Why is it that, like in action movies, when you break someone’s neck they die? Isn’t it just like breaking your arm? I know there’s your medula there, but why does it kill you?

Question

Why is it that, like in action movies, when you break someone’s neck they die? Isn’t it just like breaking your arm? I know there’s your medula there, but why does it kill you?

In: Biology

Answer 1

Your brain controls all the muscles in your body with nerves – biological wires. Those “wires” run down your spine and then split out to every muscle. Your heart and what makes your lungs inflate are muscles. Break the wires and they shut off.

Note: the heart and lungs wires split our really high up the spine – breaking a neck high enough and completely enough to kill someone is not as easy as they make it look.