The Circulatory System

Our circulatory system is made up of the heart, blood vessels, and the blood they contain. These parts of the circulatory system play an important role in keeping our body healthy and, well, alive.

Our heart is the most vital organ in our body that pumps blood all the time through all parts of our body. Our heart is made of a special muscle called the heart muscles; they help our heart pump blood to all parts and organs in our body restlessly. We cannot control our heart muscles, because it needs to pump all the time in order to survive.

Blood vessels are tubes that carry blood in and out of the heart to every part of our body – since our other organs and body parts need blood to keep working. Some blood vessels carry blood out of our heart and to other body parts, and some blood vessels carry blood back to our heart. There are two colors of blood vessels inside our body; blue ones which flow blood rich in carbon dioxide and other waste materials, and red ones which flow blood rich in oxygen, water and digested food.

Blood which contains inside our blood vessels carries important supplies such as oxygen, digested food, and water to all parts of our body. It also carries carbon dioxide, unhealthy digested food, and dangerous liquid. And soon, they will be disposed out of our body. But, if our body does not digest and consume good stuff almost all the time, our blood will become unhealthy and so will other parts of our body – including our heart.

This system is called the circulatory system because it circulates or moves blood from our heart, around our body, and back to our heart again. Our circulatory system moves blood in two part: one that flows out of our heart to other parts of our body, and one that flows from all parts of our body back to our heart.   

Our heart pumps the blood rich in oxygen to all the cells in our body. They need the oxygen and digested food to produce the energy they use to carry out their functions. Our blood also transports digested food and water from our digestive system to all parts and cells of our body.

As blood goes around the body, it picks up carbon dioxide and other waste substances that the cells produced. On its way back to our heart, blood passes the waste substances to some organs which eventually pass out the waste materials out of our body. When blood reaches the lungs, the carbon dioxide is sent to the lungs, and the lungs would release the carbon dioxide into the air and take in oxygen as we breathe.

Each heartbeat is a cycle of contraction and relaxation of our heart muscles. With every heartbeat, blood is pumped through our heart and pushes the blood through our blood vessels. These pushes are made by a ripple that spreads outwards from our heart and through our blood vessels to push blood to the parts of our body. This is known as a pulse.

We can take in our pulse by pressing two fingers on our wrist, where our blood vessels are close to our skin. The number of pulses in a minute is called our pulse rate. Our pulse rate shows us how many times does our heart beats in each a minute. This is called our heart rate as well. The heart rate of a healthy adult is about 60 to 70 times per minute.

A baby or child’s heart rate can reach up to about 120 times in a minute. An average adult’s heart can beat about 60 to 90 times per minute. And an elderly person’s heart rate can reach until about 60 to 80 times each minute. The heart rate of a healthy person is usually slower than that of a sick person. A fast heart rate is a sign that means you’re ill.

When we exercise, our heart rate becomes faster and faster. This happens because our organs need to work faster in order to bring more blood to carry out the activities and produce energy.

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Our circulatory system is an important system in our body that we need to live. Damage to a part of our circulatory system may cause sickness or even death. Illnesses of the circulatory system may affect our heart and blood vessels, blood pressure, and blood.

There are about four common illnesses that affect our circulatory system:

BLOOD PRESSURE

Hypertension

Hypertension is also known as high blood pressure. It can lead to other medical conditions such as arteriosclerosis, heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure. Hypertension can be caused by smoking, a diet high in fat or salt, being overweight, lack of exercise and even a high stress level in our life. Eating too much junk food or not doing enough activities can also cause hypertension. Some adults may experience this kind of illness because of their high stress level.

HEART AND BLOOD VESSELS

Arteriosclerosis

A healthy diet is very important for the proper functioning of our circulatory system, if we have a diet with too much fat, fatty substances may collect the inner walls of the arteries. Arteries are the blood vessels that carry blood from the heart to all parts of our body. Over time, the walls which are covered in the fatty substances stiffen. Now this condition is called arteriosclerosis. Blood flow becomes restricted and blocked. Blood clots may develop in the blood vessels, and such clots could lead to a heart attack or stroke. 

BLOOD

Anemia

Anemia is a disease of the blood. This disease happens when we run low of red blood cells in our body. Since these blood cells carry oxygen to the parts of our body, there will be a lack of oxygen carried by the cells in our body. Anemia is caused by a lack of iron in our diet or a large blood loss.

Leukemia

A more severe disease of the blood is called Leukemia. It is also known as the cancer of blood or a bone marrow. This disease occurs when white blood cells multiply rapidly and uncontrolled in the bone marrow. Leukemia may lead to cancer.

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A healthy circulatory system can be achieved by having a healthy diet and lifestyle. This means we have to exercise regularly, not consume alcohol or take drugs, not smoke, have a balanced diet – with a complete and controlled portion of carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamins and mineral –, drink a lot of water, and go for monthly body check-ups.

Regular body check-ups can help to detect certain illnesses in our body early so the treatment can work better and quicker than those who start their treatment a few days after their illness had started. Having enough exercises and an active lifestyle ensures a good blood flow throughout our body.

Eating a well and healthy diet will help achieve a healthy weight and also, a healthy heart. Smoking, taking drugs and drinking alcohol can cause severe diseases and health problems to our body. And drinking enough water every day will help our body be fresh and achieve a healthy blood pressure.

Our digestive, circulatory and respiratory system work together to make sure our body is healthy and fit. How do they work together to keep our body strong and healthy?

When we eat, food is digested in the digestive system; through the stomach and intestines. 

Digested food is then absorbed into the blood in the circulatory system as they carry them to the parts of our body and cells. During breathing, oxygen enters the lungs. At the same time, carbon dioxide carried by blood is released in the lungs so they can quickly dispose them when we breathe out, and then blood carries the oxygen to our body. 

Oxygen is absorbed into the blood in the circulatory system. Digested food and oxygen are carried by the blood to all parts of our body through the circulatory system. Then, the digested food and oxygen combine to produce the energy, water vapor and carbon dioxide needed within the body during the process called respiration.

Every system in our body has their role to keep us healthy and they all have important functions. As we have seen, our circulatory system works very closely with other systems in our body, such as the digestive and respiratory system. But, what will happen to other systems in our body if our respiratory system fails to work properly?

The systems in our body are all important, and if one of them stops working properly, other systems can also be affected by this cause, because oxygen is needed to create a healthy energy along with digested food and water that is needed for cells and other parts of our body working.

#circulatory system #blood pressure #heart sickness