Ribs are simple bones in terms of their anatomical structure, but they perform important functions of the body preservation. There is a point of view expressed on the Internet that males and females have different costal bones quantity. Let’s consider this issue in details and find the answer regarding the ribs quantity in females.
There is a great number of legends about that. Some say that a male has fewer of those, because the woman was created by God from the rib of Adam. However this is a deep delusion, and this fact has been proved by scientists long ago.
So, a practical study of human anatomy showed that a male possesses exactly twelve rib pairs irrespective of sex and race. They are arranged in pairs within the chest. The first seven pairs form the basis of the thoracic cage, the next three form its protection, the eleventh and twelfth do not have any useful properties, because of their location. They can be removed surgically, however this is not recommended, since such a procedure can result in normal functionality of the innards disorder.
Moreover, there are cases when soft tissues form several additional bones. They can squeeze the internal organs, causing them to work incorrectly. An intensive therapy and special exercises can help to get rid of this problem, but in extreme cases, it requires a surgery.
Another factor, which has not been mentioned, is the genetics and formation of so-called “rudimentary ribs”. In ancient times, a human being really had more of those bones than a modern human, but with the course of time their amount was reduced, since they were not needed anymore. Some individuals are born with more costal bones than it is required due to the genetics development. That is why the given case cannot be considered as a pathology, these “additional” pairs do not affect the functionality of the lungs and heart.
So, we can see that the sexual identity does not affect the number of costal bones in a human being. However, the layout of the human thorax is dependent on a sex. The thoracic cage of a man is much larger than of a woman.
In women, it is twisted more and tends to have a spiral form. The front part of the costal bones is a little lower. This affects not only the shape of the sternum, but also the predominant type of breathing. The thorax of a female has a more flat form, and the characteristic type of her breathing is thoracic. As for men they have predominantly abdominal type of breathing.
The costal bones in the body perform protective and skeleton functions. The spine along with the thoracic bone forms a thorax, which protects such vital organs as heart, lungs, large blood vessels against injuries.
