Understanding the Human Respiratory System: Functions, Organs, and Breathing Mechanics
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The human respiratory system plays a critical role in bringing oxygen into the body and removing carbon dioxide. Key organs include the nasal cavity, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, and alveoli, each with specific functions. Breathing is controlled by both involuntary and voluntary nervous systems, enabling smooth gas exchange. This text also explains how inhalation and exhalation occur through pressure changes in the chest cavity, and highlights common lung diseases such as cancer and asthma. Diagrams are provided for anatomical reference.
Understanding the Human Respiratory System: Functions, Organs, and Breathing Mechanics
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Presentation Transcript
Respiratory System 1/5/2010
Function • To bring oxygen into the body and to remove carbon dioxide
Organs of the Respiratory System(Vocabulary Words) • Nasal cavity – warms and moistens air • Pharynx –(back of the throat) contains epiglottis to keep food and liquid from airway • Larynx – airway that contains vocal cords • Trachea – tube to lungs • Bronchi – short tubes that enter lungs • Bronchioles – smaller tubes • Alveoli – sacs where air is exchanged with capillaries
respiratory system is under control of both the involuntaryand voluntary nervous system. • The (autonomic) involuntary nervous system controls breathing in response to carbon dioxide level in the blood. • Humans can decide to hold their breath, such as when they dive underwater. The respiratory system is then controlled by the somatic nervous system. • If a person passes out because they voluntarily hold their breath, the autonomic nervous system will take over until the blood gasses return to normal.
Scenario • Visualize a balloon trapped inside a 2 liter bottle. • If you were to try and blow up a balloon in the bottle, it would not work because the air pressure in the bottle is greater than the air pressure in the balloon. • The air in the bottle has no where to go as you try to fill up the balloon, which is the reason the balloon cannot inflate.
Now, if you were to poke a small hole in the 2 liter bottle, would the balloon be able to inflate? • Yes, because now the air in the bottle can move outside the bottle as the balloon is inflated and expands inside the 2 liter bottle. • This is to help you visualize the idea of different air pressures inside your lungs and outside your body.
How does breathing work? • When you inhale, the diaphragm(muscle beneath your lungs)and intercostal muscles (those are the muscles between your ribs) contract and expand the chest cavity. • This expansion lowers the pressure in the chest cavity below the outside air pressure. • Air then flows in through the airways (from high pressure to low pressure) and inflates the lungs.
Exhaling • When you exhale, the diaphragm and intercostal muscles relax and the chest cavity gets smaller. • The decrease in volume of the cavity increases the pressure in the chest cavity above the outside air pressure. • Air from the lungs (high pressure) then flows out of the airways to the outside air (low pressure). • The cycle then repeats with each breath. You breathe in and out anywhere from 15 to 25 times per minute without even thinking about it.
Lung Diseases • Cancer – usually caused by cigarettes • Asthma – shortness of breath caused by contraction of bronchioles • Emphysema – lung capacity reduced
Lung Diagram Use the pictures to draw and label: nasal cavity, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, alveoli, diaphragm
