What are genetic mutations?

Genetic mutations are like tiny spelling mistakes in the instructions that make up our bodies.

Imagine your body is a really long book, each page has words telling your cells what to do. These words are made of genes, and all together, they’re called DNA. Now, sometimes when the book is being copied from one generation to the next, a few letters might get mixed up, that’s a mutation.

Think of it like baking cookies. You follow a recipe (your DNA), but if you accidentally add extra chocolate chips or forget sugar, your cookie turns out different. That's just like how a mutation can change the way something works in your body, maybe making your hair curly instead of straight, or giving you freckles.

Sometimes these mistakes are harmless, and sometimes they help, like when a mutation helps someone resist sickness. It’s like getting a superpower from a spelling mistake!

So every time there's a mutation, it's like the book (your DNA) gets a little rewrite, and that can make you a little bit different from everyone else.