How do the total number of atoms before a chemical reaction compare to the number of atoms after the chemical reaction?

Question

Responses

The number of atoms stays the same.
The number of atoms stays the same.

The number of atoms increases.
The number of atoms increases.

The number of atoms decreases.

Answer 1

The correct response is:

The number of atoms stays the same.

In a chemical reaction, the total number of atoms remains constant. Atoms are rearranged to form new substances, but they are neither created nor destroyed during the reaction, in accordance with the law of conservation of mass.