Phosphorus, then, is nature’s bottleneck. Unlike carbon, which can be obtained from carbon dioxide, there is no phosphorus compound present in our surroundings that can serve as a convenient source. We need phosphorus for our bones and teeth, and it is a crucial component of all living cells. Phosphorus makes up 1.1% of the human body but only 0.105% of Earth’s crust. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, just ahead of oxygen (32.1 and 30.1, respectively), forming much of Earth's outer and inner core.
Atomic symbol series#
It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. There is an element that we need more of in our bodies than is proportionately present in Earth’s crust, and this element is not easily accessible. Iron is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from Latin: ferrum) and atomic number 26. Looking Closer: The Phosphorous Bottleneck On the other hand, although carbon is present in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide, and about 80% of the atmosphere is nitrogen, we obtain those two elements from the food we eat, not the air we breathe. We obtain oxygen from the air we breathe and the water we drink. How does the human body concentrate so many apparently rare elements? The relative amounts of elements in the body have less to do with their abundances on Earth than with their availability in a form we can assimilate. Oxygen has the highest percentage in both cases, but carbon, the element with the second highest percentage in the body, is relatively rare on Earth and does not even appear as a separate entry carbon is part of the 0.174% representing “other” elements. If you compare both compositions, you will find disparities between the percentage of each element in the human body and on Earth. \) also lists the relative abundances of elements in the human body.
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