What Happens to the Body After the Funeral? Find out how much the body, coffin and clothes of the deceased decompose

 Death is still taboo for many people. However, this is a stage that cannot be avoided - after all, each of us will die sooner or later. After death, a human corpse must go through a series of natural processes before turning into a skeleton and ashes. What Happens to the Body After the Funeral? How long does the body of the deceased, as well as his clothes and coffin decay? Find out more about it.

Death is a natural process that awaits all of us. After all, many people avoid the subject of death - prefer to remain silent and not think about how the human body dies. Meanwhile, it is worth knowing what happens to the human body after death in order to be aware of the processes that take place in it posthumously. Before a person is considered deceased, it is first of all necessary to determine the moment of death - this is the so-called zero point. The definition of death says that it is an irreversible condition when we can no longer restore human activities. A "proper" death is therefore a functional death when it is no longer possible to restore a person to live. It is important to distinguish such deaths from other types of death. We also have death:

• Apparent - then the human breathing stops.
• Relative - stopping both breathing and circulation.
• Absolute - death within the human main organs (heart, brain, and lungs).

Contrary to appearances, the body does not decompose evenly after death. It is a long and gradual process. The body begins to break down as soon as the heart stops beating. However, the human brain is the first to die, being most sensitive to lack of oxygen. The rest of the body dies only within a dozen or so hours. We define the time between brain death and the symptoms of biological death as the "inter-death period". This is what happens to the human body after death.

1. First, the heart stops beating, and then the circulation of blood stops.
2. Blood begins to drain down the body according to gravity. Body temperature drops.
3. Hypoxia causes the cells in the body to die en masse. Their leakage and rotting begin.
4. The first organ to die is the brain. As a rule, he dies approximately five minutes after death.
5. After half an hour, the human skin begins to turn purple and the muscles relax.
6. After four hours, it comes to the so-called postmortem concentration, when the whole body becomes stiff. It then starts to smell unpleasant as your gut bacteria start digesting your internal organs.
7. After twelve hours, the body reaches the so-called apogee of the post-mortem concentration. Then the muscles begin to relax, the skin shrinks and dries up, and the intestines and bladder empty themselves.
8. The body starts to emit a strong odor after a day or so. It then turns green because - with the help of bacteria - the enzymes begin to digest themselves.
9. After a week, hair falls out and the skin of the deceased turns black.
10. The decomposition of soft tissues takes place after about four months, provided that the body is left at a temperature of about 10 degrees Celsius.

It takes at least two years after the body is buried in the ground for the body to fully transform into a skeleton. However, a lot depends on the natural conditions in which the deceased was buried. Bones don't break down the way skin or soft tissues do. That is why they may have been underground for several hundred or even more years.

The dead can either be dressed in traditional clothing or be wrapped in a shroud - although the latter option is rather little popularized in Poland. Some of the deceased are hidden in their favorite clothes - sweatshirts, dresses, tracksuits, or suits. It is worth remembering, however, that the body should be dressed in clothes made only of natural materials before cremation - plastics are forbidden. Here is the time for individual clothes to unfold underground:

• Paper clothes - approx. 1 month.
• Artificial silk clothes - approx. 2 months.
• Cotton clothes - approx. 1-5 months.
• Wool clothes - approx. 1-5 years.
• Leather clothes - approx. 20 years.

It should be remembered that the deceased should not be cremated with watches, smartphones, electrical appliances with batteries or containers with flammable liquids (e.g. alcohol, perfume, deodorant or lighter). It is also forbidden to place thick volumes of books next to the deceased.

When choosing a coffin for burial, be guided by the height and weight of the deceased. The most frequently chosen coffins in Poland are wooden - beech, alder, pine, or oak (the most expensive option of all wooden coffins). You can order coffins not only minimalist but also with special ornaments and symbols. Their finish can also be classic or very elegant. Some people choose metal coffins, which are much stronger than those made of wood. The choice of the coffin, however, depends on its purpose - i.e. whether it is a funeral with cremation, exhumation, or traditional burial.

Cremation coffins should be minimalist and made of wood or cardboard, without any decorations. Therefore, they must be simple and light, and should not have any signs of varnish or attached metal fittings. The coffins are on fire, therefore they must not have any additional elements. The only thing allowed in them are symbolic cut flowers. Cremation must be ecological - legal regulations impose keeping the coffin simple. The cremated body is incinerated in about an hour. How much time does the coffin in the ground take? It all depends mainly on its type. Traditional wooden coffins - depending on the type of tree they are made of - take 10 to 15 years to decompose on average.