ABSTRACT
We start off with the basics: what is bone and what are the functions of the skeleton? Bone is composed of a rigid mineral part and an organic component. Apart from ensuring that we don’t collapse in a heap when we try to stand up, the skeleton also acts as a reservoir of essential minerals and protects our internal organs. Bone is continually renewed, so it can repair itself following injury, and it can, within limits, adapt itself to mechanical forces placed upon it. Teeth are not, so they can do neither of those things.
