Meet the MEDULLA

Blue 42—Blue 42—Set—Hike! Hi everyone, I’m the Medulla, and I am the quarterback of the BRAIN POWER team. You will find me attached to your spinal cord inside your brain stem…and like a first time QB in the championship game, I’m full of nerve cells. Just as I’m the key player in our offensive line, I also play a key role in keeping your body alive. As the leader of your cardiac and respiratory systems, I control crucial involuntary actions like breathing, swallowing, and heart rate. What would you do without someone like me running the plays for these vital, life-sustaining functions? Flag on the play! You would not be able to sneeze, cough or vomit—gross, right? But these actions help flush your body of germs and toxins—things you definitely don’t want hanging out in your locker room, I mean body!

When you make the decision to drink alcohol, guess what happens to me. It’s a total fumble. Can you imagine? When affected by alcohol, I slow down or stop functioning altogether – which could make you stop breathing, eating, or in the worst-case scenario, stop the blood form pumping to the rest of your body. The result could be alcohol poisoning. And that could mean GAME OVER.

So, let’s make the decision right now to say NO to underage drinking. Waiting until you are of legal age will give me—and you—time to mature. We will grow together so that we can operate correctly and make good decisions that are healthy for our mind and body. TOUCHDOWN!

Ready to see me in action? I have a video here. You can check out the rest of the BRAIN POWER gang here too! We make a great team. Come join us!