Body Worlds, exhibition of the human body: opinions, schedules, prices

La Body Worlds exhibition It is a unique experience to learn about the body and our own nature.

A journey inside us to discover what is under our skin, the functions of your organs and to reflect on the fragility of our body, on how our lifestyle, diseases and the wear and tear of time affect us.

An exhibition that has traveled half the world, not exempt from dispute for their real human figures, which now reaches IFEMA Space 5.1 de Madrid and that you can enjoy until April's 17.

If you are interested in the human body and want to attend a kind of beginner's medicine class, you can't miss it.

It has been traveling the world since 1995, and has already been shown in 140 cities in 36 countries, where it has been visited by more than 50 million people.

During these years it has undergone many transformations, as it began as a purely anatomical exhibition, and is currently an artistic and immersive exhibition about our lifestyle.

What is the Body Worlds exhibition like?

Body Worlds It will change the way you look at yourself, your vision of yourself; it's a mirror of the human body inwards, an authentic x-ray that zooms in on our body.

All samples of bodies and organs are real, collected from donations of corpses for science and preserved thanks to the revolutionary plastination technique, which allows bodily fluids to be extracted and given rigidity, stopping their decomposition so that they can be manipulated for educational purposes.

From the most important bones, through the muscles, arteries, lungs, the brain or the heart, a journey is made from birth to death through all our vital organs.

Body Worlds: real human figures

The most striking thing is the twenty complete and real human figures in different positions, some are sporting and others artistic.

On the one hand, bodies are shown that take care of themselves; sports, running, skiing, horseback riding or playing tennis, and even a pregnant woman.

In contrast you can see figures of obese people, blackened lungs or hardened arteries, all supported with graphic explanations on digital screens, 3D y tactile experiences that allow you to better understand how our body works.

Do you know what a worn out hip is like, how the effects of osteoarthritis or the metal plates that are inserted into your bones act when you suffer an injury?

This exhibition gives you the opportunity to see the contrast between healthy organs and those that are already in poor condition.

Body Worlds: evolution of the fetus

Especially impressive is visualizing the size of the fetus from conception, going through the key weeks until his birth.

You will also be able to understand why the stress It kills when we carry the weight of the world on our shoulders, how our neurons connect, and why the heart can literally break from love or from a loss that is too hard.

An essential exhibition for students, but especially educational for the whole family, with spaces for children where they can play, experiment and even ride on swings.

There are no doctors, but you have the possibility to take your blood pressure and learn how to bend correctly. You have to pay attention because some areas are somewhat hidden and you can skip them.

Body World It is also a door to preventive medicine because it teaches us to take care of ourselves and anticipate illnesses.

But it also wants us to reflect on our way of life, leaving us a clear message: happiness has a impact on our health and achieving it starts from within, it all depends on how we take care of our body and mind.

What is the plastination technique?

Before your visit, it is important to know what is plastination.

It is a pioneering, revolutionary technique that stops the decomposition of the body and facilitates its study from another angle.

It consists of extracting liquids from the body with solvents such as acetone and replacing them with a combination of resins that slow the deterioration of the body and allow the preservation of muscles, veins and even nerves.

The process requires about 1.500 hours of work.

The idea of ​​freezing death came from the anatomist in 1977. Gunther von HagensWhile Dr. Angelina Whalley, creative designer of the exhibition, is responsible for giving a second life to human bodies.

They come from a organ donation program promoted by the Plastination Institute since 40 years ago.

Donors request that their bodies be used for science with this technique, and currently there are more than 19.000 people registered in this program to pass on to posterity, regardless of their state of life.

What to see at the Body Worlds exhibition

The exhibition is divided into different rooms arranged according to the human body systems, which are studied in great detail.

You can see display cases with the different organs and their pathologies, but the exhibition is also dotted with panels and videos with explanations and tips for leading a healthier life.

Body Worlds: bones and locomotor system

The bones They are a symbol of death, but they have a lot of life since in seven years their cells are completely renewed.

It serves as internal support for us because without them we would collapse. They have many other tasks, including protecting us.

In this space you will find samples of the most important ones: the femur, the knee, the tibia, the discs between the vertebrae, the ribs and the skull.

Especially interesting is seeing the silver plates on broken bones and the prosthetics to fix them.

The bones are covered by muscles.

Did you know that up to 40 different muscles are needed to take a single step? There are 12 muscles involved in a kiss and 20 just in the face when we laugh.

Body Worlds: heart and circulatory system

In this part of the route we find the most important muscle; the heart, the one that pumps life, is a bit of the room of happiness that we will achieve if we take care of our habits.

But we can not only see the heart, inside and out, whole and cut; We also found reconstructions of the circulatory tree and even something complicated to see until now, the thin and thick arteries, such as the coronary arteries or the aorta.

Also the very blood that runs through our hands, all authentic thanks to plastination.

At this point you will understand how a heart attack occurs, how the highways that reach the heart become clogged with fat and how our blood pressure rises when we are at the limit.

La blood pressure It can shorten your life if you don't control it and to check it you will find a blood pressure monitor to take it.

The heart It can literally be broken, it is not just a metaphor, it can suffer from anguish and grief; doctors call this phenomenon stress induced cardiomyopathy o broken heart syndrome.

Body Worlds: brain and nervous system

Brain It is our technological network.

It is made up of 100.000 million nerve cells communicating with each other.

We can actually see it inside, dissected, divided into its hemispheres, its gray and white matter, the cerebellum, the brainstem, the meninges and the spinal cord.

At this point they show us physically and audiovisually the nervous connections.

In this part of the tour we also analyze the effect of stress about our nerves and diseases of old age that lead us to the deterioration of memory, Alzheimer or the senile dementia.

Body Worlds: respiratory system

In the area of ​​the respiratory system we can observe lungs from all angles, your rib cage and bronchial tree.

The reproduction of healthy lungs and those of a smokerr. Twenty cigarettes a day represent 150 ml of tar in the lungs per year; about the volume of a cup of coffee.

You will also better understand what is a stroke thanks to the cutting of a brain with a massive hemorrhage.

Body Worlds: we are what we eat

In this area we will learn everything about our digestive system, from the tongue, intestine, stomach and colon.

The reproductions are accompanied by prohibited and permitted foods, and the choices we make to eat them because they are what really determine our health.

To stay healthy we need 40 different nutrients, which is why we need a varied diet, because no food can provide us with everything at once.

Many of today's diseases are related to bad eating habits.

Impress see obesity inside, the contrast between a thin and thick person and the very different layer of fat they have when we take more calories than necessary.

In a very graphic way it explains how the overweight It alters the distribution of body fat and our organs suffer from having to do more work, increasing the chances of chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, arthritis or cancer.

An obese man lives 13 years less than normal, women 8 years less.

Body Worlds: reproductive system

Apart from our male and female urinary and reproductive systems, we find the prenatal gallery, a space isolated from the main route that offers you the possibility of passing by or entering if you want to learn something more about the human development.

It all begins with a single cell that divides 30 hours after conception, until the sixth day, which is when it implants in the wall of the uterus.

It is really shocking to discover almost for weeks the evolution of a fetus and how it is taking shape; At four weeks, the embryo, although it is the size of a lentil, already has a heart.

The whole thing is spectacular. visual and real information from conception to birth. Also highlights the twins placenta with two umbilical cords.

Body Worlds: the waves of pleasure

This room is the only one where you cannot take photos.

Here we find an anatomical cabinet on The origin of life, that is, about the sexual act, which is shown as a source of pleasure and conception.

This is also a more secluded space, the entrance to which is your choice.

The body donors gave their express, written consent for them to be used showing this moment.

In front of this room we find the imposing figure of a “frightened horse ridden by a rider.”

The objective is to compare the anatomy of one and the other; It presents similarities, but the fundamental difference lies in the brain, in the way we process memories and emotions through our prefrontal cortex.

La death is the end point of the journey: time to reflect on how we face the final goodbye.

A huge blackboard concludes the visit for anyone who wants to leave personal messages about what What do we want to do before we die?.

What would you regret? Do you wish you had enjoyed life more or had more time to do other things? These are some of the questions that remain in the air.

Body Worlds exhibition hours in Madrid

La Body Worlds exhibition you can see it in IFEMA Space 5.1 there is April 17 of 2022.

El route hard an hour and a half approximately, but you can stop as long as you want to learn calmly. There are numerous explanatory signs, but if you want more information, the audio guide offers you more details and curiosities in Spanish and English.

Don't forget that now you have to reserve in advance, due to capacity limitations. You can buy tickets online or at the box office, but it is organized in half-hour passes.

You can take photos in all rooms, but without flash or sticks. selfies, except in the last one, that of the waves of pleasure.

The Body Worlds visiting hours They are, from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 21 p.m., and on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 19,30:XNUMX p.m., with last access one hour before, and remaining closed on Mondays.

Body Worlds ticket prices in Madrid

The ticket prices They are, from Tuesday to Friday, 15 euros, the general one, 17 euros, and children from 4 to 12 years old, 8; and Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, 10 and 8 euros respectively.

Students, people over 65 years of age, members of large families, Youth Card holders and people with disabilities equal to or greater than 33% have a 15% discount only if you buy at the ticket offices.

For its part, the price of audioguide it is 3 euros.