We all die.
But what will happen to your body after that? This is how it will live after you yourself have already passed away.
Life goes on
You are dead when your brain ceases to function irreversibly. In any case, according to the definition fixed in Swedish law. But some parts of the body continue to live anyway. The body does not die at all at once, as many believe. Experts distinguish between individual death and cell death.
Strange noises
For example, heart valves can be used for 36 hours after death, and the cornea continues to function twice as long. A lot of strange things can also happen, for example, the bodies of the deceased make strange sounds, people continue to think, and dead men have an erection. Let's take a look at some of the things that can happen to your body at different times from 30 seconds to 50 years after you die.
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30 seconds
Brain cells are sensitive to lack of oxygen and are among the first to decompose. However, some nerve cells can survive for so long that scientists are not quite sure if you are still perceiving something, despite the fact that you are already considered dead.
The dead keep on thinking
Studies have shown that brain activity can be in the region of zero for more than a minute and thus indicate that a person is dead, and then rise to a level that can be compared with full wakefulness, and then fall back to zero. What happens in this case is still not entirely clear. According to some assumptions, the brain is reawakening to life because the soul leaves the body. Scientifically, this phenomenon is explained by the fact that a large number of nerve cells emit impulses one last time. Scientists are wondering if this might explain why people who have been brought back to life after cardiac arrest speak of light and intense feelings. In this case, they could be conscious even after their heart stopped beating, and they could still have thoughts and feelings,even when the brain activity was close to zero for some time.
Nobody knows
This phenomenon, among other things, has led to discussions about whether transplant surgeons should wait for a possible surge of activity before starting surgery.
“It is unlikely that a person is conscious during such brain activity. But the only ones who actually came close to this and can say anything about it are those who have experienced a condition close to death,”says brain researcher Lars Olsson of the Karolinska Institute.
12 hours
After 12-18 hours, cadaveric spots reach their maximum coverage. They arise from blood sedimentation. They can, for example, show whether the corpse has been moved, what forensic doctors pay attention to when a crime is being investigated.
24 hours
Macrophages are another type of long-lived cells. They are related to the immune system. We managed to track that they can work for another day after you died, for example, destroying soot in your lungs after a fire.
36 hours
Even though your heart has stopped beating, heart valves can be preserved well because they contain long-lived connective tissue cells. Heart valves can be used for transplants up to 36 hours after a person dies.
72 hours
The cornea also lives on. It can be used within three days after you die. This is due, among other things, to the fact that the cornea is very close to the surface, in direct contact with air and receiving oxygen from it.
96 hours
When the body begins to decompose, gases are formed. They can cause strange and unpleasant sounds like groans and muffled crying. It happened that this phenomenon very frightened people who even thought that the dead man came to life.
After a few days, dirty green spots appear on the body. They often begin to spread from the abdomen due to bacteria. Well, then they spread throughout the body.
An erection occurs
Although the likelihood of this is very small, there have also been reported cases of dead men having erections. This is because blood can collect in clots that still contain nutrients and oxygen. Blood provides nourishment to calcium-sensitive cells. Some muscles are activated by calcium, and in men, this can cause a certain muscle to contract and lead to an erection.
Hair and nails grow
Henrik Druid, a forensic physician and legal scientist, performed nearly 6,000 autopsies. According to him, many believe that hair and nails continue to grow after the person has died. But this is a delusion.
“The skin loses fluid, shrinks and shrinks. It looks like nails and hair are sticking out more than before. But the fact that they are growing is an illusion."
Liquid outflow
After a couple of weeks, the dead bodies are usually badly damaged.
“Then you can see traces of strong decomposition. For example, the body takes on a brownish-green color, fluid-filled blisters appear on the skin that can burst, and fluid can flow from the mouth and nostrils, which also comes out of tissues and muscles.
In addition, corpses often swell and give off unpleasant odors. At this point, rigor mortis stops, and the body becomes very soft: the skin, muscles and organs are already decayed. When the body no longer has immunity, bacteria in it freely multiply, feed and destroy it.
And if you also had some kind of infection, and you died already with harmful bacteria inside, or you had cancer, then the body will decompose even faster."
Spawning larvae
How fast the decomposition process takes place also depends on the environment. If the body is warm, it decomposes faster than if it were cool. A body left in nature is largely destroyed within a month, after bacteria and insects take over. In a coffin, the body usually lasts much longer.
“But sometimes flies have time to lay their faces, including in the openings of the body - eyes, nose, mouth and anus - before the body hits the ground. This can happen in a matter of days. Then they will go to the coffin along with the body and continue to decompose it."
Dug up again
After a year, as a rule, the bodies lying in the ground are completely eaten by bacteria, and after them only bones remain. But there are also exceptions. One example is the famous case from the Swedish city of Arboga, where the body was dug up a year after the burial, and it could still be opened.
“It depends on the conditions. For example, it matters how wet or dry it was in the ground and the coffin. Bacteria do better in humid environments."
Soapy consistency
A body can survive in water much longer than in land, which was confirmed, among other things, during the rise from the bottom of the steamer Freja in 1994. The steamer had sunk 98 years earlier, and the bodies were still identified. In the water in the body, the formation of the so-called fat wax occurs, due to which it becomes hard and acquires a soapy consistency, which is unfavorable for bacteria.
As for the skeletons, it is estimated that they should rot in the grave over a period of fifty years. But here, too, everything can vary greatly. Bones have sometimes been preserved for hundreds of thousands of years.