Have you ever touched something hot and quickly pulled your hand away? Or jumped when you heard a loud sound? Or felt butterflies in your tummy when you were nervous? That’s all thanks to your amazing nervous system—the body’s super-fast message delivery team.
Let’s explore this busy and brilliant system that keeps you safe, moving, thinking, and feeling every single day.
The boss: your brain
The brain is the control centre of your body. It’s like the boss of a giant company. Your brain decides what to do, when to do it, and how to react. It helps you walk, talk, dream, play, eat, and even breathe without thinking about it.
The brain has different parts for different jobs. One part helps you balance, another helps you remember things, and yet another helps you feel happy or sad. Isn’t that amazing?
The messenger: spinal cord
The spinal cord is like a thick rope of nerves running down your back, inside your spine. It connects your brain to the rest of your body. If your brain wants to send a message to your feet to run or to your hand to wave, it uses the spinal cord like a super-highway.
Messages zoom up and down this “highway” at lightning speed—sometimes faster than a finger snap.
The helpers: nerves
Now meet the nerves—tiny messengers that spread all over your body like spider webs. They carry messages between your brain, spinal cord, and all of the parts in your body.
When you touch something soft or rough, it’s your nerves that tell your brain what it feels like. When your brain wants to wiggle your toes or blink your eyes, the nerves help carry those instructions to your muscles.
Quick as a flash: reflexes
Some reactions are so fast that your brain barely has time to think. These are called reflexes. For example, if you touch something sharp, your body pulls back before you even say “ouch!” Reflexes help keep you safe from harm.
Keep it healthy
Here’s how you can take care of your nervous system:
- Eat brain-boosting foods like fruits, veggies, green leafy vegetables, eggs, berries, nuts and fish.
- Get a good night’s sleep—your brain needs rest too
- Wear helmets when biking or skating to protect your brain.
- Exercise to keep your nerves and brain happy.
- Say no to smoking and drugs, which can harm the nervous system.
So the next time you laugh, run, write, or feel excited—remember to thank your nervous system. It’s the behind-the-scenes superhero that helps you do everything you love.
Fun fact time
- Your brain has about 86 billion nerve cells called neurons. That’s more than all the stars you can see in the night sky.
- Nerve signals can travel at over 250 kilometres per hour—that’s faster than a cheetah.
- Even when you’re asleep, your brain is hard at work dreaming and making sure your heart beats.
