By mass, human cells consist of 65鈥�90% water (H2O). Oxygen therefore contributes a majority of a human body's mass. Almost 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of the six elements oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus.
About 0.85% of the remainder is composed of only five elements: potassium, sulfur, sodium, chlorine, and magnesium. All are necessary to life. The remaining elements are trace elements, of which more than a dozen are thought to be necessary for life, or play an an active role in health (i.e., fluorine, which hardens dental enamel but seems to have no other function).
Note that not all elements which are found in the human body in trace quantit
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