8 Weird Body Parts And Their Surprising Purposes

If you’ve ever inspected a sore throat, you’ve likely noticed the spongy, almond-shaped tissue toward the back of the mouth looking slightly swollen, red, or laden with white spots. As part of the lymphatic system, tonsils defend the body from infections that enter though the nose and mouth. But they can also become infected themselves when overloaded with bacteria or viruses. Since they’re just one component of the body’s powerful defenses, tonsils can be removed if they contribute to chronic sickness or breathing problems. However, today's doctors are more conservative when recommending surgery to control infection: About 500,000 procedures are performed annually today in the United States, compared to more than 1 million per year in the 1970s.