Dad, my body’s not even!” my daughter was confused and blurted out her discovery. What do you mean? “I mean my body is twisted and I have a bone here in my rib cage that’s lower than the other side.” Does it hurt? “No!” I don’t know what to tell you. Do you want to sit down? “No!” So, what’s wrong? “Nothing, I think I’m just lob-sided.” I looked at my daughter with a contorted, lob-sided face. Let’s Google ‘lob-sided rib cage.’
A quick search confirmed that my daughter was suffering from scoliosis, had birth defects or experienced severe trauma. “Dad, stop looking at those pictures.” Relax, I don’t think you are suffering from birth defects. After a more serious read, we both learn that human bodies aren’t entirely symmetrical! Who knew?!
Humans have evolved from simpler lifeforms over the eons and our bodies are defined as having continuous internal integument. Essentially, we are evolved-tubeworms that have sprouted hands and feet. Our mouths and butts are essentially openings to the inside of the ‘tube’ (much like a cardboard center inside a roll of paper towel), I told my daughter. “That’s just lovely!”, my daughter recoiled.
Athletes are known to favor one side of their body over the other. When you repetitively perform a task on one side, even neurons can send signals quicker to that side.
As we Googled more about the topic, we discovered that people’s hands and feet are often not the same size. The length of arms and legs can vary by millimeters. Facial features varying from left and right are common. Optometrists, audiologists and chiropractors often report on sidedness characteristics. It’s entirely normal to be lob-sided, I told my daughter. But you’re not deformed. “That’s reassuring, dad,” she concluded.
Then I said, at least not naturally. Some of it is your own doing as well. “How?” she inquired. Athletes are known to favor one side of their body over the other. Typically, most people are right-handed and that side becomes more muscular and stronger. When you repetitively perform a task on one side, even neurons can send signals quicker to that side. Ever see me in a right-handed drive vehicle on the left side of the road? Ever written your name with the other hand? She instantly understood the reality of sidedness.
Asymmetry is normal. There’s asymmetry with the placement of our internal organs. Although the brain has two equal hemispheres, its function and network are vastly different and the dominance of one hemisphere is said to even define personalities! It’s natural. We should look at the proportions and ratios and not absolute measurements. I Googled Da Vinci’s Vitruvian man for her to see. She was less concerned now.
There. You’re not defective. Just lob-sided. She rolled her eyes.
