Chapter 2, Problem 1CP

List the names and chemical symbols of the 12 most abundant chemical elements in the human body.

Summary Introduction

To review:

The names and chemical symbols of the 12 most abundant chemical elements in the human body.

Introduction:

Generally, human body is made up of 26 different chemical elements. Ninety-six percent of the body weight is due to four major elements: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen. The next eight elements, for example, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chlorine, sulfur, and iron, are macronutrients and are considered as lesser elements. The rest of the 14 elements that are present in minute amounts are considered as trace elements, like aluminum (Al), fluorine (F), tin (Sn), etc.

Explanation of Solution

Human body is comprised of different types of chemical elements, out of which 12 are the most important. These are as follows:

Chemical elements with symbols	Total percentage of chemical elements present in the body
Oxygen (O)	65
Carbon (C)	18.5
Hydrogen (H)	9.5
Nitrogen (N)	3.2
Calcium (Ca)	1.5
Phosphorus (P)	1.0
Potassium (K)	0.35
Sulfur (S)	0.25
Sodium (Na)	0.2
Chlorine (Cl)	0.2
Magnesium (Mg)	0.1
Iron (Fe)	0.005

Conclusion

The human body has more oxygen by mass than any other element due to the water content present in the body, but more hydrogen is present by atom fraction than any other element.