44 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular Health and Medicine Quizzes

Question: What is the scientific term for a disease that causes dizziness?

Answer: Vertigo is a dizziness or disorientation in which the sufferer feels as though he is falling. It results from problems with the body’s balancing system, part of which is in the inner ear.

Question: What causes the blood disease thalassemia?

Answer: Thalassemia is a group of blood disorders characterized by a deficiency of hemoglobin, the blood protein that transports oxygen to the tissues. It is caused by genetically determined abnormalities in the synthesis of one or more of the polypeptide chains that make up the globin part of hemoglobin.

Question: Which pioneering scientist received the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1983, when she was 81 years old, for her work on genes in the 1940s and the 1950s?

Answer: American scientist Barbara McClintock won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1983 for her discovery in the 1940s and 1950s of mobile genetic elements, or “jumping genes.” She was the first woman to be the sole winner of this award.

Question: What movement in psychology rejected behaviourism and psychoanalysis as being too deterministic and instead advocated treating the person as a free individual able to direct their own behaviour?

Answer: Humanistic psychology grew in opposition to the two mainstream 20th-century trends in psychology, behaviourism and psychoanalysis. Humanistic psychologists believe that behaviourists are overconcerned with the scientific study and analysis of the actions of humans as organisms, and they also take issue with the deterministic orientation of psychoanalysis, which postulates that one’s early experiences and drives determine one’s behaviour. Humanists tend to believe that the individual is responsible for their life and actions and may at any time creatively change his attitudes or behaviour through awareness and will.

Question: Which part of the brain controls the pituitary gland?

Answer: The hypothalamus communicates with the pituitary gland to regulate the gland’s production and secretion of hormones.

Question: Which of these is a kind of flu?

Answer: H1N1, also called the swine flu, is an influenza virus.

Question: A human cannot live without a stomach.

Answer: Persons who have had their stomachs removed are still able to live by ingesting small quantities of special foods many times a day.

Question: Beriberi, meaning “extreme weakness,” is the name of a disorder caused by a lack of which vitamin?

Answer: Beriberi is a nutritional disorder caused by a deficiency of vitamin B₁ (thiamin) and characterized by impairment of the nerves and heart. The term beriberi is derived from a Sinhalese word meaning “extreme weakness.”

Question: Which brain disorder results in a progressive and irreversible decline in memory and various other cognitive functions?

Answer: Alzheimer disease results in a progressive and irreversible decline in memory and various other cognitive functions. It is the most common form of dementia.

Question: What is the disease pertussis commonly known as?

Answer: Pertussis is commonly known as whooping cough. It is an acute, highly communicable respiratory disease characterized in its typical form by paroxysms of coughing followed by a long-drawn inspiration, or “whoop,” and ending with expulsion of clear, sticky mucus and often vomiting.

Question: Humans use electricity when they think.

Answer: A human brain consumes about 20 watts of power an hour when engaged in serious thinking. This energy comes from the foods we eat.

Question: Which of these is NOT a part of the brainstem?

Answer: The brainstem is responsible for automatic functions of the body. It includes the medulla oblongata, the pons, and the midbrain. The cerebellum is located on the back of the brainstem but is not considered part of it.

Question: The part of the brain primarily responsible for production of speech is the ____.

Answer: The Broca area, or Broca’s area, is responsible for speech and speech function. It is located in the left hemisphere of the brain, and it is crucial to the development of articulate speech.

Question: The visible spectrum that humans can see is vast.

Answer: Humans can see a fairly narrow portion of the spectrum of visible light. This spans from 380 to 750 nanometers in wavelength.

Question: Which of these might be prescribed to a patient who has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder?

Answer: SSRI stands for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor. These medications prevent the reuptake of serotonin, which forces the hormone to remain in the synapse longer and have a positive effect on the patient’s mood.

Question: If a person has lockjaw, what disease are they suffering from?

Answer: An acute infectious disease of the central nervous system, tetanus, or lockjaw, is caused by the bacterium Clostridium tetani.

Question: What is the generic term for inflammation of the mucous tissue of the nose?

Answer: Rhinitis is a generic term for inflammation of the mucous tissue of the nose. Acute rhinitis is a symptom of the common cold.

Question: Which part of the human body does multiple sclerosis affect?

Answer: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a progressive disease of the central nervous system. It is characterized by the destruction of the myelin sheath surrounding the nerve fibres of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves.

Question: We use only 10 percent of our brains.

Answer: Human brains are very efficient, and nearly 100 percent are in full use most of the time. Doctors thus take special care when operating on the brain to make sure no function is damaged.

Question: Who developed a vaccine against poliomyelitis?

Answer: Dr. Jonas Salk tested his vaccine against poliomyelitis, then a very prevalent and dangerous disease, in 1954. The incidence of the disease has since fallen markedly.

Question: Which of these is not a form of colour blindness?

Answer: Myopia is nearsightedness, not a form of colour blindness. Colour-blind persons may be blind to one, two, or all of the colours red, green, and blue. Blindness to red is called protanopia; to green, deuteranopia; and to blue, tritanopia.

Question: According to Jean Piaget, what process goes through sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational stages?

Answer: Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget was the first to make a systematic study of the acquisition of understanding in children. He described children’s mental growth as moving through a sensorimotor stage during the first 2 years of life, a preoperational stage roughly from age 2 to age 6 or 7, a concrete operational stage from age 7 to age 11 or 12, and a period of formal operations beginning at age 12 and extending into adulthood.

Question: In Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which needs are considered the most primary?

Answer: These include breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, and homeostasis. Maslow argued that these needs must be fulfilled before other needs.

Question: What condition is caused by the deposition of salts of uric acid?

Answer: Gout is a hereditary metabolic disorder that is characterized by recurrent acute attacks of severe inflammation in one or more of the joints of the extremities. Gout results from the deposition, in and about the joints, of salts of uric acid, which is present in marked excess throughout the body in persons with the disorder.

Question: Which is the process involving the reabsorption of neurotransmitters within a synapse for later use?

Answer: Reuptake involves the reabsorption of neurotransmitters within a synapse. Antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) attempt to prevent the reuptake of the neurotransmitter serotonin. This causes serotonin to build up in the synapse, which may elevate the patient’s mood.

Question: Which eating disorder is characterized by periods of binging followed by inappropriate attempts to compensate for the binge, including induced vomiting?

Answer: Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by periods of binging (extreme overindulgence in food) followed by inappropriate attempts to compensate for the binge, including induced vomiting or excessive fasting.

Question: What is eczema?

Answer: Dermatitis, also called eczema, is an inflammation of the skin. Dermatitis is usually characterized by redness, swelling, blister formation, and oozing and almost always by itching. The term eczema, which formerly referred to the blistered, oozing state of inflamed skin, has by common usage come to have the same meaning as the term dermatitis.

Question: All blue-eyed people have a common ancestor.

Answer: DNA studies show that all blue-eyed people have a common ancestor who lived sometime between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago, when the blue-eyed genetic mutation occurred.

Question: Which of these is another name for growth hormone?

Answer: Somatotropin, or human growth hormone, is a peptide hormone secreted by the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland. It stimulates growth of bone and essentially all tissues of the body by stimulating protein synthesis and breaking down fat to provide energy.

Question: Viruses can fight cancer.

Answer: Viruses can be used to fight cancers of various kinds. Most treatments of this type are experimental.

Question: Diabetes can be brought on by poor diet.

Answer: The chance of getting diabetes may be passed down from one generation to the next. Being overweight and not exercising, however, seem to increase a person’s risk of developing diabetes.

Question: All diseases now on Earth are very recent.

Answer: Many diseases are quite ancient. Hansen disease (leprosy), for example, appears to have developed in South Asia more than 4,000 years ago, while many kinds of flea-borne plague have been around for millennia.

Question: The most common bacterium is E. coli.

Answer: Scientists believe that E. coli is the most common bacteria, with about a hundred billion billion of them alive at any given time.

Question: Where in the body are the adrenal glands located?

Answer: The adrenal glands, also called the suprarenal glands, are two small and virtually identical triangular endocrine glands, one located at the upper end of each kidney.

Question: Which of these metals is found in hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying protein that makes blood red?

Answer: Hemoglobin is a protein in the red blood cells of vertebrates that transports oxygen to the tissues. Heme, which accounts for only 4 percent of the weight of the molecule, contains all the iron and gives a red colour to the molecule.

Question: On what part of the body is a sphygmomanometer used?

Answer: A sphygmomanometer consists of an inflatable rubber cuff, which is wrapped around the upper arm and which is connected to an apparatus that records blood pressure.

Question: The auditory, or acoustic, nerve connects the brain with the ear. Its two parts have separate functions. One of the functions is hearing. What is the other?

Answer: The vestibulocochlear nerve, also called the auditory nerve, acoustic nerve, or eighth cranial nerve, is a nerve in the human ear, serving the organs of balance and of hearing. It consists of two anatomically and functionally distinct parts: the cochlear nerve, distributed to the hearing organ, and the vestibular nerve, distributed to the organ of equilibrium.

Question: Which of these is NOT a component of a neuron?

Answer: A neuron is made up of dendrites, axons, myelin sheaths, Schwann’s cells, nodes of ranvier, and terminal buttons.

Question: Who discovered the major blood groups and developed the ABO system of blood typing, which made blood transfusion a routine medical practice?

Answer: Karl Landsteiner, an immunologist and pathologist, received the 1930 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for his discovery of the major blood groups and development of the ABO system of blood typing, which made blood transfusion a routine medical practice.

Question: Prosopagnosia is also known as ____.

Answer: Prosopagnosia is an impairment in the ability to recognize faces—hence, the colloquial name face blindness.

Question: The spleen is part of the lymphatic system.

Answer: The spleen is part of the lymphatic system. Located behind the stomach, it produces lymphocytes, which help our bodies fight infection.

Question: The human digestive tract is only a few centimeters long.

Answer: The human digestive tract is a complex series of organs, and food has to travel 25 feet (7.5 meters) through the intestines alone. It takes from 20 to 30 hours to do so.

Question: What is the name for fear of open spaces?

Answer: Agoraphobia, a fear of open or public places, is an anxiety disorder commonly treated by exposure techniques.

Question: Hair helps us hear.

Answer: Tiny hair cells in the cochlea of the ear, called the organ of Corti, serve as receptors for sound waves and help us hear.