How Does The Body Heal Itself?

Author: Winnie Mok

Editors: Yanxi Chen and Angela Pan

Artist: Susan Wu

Have you ever wondered how our bodies have the ability to recover? Our bodies have this inborn ability that is designed to heal themselves In fact, all living things are able to do this!

At some point in our lives, we were injured Whether it be a paper cut, a slip with the kitchen knife, or a burn from the stove, our bodies get damaged in one way or another; and usually, like magic, the damaged area seems to be intact again after some time. But how does that work? Well, here are the four main stages of healing:

The first action is preventing further blood loss Blood rushes to the wound and clots, protecting the wound and averting more blood from spilling out These clots eventually form scabs by utilizing platelets, a type of blood cell Fibrin, a protein, is responsible for creating the structure that keeps the clot stationary.

Next, inflammation occurs. Although this stage may seem outwardly as if the wound is getting worse, it is actually there to help the wound avoid infection and manage the bleeding Blood vessels expand a little to increase oxygen and nutrient flow to the injury site for faster healing

An essential factor in this process is the amount of blood-borne oxygen. An excess or a lack of oxygen will not heal the wound. During this stage, the immune system dispatches three types of cells to aid healing Neutrophils clean the injury of foreign bacteria and cellular debris Macrophages trigger pro-inflammatory proteins and dispose of dead cells, and lymphocytes assist in scar formation as well as shielding the wound from infection. After that, the body finally begins creating new tissue. In the beginning, there is a cluttered layer of collagen, a protein that functions as structural support, and new blood vessels formed so that the nutrients can extend to the new flesh All of this is constructed from blood cells The outcome of this is a scar that is pink that eventually fades away.

The last stage of this process is reinforcing the new tissue. You might see the scar stretching or wrinkling here. The disorganized collagen is now a neat layer of interwoven strands. This process may take a couple of years to fully heal, depending on the wound and external factors such as a lack of sleep, exercise, or nutrients, which can all stagnate the injury from healing