KNOW YOUR BODY Spine facts

Babies have more vertebrae than adults. We’re born with 33 spinal bones but some of the bones fuse together so we often have 24 by the time we’re adults. You’re taller in the morning than you are at night because gravity affects the spinal discs. After 40 years, the effects of gravity and ageing may decrease height by a quarter of an inch or more per decade. The spine contains over 120 muscles, 220 ligaments and more than 100 joints. We have the same number of neck vertebrae as giraffes and camels.