In the human body the respiratory system, cardiovascular system, the digestive system, the musculoskeletal system all work together for the body to receive the right amounts of energy

by shaunat (student)

This is my essay on how the body uses and stores energy metabolism. Firstly I will explain energy and what it is; I will then continue on to explain how and where the body gets and receives energy and how it is processed through the body. I will include how the respiratory system works and how it works along with energy metabolism and how the respiratory system receives and transports oxygen around the body.

I will include in my essay how the digestive system works, and how food passes through the body. I will then go on to explain about the small intestine and how it works and also what it does to help with energy metabolism. I will then include what other systems work to help with energy metabolism. Towards of the end of my essay I will include my conclusions with the relevant facts I have produced through my essay.

What is energy?

Energy is known as power which can be used to move, work.

How does the body use this energy?

Every cell in the body relies and needs energy to survive, even just a twitch involves energy. In every cell in the body energy is stored and every second the energy is decreasing so you need to feed yourself so that energy is being supplied. (Alcamo, E, I, and Krumhart. (2004)

Where does the body get energy?

The food we eat gets broken down in the digestive system; that then passes through the liver and the bloodstream which is then taken to the cells that need it. You get more energy from proteins and carbohydrates than foods that contains fatty acids.
When you digest food you always get glucose, this is then taken to all the cells who need energy, any energy that’s left over is stored in the liver and skeletal muscles.
If you have not eaten within a few days and there is no food in your body, then the bodies urge for energy turns to the fat inside your body, this will be digested to give your body energy that is needed. (Rinzler, C, A. (2011).

What systems are required to gather the ingredients for energy?

The respiratory system, the digestive system and the cardiovascular system.

The respiratory system the role of the respiratory system is to supply the blood with oxygen, which is then carried throughout the whole body.

The oxygen which is breathed in moves across your blood stream, the body needs oxygen to help digest food. When the respiratory system is working to take in oxygen it gives a steady supply of oxygen to all the cells, the cells then uses that oxygen to break down glucose which helps generate energy.

The digestive system has to provide the nutrients that are needed for energy. The digestive system uses a number of physical and chemical processes. The food that is ingested gets broken into small particles and is mixed with digestive enzymes.

Salivary, gastric, pancreatic, biliary and intestinal secretions ...

This is a preview of the whole essay

Salivary, gastric, pancreatic, biliary and intestinal secretions are produced to give mucus for protection. The digestive system uses muscle contractions to help break up the food. The smooth muscle that is located inside the stomach turns the food that is ingested into liquid which is then passed inside the small intestine.

The cardiovascular system

There are two ways the body can make energy:

Anaerobic – this system doesn’t need oxygen. This is for quick short bursts of energy just like when you’re running. This gives large amount of waste like acid, this is then why you can get a cramp or muscle pains when you’re running.

Aerobic – this system needs oxygen. This gives more energy when you exercise for a few minutes. When the oxygen reaches your blood muscles your aerobic energy system switches on.

What is the role of the respiratory system?

The role of the respiratory system is to supply the blood with oxygen which is then carried throughout the whole body.

How oxygen is transported around the body?

When we breathe in, the Diaphragm tightens and moves down this gives the chest cavity more space for the lungs to expand. As the lungs expand, oxygen is taken in through the nose or mouth. The oxygen travels down the windpipe and into the lungs. After passing through the bronchial tubes, the oxygen reaches and enters the alveoli (air sacs). Through very thin walls in the alveoli, oxygen passes to the surrounding capillaries (blood vessels). A red blood cell called haemoglobin helps move oxygen from these air sacs to the blood. Oxygen-rich blood from the lungs gets moved through a number of capillaries, which become the pulmonary vein. This vein delivers the oxygen-rich blood to the left side of the heart. The left side of the heart pumps the blood to the rest of the body. There, the oxygen in the blood moves from blood vessels into all the tissues.

How important is the respiratory system for energy metabolism?

The respiratory system is crucial for energy metabolism. The mitochondria are a cell in the body that is known as the power cell. This cell uses oxygen to convert energy so the rest of the cells can use it. This gives cells fuel for all the activities they need.

What other systems help with energy metabolism?

Cardiovascular system;

When you breathe in air through your mouth and nose it travels to your lungs. Oxygen from the air is absorbed into your bloodstream through your lungs. Your heart pumps oxygen-rich blood through a number of blood vessels – the arteries – to tissues including your organs, muscles and nerves, all around your body.

When blood reaches the capillaries in your tissues it releases oxygen, which cells use to make energy. These cells release a waste product called carbon dioxide which your blood absorbs and carries away.

The used deoxygenated blood travels along your veins and back towards your heart. Your heart pumps the deoxygenated blood back to your lungs, where it absorbs fresh oxygen, and the cycle starts again.

Musculoskeletal system

The musculoskeletal system helps with energy metabolism because the bones store calcium and minerals which helps the cells activity. Inside the bones there is a red marrow which produces blood cells and on the outside of the bone stores lipids which help with energy levels.

The digestive system

The role of the digestive system is to break down foods that are eaten so that cells can use the nutrients from it.

There are two types of digestion mechanical and chemical digestion.

Mechanical digestion is the first type of digestion we have, before we even place food in our mouths, our mouth salivates beforehand to get ready to digest the food. The mechanical digestion is done by our saliva, teeth and our tongues. It gets broken down so it’s easier for us to digest.

There are two types of mechanical digestion

Mastication –this is the chewing and tearing of food using the teeth. The food is broken down to smaller pieces and allows the chemicals in food to be released. These chemicals make digestion quicker and easier.

Peristalsis – this is contractions of muscles found in the alimentary canal. This allows the food particles to mix with enzymes and gastric juices.

Chemical digestion – this gets carried out by digestion enzymes which break down polymeric macromolecules into their smaller parts, so that they can be absorbed by the body.

How does food enter the body?

When you eat food no matter what kind your teeth help chew and break the food up so it’s easier to travel down your oesophagus, your tongue pushes the food back into your throat down your oesophagus past your epiglottis which is a small flap which opens and closes. The food passes down your oesophagus into your stomach, your stomach releases liquids which is called gastric juices this help to break your food down into a liquid substance which makes it easier to pass. The stomach pushes the food to the small intestine which is wrapped around itself at the bottom of your abdomen; the small intestine digests fats, proteins and carbohydrates.

The small intestine pushes the digested food into the large intestine this is also known as an exit point this is to get any waste left in the food out of your rectum to your anus. (HSE, 2012)

What happens food in the small intestine?

What happens the food in the small intestine is where most of the nutrients are absorbed. Inside the small intestine; whatever food is left in the small intestine is passed into the large intestine (Derrickson, B, H, and Tortora, G, J.(2008)The small intestine is made up of different parts, it starts of at the stomach (pyloric sphincter) and travels down and around into the middle of the abdomen (bottom of your ribcage to your pubic are) and opens up into the large intestine. Inside the small intestine the walls are made up of four layers.

Inside the small intestine is the microvilli, this is to give more space to the small intestine for absorption. Microvilli are small projections of the mucous membrane of the small intestine walls. The microvilli give the small intestine walls a fuzzy appearance and are also known as the brush border. The small intestine has its own juices which it gets from the pancreas (alkaline) which helps to digest carbohydrates, the small intestine gets bile from the liver and the gallbladder this helps the small intestine to break down harder substances like fat. Pancreatic and intestinal enzymes help the small intestine turn proteins into amino acids.

In the small intestine walls there are cells which when food gets pushed along inside the tube these cells get their sugar, vitamins and minerals. When the cells gather these nutrients they send them into your body for energy or to be stored. The small intestine doesn’t absorb water so it’s usually the only nutrient left when it asses into the large intestine.

When the food is passed from the small intestine into the large intestine, the large intestine squeezes the remainder of the food to get the water out and leave it as a dry bundle of waste, which contractions in the rectum pushes the faeces out of the body (DeVault,K,and Rinzler,C,A.(2011).

Conclusion:

In the human body the respiratory system, cardiovascular system, the digestive system, the musculoskeletal system all work together for the body to receive the right amounts of energy it needs. All the cells in the body know what exact nutrient they need and to receive it they have to work together to achieve it.

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