- What is the circulatory system?
- Function of the circulatory system
- Parts of the circulatory system
- Diseases of the circulatory system
We explain what the circulatory system is and its main functions. In addition, the parts that compose it and their possible diseases.
What is the circulatory system?
The circulatory system or circulatory system is a complex internal transport mechanism that the body of the living beings, and that allows the transfer of different nutrients, regulatory substances, chemical defenses and other substances fundamental throughout the organismas well as the collection of toxins, metabolic by-products, and other waste materials for disposal.
This type of system exists both in Vertebrate animals as in the invertebrates, although not in the same way. In the case of the former, it transports blood, a red fluid rich in iron that allows, among other things, the transfer of oxygen necessary to obtain Energy. In the case of the latter, hemolymph or other similar substances are transported; in the one of the plants, sap.
The circulatory system of the human body includes a vast network of blood conduits known as capillaries, which connect to a larger network made up of veins and arteries. At the center of it all, a muscular pump known as the heart. When we cut or injure ourselves, blood gushes out because some (usually minor) section of said network is violated. Fortunately, the blood also carries cells responsible for repairing tissue and stopping minor bleeding.
Function of the circulatory system
As has been said, the function of the circulatory system is key: to keep the blood going to oxygenate the body and preserve the life of the tissues. If any tissue were to be isolated from this vast blood network, any member or organ, its cells would suffer from a lack of oxygen and would die. This is known as ischemia.
In the same way, this device has the mission of communicating the whole body, allowing the displacement of chemical substances of diverse nature, such as hormones (to regulate the activity of the body), white blood cells (and other defensive cells), or the necessary nutrients to produce new cells and tissues (carbohydrates, protein Y lipids). Even the medicines we take or the injections we receive use this transportation system to get to where they are needed.
Finally, the circulating blood also passes through certain filters, such as the liver, where it is stripped of toxins, pollutants and substances produced by the metabolism. The circulatory system is, at the same time, a channel of nutrition and waste collection.
Parts of the circulatory system
The circulatory system is essentially made up of:
- Capillary vessels. Small branches of the blood network that reach the most hidden corners of the body. No tissue in the body is left out of the blood flow. Some capillaries can be thinner than human hair.
- Arteries One of the two major types of blood conduits, it is characterized by carrying freshly oxygenated blood from the lungs to the heart and from there to the rest of the body. They contain redder blood (due to a pigment called hemoglobin). An injury to an artery can be serious because the volume The amount of blood that is transported through them is very large, and there is not always time to repair the wound to prevent bleeding.
- Veins. Contrary to the arteries, these larger conduits contain non-oxygenated blood, that is, blood that begins the journey back to the heart and then to the lungs, to resume the cycle. Like arteries, they are bulky ducts, and a cut or blockage in the veins is often fatal.
- Heart. The pump that keeps the blood constant movement, is a muscular and hollow organ that weighs about 300 grams and contains four chambers: two atria and two ventricles. This construction prevents venous and arterial blood from mixing, as each is propelled to a different destination. The human heart pumps about five liters of blood per minute, which means that in about 70 years of life it pumps about 2.6 billion times, with a minuscule rest between beats of just 0.4 seconds.
Diseases of the circulatory system
The circulatory system can suffer from diseases such as:
- Arteriosclerosis. An ailment that consists of the accumulation of fatty plaques and other substances on the walls of the arteries, solidifying and decreasing blood flow, which slows down circulation and requires greater cardiac effort.
- Hypertension. Due to many possible causes, it consists of an excess of force in the heartbeat, which sends the blood with great intensity through the arteries, eventually breaking a capillary and producing a stroke, or exhausting the heart and leading to a heart attack.
- Ischemias. They usually affect the heart or brain, but also other organs or members of the body. They occur when something obstructs the flow of blood, causing some part of the body not to receive enough blood and begin to die.