# What are your little body mutations? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 12, 2011, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205 "2011-06-12T08:02:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/101 "2011-06-14T01:10:47Z")
I have a small warty growth on my lower eyelid. If I scrub it gently with a washcloth in the shower, it will often dissolve, but it grows right back. Had it for years, and I suppose I could go have it snipped off, but …nah, seems too much like work. (Also, there are deep grooves behind my ears on each side of my head, but those are from my wire eyeglasses digging in over the years. Not a natural thing, but they feel weird to the touch.) ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/102 "2011-06-14T01:20:22Z")
> [@Enginerd](#): > > I have really long arms. I’m a little over six feet tall, but fingertip-to-fingertip on my outstretched arms measures just shy of seven feet. > > I try not to drag my knuckles too much. I have the opposite problem…6’3" but with arms and legs shorter than those of my 5’8" wife. A doctor who did a physical on me noted that with proportionate limbs I might be 6’7" or taller. ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/103 "2011-06-14T01:29:05Z")
To the back, top, right I have extra teeth. There are only two or three, and based on their size, I believe their kid’s teeth that never fell out. It’s almost like an extra row back there. I haven’t been to the dentist in ages, only a handful of times in my life, but I finally have a decent job with dental insurance, so I’ll probably see one soon. When I go, I’ll ask about it. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/104 "2011-06-14T01:37:23Z")
I, my father, my grandmother, her sister and most of her sister’s children have some kind of congenital defect around our tailbones. The doctor who gave my dad his Vietnam physical commented on it. It creates deep dimples in the skin over the tailbone which can very easily turn into something like a pylonidal cyst. My grandmother had to have hers drained and packed when she was a teenager; mine has spontaneously drained twice in my life. Unfortunately, it hasn’t happened since I discovered the Dope’s love of zit threads. Sorry guys. Aren’t you glad you all know that about me now? Also we all have mild scoliosis. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/105 "2011-06-14T01:49:17Z")
Like Wolverine, I have a couple of mutations that cause my blood to coagulate much easier and quicker than a normal persons. Sounds cool, right? Unfortunately, this means my blood has a tendency to clot not only when I get cut, but when it’s just flowing around in my veins and lungs. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/106 "2011-06-14T01:51:46Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > You might win the thread with that. So, like a shark - multiple rows of teeth? I have one behind my normal row of teeth as well - it makes interesting impressions when I eat apples. Also I keep getting food bits stuck between it and the tooth in front of it. ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/107 "2011-06-14T02:32:14Z")
I can dislocate my left shoulder at will. With the middle 3 fingers on each hand (not the pinkies) I can bend just the topmost knuckle while keeping the rest of the fingers straight (I’ve always called this “double jointed” as well, but have no idea if it actually is). Both thumbs are “double jointed” too. I guess it’s called [hypermobility.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_jointed) ---
**Author:** ![Pixiesnix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/898d66/32.png) [@Pixiesnix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixiesnix)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/108 "2011-06-14T04:02:00Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > What did my sister bring home, knowledge-wise ? That I was a degenerate mutant. Wouldn’t let go of it for months. And I totally bought it, too :mad: Aren’t siblings great? Nothing better to build the ol’ self-confidence. It was like the time I was wearing shorts and he said my legs where as white as a corpse. Getting back to mutations, I too have the slightly bent ring fingers. I can also pick things up with my toes. My mother says I could do that ever since I was a baby. Guess I’d better go join the circus sideshow. ---
**Author:** ![Tess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@Tess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tess)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/109 "2011-06-14T04:10:03Z")
Both my pinky toes have a normal nail alongside a smaller nail the grows upwards. The toes themselves widen noticeably at the middle joint. It might not be a mutation but at my first appointment with a new eye doctor, he shuffled through my file a few times and then asked when I’d had eye surgery-which I’d never had. Apparently I have scars on the back of both eyes. He said they’d likely been there since birth since I’d never had a serious injury. ---
**Author:** ![Mississippienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d2c977/32.png) [@Mississippienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mississippienne)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/110 "2011-06-14T04:14:21Z")
My teeth apparently have unusually long, deep roots. My oral surgeon remarked on this a few years ago; “The good news is, if you get punched in the mouth, you probably won’t lose any teeth!” Thanks, doc. I carry mitochondrial DNA haplogroup H, [which means I have twice as much protection against severe sepsis](http://mathildasanthropologyblog.wordpress.com/2008/11/03/mitochondrial-dna-and-survival-after-sepsis/) than individuals carrying non-H mtDNA. Also, I have very bendy feet and I’m somewhat more bendy overall than average. ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/111 "2011-06-14T04:21:04Z")
I have a sixth lumbar vertebra. In 1970, a quick look by the doc at my X-ray at the Armed Forces Entry and Examination Station made me 4-F. ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/112 "2011-06-14T04:32:27Z")
> [@industrialfish](#): > > Is your name Adam? > > My clavicles are visibly asymmetrical to each other, but it doesn’t affect anything that I can tell. That would be more interesting but no, wrong gender. Reading the thread reminded me that I also have the sneeze reflex with bright lights. ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/113 "2011-06-14T05:22:58Z")
Crooked pinkies? Check. Ocular heterochromy (that is, my irises have two bands of color - brown on the inside, blue/grey/green on the outside)? Check. Attached earlobes. Check. Middle toes on both feet webbed? Check. Left breast larger than right? Check. I feel like I could start my own mutant superhero team! ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/114 "2011-06-14T05:44:19Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > I’m flat-footed, I sneeze whenever I look at a light, and I have one weird arm hair that grows long and wild. I sneeze when I look toward the sun. Me too on the flat feet. Mine are comically flat. When I walk away from a swimming pool my prints look like those of a five-toed giant duck. . ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/115 "2011-06-14T06:11:08Z")
Here’s another of mine: (60 year-old male) All of the hairs above my shoulder line grow much more quickly and thickly on my left side. Scalp (front, side, and back of head); beard, mustache, neck, nose, ears, eyelashes, eyebrows. EXCEPT for that small patch of beard centered immediately below my lips; only there does the asymmetry switch sides. Not so severe that anyone else would notice, but still. . ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/116 "2011-06-14T06:36:25Z")
> [@Acid\_Lamp](#): > > a simian crease on my left palm I never knew that that is what it’s called. I’ve got the same thing. Apparently it is often associated with chromosomal abnormalities. Yikes. ---
**Author:** ![Panurge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@Panurge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Panurge)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/117 "2011-06-14T07:29:08Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > You might win the thread with that. So, like a shark - multiple rows of teeth? Hmm. Not really (and I hope you realize that I can’t actually bite through metal ;)). The two teeth are the ones that are supposed to be right next to the front teeth (canines?), but for some reason there wasn’t room enough for them, so they migrated back behind the front teeth. There is a small gap between my front teeth and the ones next to them, but not enough for the two teeth to fit. I think it’s similar to the situation **HazelnutCoffee** (IIRC) mentioned earlier in the thread. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/118 "2011-06-14T07:46:28Z")
Hey, that’s exactly like my teeth. Cool. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Hakuna\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hakuna\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hakuna_Matata)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/119 "2011-06-14T12:14:48Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > Alton Brown claimed in his episode on asparagus that there are two factors at work: some people produce urine that smells, some don’t, and some people can smell the smell, and some don’t. Yep and I evidently produce urine that doesn’t smell. A little TMI but my wife called me in so I could smell her urine (now that is a lovely image right there) but I was curious, and my urine doesn’t smell like that after eating asparagus. Now I see it as “I” am normal and the rest of you guys with your nasty smelling urine are the freaks. ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205/120 "2011-06-14T12:52:01Z")
I have [Spina Bifida Occulta](http://www.spinabifidaassociation.org/site/c.liKWL7PLLrF/b.2700275/k.5F64/Spina_Bifida_Occulta.htm)- which is common, but the particular type I have is not so common. I have a deep skin dimple on my lower back, vertebral fusion defects from L3-L5 and my sacrum (the bottom bit of your spine, between the two wings of your pelvis) is oddly shaped. I have some resulting unusual biomechanical strains on my back, legs and hips because of the asymmetry of my sacro-iliac joints. I also have extremely high arches in my feet, which is probably related. I’ve had back pain since I was a very small child, and occasionally get sciatica, but, eh, you get on with things. Mostly it meant that irishbaby couldn’t engage in my pelvis properly because she couldn’t get past the weird jutty-out bits on the inside of my sacrum, so her head was very high throughout out my pregnancy, eventually leading to my choice to go for a c-section. Oh, and I wear my shoes very unevenly because of the high arches etc- they don’t last long before I have the outsides of the heel worn through. Stilettos last maybe 2 or 3 outings before I have to get them re-heeled. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-little-body-mutations/585205.md?page=7)