The lump in the middle of many adults’ throats, which tends to move when we laugh and swallow, is called an Adam’s apple. But have you ever thought about what it does or why it’s there?
What is Adam’s apple?
Adam’s apples are just one of the many changes we see during puberty. Anyone can have an Adam’s apple, regardless of gender.
An Adam’s apple is a visible growth that develops on the front of the neck. In doctor’s language, it’s known as the laryngeal protrusion of the thyroid cartilage, the tough, flexible tissue from which our voice is formed. It is one of the few semi-rigid structures in the neck and is the part where the two halves of the cartilage meet in the middle of the neck.
Children often do not have a visible Adam’s apple as it is one of the developmental changes we typically see during puberty.
Why is there an Adam’s apple?
As the Adam’s Apple becomes more prominent, it is thought to play a role in the maturation of the voice, bringing it down a few octaves from the high pitch of childhood. This may be why people with large Adam’s apples often have a lower pitched voice than people with small or invisible apples. However, the relationship has not yet been conclusively proven, as this has only been studied in a few cadaveric studies.
Because cartilage is a type of connective tissue, the Adam’s apple doesn’t exactly do anything beyond forming a structure. This can be thought of as the house where our voices live, and so it’s important, but some people choose to have a chondrolaryngoplasty shaved. Also known as tracheal shaving, the procedure reduces the size of the Adam’s apple without affecting its functionality.
Thyroid cartilage changes shape in both sexes, but the change is usually greater in men. So Adam’s apples tend to be more prominent. But everyone has an enlarged throat during puberty, so Adam’s apples are actually more common in both sexes than many people realize.
There are several different ideas about where the name of the laryngeal protrusion comes from, and one of them is that it represents the forbidden fruit stuck in Adam’s throat. Another is that it’s mistranslated in Hebrew for “man’s bloat.”
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