines test tubes near a microscope in a laboratory setting

16. "We don’t know what is supposed to naturally bind to the area that benzodiazepines work at. Benzodiazepines, BZD, are medications like Xanax and Valium. They produce anti-anxiety effects and have a very distinct chemical shape to fit into the BZD site in a group of five proteins. But, we don’t know what is supposed to go there. Many medications are analogs of naturally occurring binding molecules that we copy and then use to create an effect. The BZD site is for something, we just don’t know what."

Prescription bottle labeled "Benzodiazepines" against a blue background, with a second, blurred bottle in the background

17. Lastly, and certainly most notably: "How basically any of medical science works in relation to women and their bodies because almost all the data is based on men, and a lot of it is almost exclusively."

Person in a hospital gown sits in a medical exam room, partially visible window behind them

Did any of these surprise you — or do you have more to add? Let us know in the comments!

What do you think?

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TJKCB

17 unknown in Human Body

TJKCB (2025-07-24 17:58:26) 评论 (0)

by Krista Torres https://www.buzzfeed.com/kristatorres/mind-blowing-things-about-the-human-body?new_user=true&newsletter_modal=true? BuzzFeed Staff

There are a lot of "unknown" things in this world — and many parts of how the human body functions are still a mystery. So, here are some of the top things medical professionals on Reddit have said that we still don't know:

1. "We don't know precisely how our bodies can distinguish gas from poop. We have some ideas; we know there are a ton of nerve endings in the area, but the precise mechanism of our bodies telling our brains 'this is a fart, let loose' isn't really understood. What blows my mind is that it's distinct enough that we even pass gas while asleep. That difference must be wired DEEP!"

Peter Dazeley / Getty Images

—u/BIGJFRIEDLI

2. "I’m a derm. We don’t know what exactly causes itching, like the molecular pathways for it. That’s why it can be so hard to find a good treatment when a patient comes in for itchy skin."

Stefania Pelfini, La Waziya Phot / Getty Images

—u/criduchat1-

3. "I’m an anesthesiologist. We still don’t really know why inhaled volatile anesthetics like sevoflurane, the main anesthetic agent used to maintain general anesthesia, work. We kind of have an idea of maybe how it happens, but we don’t really know. It’s commonly said in my field that whoever figures this out will win the next Nobel Prize in medicine."

4. "I'm a sleep specialist. While we do have some good theories about some of the functions of REM as far as how it affects the brain and health, we still don't fully understand the purpose of dreaming. Like, why do we dream at all, and why do dreams have a narrative instead of random incomprehensible imagery? Unfortunately, this is unlikely to even be solved."

5. "One of the few ABSOLUTES in medical science is that nobody born blind has ever developed schizophrenia."

6. For many medicines, it is not clear how they work, or even if they work (for example, look at the actual efficacy trials of name-brand antidepressants). When you look at them in aggregate, they look like they barely work. Yet, basically everybody knows somebody whose life was saved by a specific antidepressant."

7. "Yawns. We are still guessing on why it happens."

8. "Had a pathologist tell me that the interesting part of his job wasn't finding out how someone died, it was seeing everything that can be wrong with someone internally, and the person has no idea. There are so many life-threatening or life-altering, horrible things that a person can have and not know it, but still be completely functioning. A good friend died unattended, so they did an autopsy. His body had cancer in three different places."

9. "Allergies, specifically food allergies. And why do adults develop them after never reacting to them before?"

10. "Psychiatry is still shockingly infantile in our understanding of human disorders. It's constantly in a state of flux, we don't understand a lot about the meds we currently use, and the diagnostic criteria for disorders still change as we realize, 'Hey, maybe all these behaviors aren't the same source disorder.' It's incredibly hard to diagnose when the criteria are largely based on self-report and subjective observations."

11. "What kind of ramifications menopause really has on the female body."

12. "Not MD but PhD. Right now, we are working on the connection between our intestinal microbiome and neuropsychiatric disease and brain aging. For instance, people with inflammatory bowel disease are more likely to develop dementia and experience co-morbid anxiety and depression, but we don't know why."

13. "OBGYN here: We still don’t know exactly what makes labor start. We know all about the mechanics and physiology, but we don’t know what makes the average uterus say it’s 'go time.'"

14. "We know next to nothing about fibroids, which many women have at some point in their lives. Considering the largest one removed was around 100 pounds, it is not exactly a minor issue. There are theories about different hormones and what things put you at higher risk, but aside from having surgery to have your existing ones removed, there is basically no information on what you can do to prevent them from coming back."

15. "Ask any medical professional about immunology, so little known, so complex."

16. "We don’t know what is supposed to naturally bind to the area that benzodiazepines work at. Benzodiazepines, BZD, are medications like Xanax and Valium. They produce anti-anxiety effects and have a very distinct chemical shape to fit into the BZD site in a group of five proteins. But, we don’t know what is supposed to go there. Many medications are analogs of naturally occurring binding molecules that we copy and then use to create an effect. The BZD site is for something, we just don’t know what."

17. Lastly, and certainly most notably: "How basically any of medical science works in relation to women and their bodies because almost all the data is based on men, and a lot of it is almost exclusively."

17 unknown in Human Body

There are a lot of "unknown" things in this world — and many parts of how the human body functions are still a mystery. So, here are some of the top things medical professionals on Reddit have said that we still don't know:

2. "I’m a derm. We don’t know what exactly causes itching, like the molecular pathways for it. That’s why it can be so hard to find a good treatment when a patient comes in for itchy skin."

5. "One of the few ABSOLUTES in medical science is that nobody born blind has ever developed schizophrenia."

7. "Yawns. We are still guessing on why it happens."

9. "Allergies, specifically food allergies. And why do adults develop them after never reacting to them before?"

11. "What kind of ramifications menopause really has on the female body."

13. "OBGYN here: We still don’t know exactly what makes labor start. We know all about the mechanics and physiology, but we don’t know what makes the average uterus say it’s 'go time.'"

15. "Ask any medical professional about immunology, so little known, so complex."

17. Lastly, and certainly most notably: "How basically any of medical science works in relation to women and their bodies because almost all the data is based on men, and a lot of it is almost exclusively."

Did any of these surprise you — or do you have more to add? Let us know in the comments!

What do you think?

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TJKCB

17 unknown in Human Body

There are a lot of "unknown" things in this world — and many parts of how the human body functions are still a mystery. So, here are some of the top things medical professionals on Reddit have said that we still don't know:

2. "I’m a derm. We don’t know what exactly causes itching, like the molecular pathways for it. That’s why it can be so hard to find a good treatment when a patient comes in for itchy skin."

5. "One of the few ABSOLUTES in medical science is that nobody born blind has ever developed schizophrenia."

7. "Yawns. We are still guessing on why it happens."

9. "Allergies, specifically food allergies. And why do adults develop them after never reacting to them before?"

11. "What kind of ramifications menopause really has on the female body."

13. "OBGYN here: We still don’t know exactly what makes labor start. We know all about the mechanics and physiology, but we don’t know what makes the average uterus say it’s 'go time.'"

15. "Ask any medical professional about immunology, so little known, so complex."

17. Lastly, and certainly most notably: "How basically any of medical science works in relation to women and their bodies because almost all the data is based on men, and a lot of it is almost exclusively."

Did any of these surprise you — or do you have more to add? Let us know in the comments!

What do you think?