The Excretory System

1. The Excretory System By: Sarah, Vannyta, & Devon

2. Table of Contents: The excretory system’s role in the human body. The levels of organization in humans. How the excretory system is connected to two other systems in the human body. The excretory system’s major organs. How the excretory system’s organs work together. Maintaining a healthy system. Two common diseases or disorders that affect the excretory system. Two professions that work with the excretory system. “Did you know” facts about the excretory system. References.

3. The excretory system’s role in the human body. The excretory system’s role in the human body is to get rid of chemicals through a form of wastes called urine. One of the most important organs in the excretory system are called the kidneys, which filter all of the liquid that the human consumes in a day. All of the liquid must pass through the kidneys for the system to work properly. The kidneys are given about one quarter of the blood pumped out by the heart, and all of the harsh chemicals are then filtered out from the blood and turned into urine. The excretory system also helps to maintain a normal fluid and electrolyte(sodium, potassium, etc.) balance in the humans body, which keeps our bodies healthy.

4. The levels of organization in humans: Organism> Organ System> Organ> Tissue> Cells The kidneys are made up of different types of tissues and cells, one example being the Epithelial tissue and cells. There are two different types of Epithelial tissue: Simple- one layer of cells, and Stratified- more than one layer of cells. There are many different types of Epithelial cells as well. Examples found in the kidneys are: “Simple Squamous Epithelium”- A single layer of flattened cells. “Simple Cuboidal Epithelium”- A single layer of cube like cells.

5. How the excretory system is connected to two other systems in the human body: Kidneys The system in you body that pumps all of your blood from your heart to different parts of your body is called the circulatory system. Your urine is not only made up of liquids you consume in the matter of a day, part of your urine comes from your blood! Everyday, your kidneys filter out metabolic wastes, excess ions(an atom or molecule that is no longer neutral) and chemicals from your blood to form urine. This means that the excretory system is connected to the circulatory system.

6. How the excretory system is connected to two other systems in the human body: The system in your body that absorbs nutrients and eliminates the unhealthy materials from the food you eat is called the digestive system. Without your digestive system, you would not be able to properly digest your food! Little did everyone know, all of the food we eat eventually breaks down into a liquid that passes through your kidneys to be turned into urine. Your kidneys filter 120ml of liquid a minute, but only 1ml a minute is turned into urine. This means that the excretory system is connected to the circulatory system.

7. The excretory system’s major organs: Kidneys are two small bean shaped organs inside the humans body. This organ filters chemicals from the blood to form urine. The kidneys are covered up in a layer of adipose (loose connective tissue and fat) that protects them from damage. Ureters are a pair of tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder. They can range from 10 to 12 inches long.

8. The excretory system’s major organs: Urinary Bladder is a hollow organ which is a sac-like shape. This organ is used for the storage of urine. The walls of the bladder stretch to hold anywhere from 600 to 800 milliliters of urine. Urethra is the organ which allows urine to pass from the bladder to the exterior of the body.

9. How the excretory system’s organs work together: The “Urinary Tract” begins at the kidneys, where filtration of chemicals from the blood occurs and are turned into urine. These chemicals can be anything from metabolic wastes to excessions(an atom or molecule that is no longer neutral.)

10. How the excretory system’s organs work together: Kidneys Ureters Urinary Bladder Urethra Exterior of humans body From there, the ureters carry urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder. The ends of the ureters are sealed at the entrance to the bladder by the “Ureterovesical Valves,” allowing for no urine to go back into the kidneys. The process ends at the urethra, where the urine flows from the urinary bladder to the exterior of the humans body.

11. Maintaining a healthy system: The excretory system often is referred to as the “cleaner” for your body, so it is important that it stays healthy. In order to keep your excretory system healthy, a good place to start is by eating healthy and drinking plenty of water. The healthy foods will help to supply minerals and vitamins to help control the kidneys, and drinking water will help to remove all the toxins in in your body. Doctors recommend everyone drinks eight (8) glasses of water a day to keep a healthy excretory system. Exercising will also help your excretory system in many ways. An example is simply when you exercise, you sweat, which helps to remove toxins from your body as well.

12. Two common diseases or disorders that affect the excretory system: Kidney Stones Kidney Stones: Kidney stones are stones made of mineral and acid salts that form overtime inside your body. This disease affects your entire urinary tract, simply because they block the flow of urine in your body. The stones usually start because the individuals urine becomes concentrated, therefore minerals crystalize and come together. Kidney stones are often very painful, but very rarely do they cause permanent damage or harm to the body. To get rid of the stones, some patients only need to drink lots of fluid and take pain medication, while others need to see a specialist.

13. Two common diseases or disorders that affect the excretory system: Electrolyte Disorders: Electrolyte (sodium, calcium, etc.) disorders are simply when minerals in your body are not balanced. It is important that you keep minerals in your body balanced, as eventually it could lead to the shut down of important organs such as your brain! For each electrolyte disorder there a usually multiply causes, examples being Hypocalcemia (too little calcium), and even small things like taking medication. Depending on your situation, there are different treatments to cure electrolyte disorders, including rehydrating the blood through IV, or oral medication to get rid of excess minerals fast.

14. Two professions that work with the excretory system: Nephrologist: A nephrologist is a physician who studies the kidneys and its diseases. They help deal with the management of different viruses involving the kidneys. Examples of different viruses are kidneys stones and fluid and electrolyte disorders. Nephrologists work in different hospitals and medical centers all over the world.

15. Two professions that work with the excretory system: Urologists: A urologist is an occupation that deals with the urinary tract of males and females. Urologists are trained to treat all problems or urological disorders a human may have. Hairdressers, miners, painters, etc. all more prone to be diagnosed with bladder cancer, which would be treated by a urologist. These doctors also work at hospitals and medical centers around the world.

16. Did you know? The ends of the ureters are sealed at the entrance of the bladder by the “Ureterovesical valves.” This allows for no urine to go back into the kidneys. Kidney stones can be the size of a golf ball. Water forms 95% of the urine. One (1) kidney is about four (4) inches long. On average, a human urinates 3000 times a year.

17. References: • Kids Konnect- Kids Konnect http://www.kidskonnect.com/component/content/article/31-educational/health/337-human-body.html • Biology4Kids.com: Animal Systems: Excretory Systems http://www.biology4kids.com/files/systems_excretory.html • Excretory System – By KidsBiology.com http://www.kidsbiology.com/human_biology/excretory-system.php • Human Anatomy: Learn All About the Human Body at InnerBody.com http://www.innerbody.com/ • Urinary System: Anatomy and Physiology with Interactive Pictures. http://www.innerbody.com/image/urinov.html • Nephrologist -What is a Nephrologist? http://www.news-medical.net/health/Nephrologist-What-is-a-Nephrologist.aspx • Eight types of epithelial tissue http://antranik.org/eight-types-of-epithelial-tissue/ • Biology4Kids.com: Animal Systems: Digestive Systems http://www.biology4kids.com/files/systems_digestive.html • 300px-Illu_urinary_system.jpg (300x256) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Illu_urinary_system.jpg/300px-Illu_urinary_system.jpg • beating.gif (245x401) http://www.gwit.org/students/fremont/assign/heart/beating.gif • GetImage.aspx (530x526) http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/healthlibrary/GetImage.aspx?ImageId=125836 • si1703.jpg (391x255) https://igehrprodtim.med3000.com/PatientEd/images/si1703.jpg • Associate Degree Nursing Physiology Review http://www.austincc.edu/apreview/PhysText/Renal.html • urinarydiagram1.jpg (1344x1008) http://www.highlands.edu/academics/divisions/scipe/biology/labs/cartersville/2122/diagrams/urinarydiagram1.jpg • atom_model_03.gif (640x428) http://education.jlab.org/qa/atom_model_03.gif • Nephrologist Career Overview http://www.brighthub.com/science/medical/articles/33880.aspx • nephrologist12233.jpg(450x298) http://www.24x7medicalhelpline.com/uploaded_images/nephrologist12233.jpg • What is Urology? http://www.news-medical.net/health/What-is-Urology.aspx • Urologist_694x306.jpg (694x306) http://a1.g.akamai.net/f/1/15157/1h/dodairforce.download.akamai.com/15157/airforce/careers/career_details/i/detail/Urologist_694x306.jpg • 10 Interesting Facts- Excretory System https://sites.google.com/site/excretorysystem305/10-exciting-amazing-and-interesting-facts • Fun Facts! – The Excretory System http://excretorysystemmiguel.weebly.com/fun-facts.html • Urologyheath.org http://www.urologyhealth.org/urology/articles/images/anatomy_KidneyStones.jpg • kidney-stones3.jpeg (2208x1900) http://savealifemissions.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/kidney-stones3.jpeg • Electrolyte Disorders | Definition and Patient Education http://www.healthline.com/health/electrolyte-disorders • periodic_table_of_elements.jpg (1457x858) http://www.bpc.edu/mathscience/chemistry/images/periodic_table_of_elements.jpg • Ways to Keep Your Excretory System Healthy | LIVESTRONG.COM http://www.livestrong.com/article/110605-keep-excretory-system/ • facts-about-healthy-food1.jpg (1500x980) http://www.healthyfoodhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/facts-about-healthy-food1.jpg