BIOLOGY

UNIT ONE RESPIRATION

1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
1.6
1.7

Respiration, what is it?

Inhaled air and exhaled air
Respiration in organisms
The respiratory system
Inhaling and exhaling
Healthy lungs and bronchi
Smoking

1.8
1.9

Vocal cords
Vital capacity

1.1

Respiration, what is it?

To burn something, you need a fuel.

Products formed during burning are called combustion products.
For example:
Burning a candle
Candle wax + oxygen water + carbon dioxide + energy (warmth and light)
(fuel)

(combustion products)

An indicator can prove whether something is there or not. Clear lime water can
indicate carbon dioxide. If there is carbon dioxide, the clear lime water will become
cloudy.

1.2

Inhaled air and exhaled air

Air is a mixture of several different gases.

Inhaled air
78%
21%
1%
0.04%
Small amount
Low

Nitrogen
Oxygen
Inert gases
Carbon Dioxide
Water vapour
Temperature

1.3

Exhaled air
78%
16%
1%
5%
Large amount
High

Respiration in organisms

When you inhale and exhale (respiration), a burning process takes place.
For this you need fuel, which is often glucose.
During respiration energy is released. It is needed for the organs to function, and to
keep your body at the right temperature.
When you take exercise, your cells work hard.
They need more energy more fuel more oxygen
more food
Your organs work hard to get rid of the combustion products formed.

Cold-blooded animals have a temperature that changes with the temperature

outside.
Warm-blooded animals have a constant temperature.
Most animals are cold-blooded. Only mammals and birds are warm-blooded.
In the winter most cold-blooded animals go in hibernation. They go into a sort of
unconscious state, where they dont eat.
Some warm-blooded animals hibernate as well. Their body temperate drops so they
dont need that much energy. Some warm-blooded animals migrate to warmer
places.
Warm-blooded animals that do not move or hibernate need more energy to keep up
their body temperate, so they need more fuel.

1.4

The respiratory system

You breath in air nose/mouth windpipe bronchi (inside lungs) bronchioles

alveoli blood vessels (lung capillaries)
Breathing in through your nose is better than through your mouth. In the nose, mucus
warms and moistens the inhaled air. Also, nasal hair filters the dust particles and
germs you might breathe in.
After that air enters the larynx. Both the gullet and windpipe open here. To make sure
air doesnt go into your gullet, the pharynx and the epiglottis cover up your gullet.
This also works the other way round. If food comes into your windpipe, you choke.
The windpipe has rings of cartilage around it to keep it from collapsing. Air goes
down the windpipe to the bronchi, two pipes that go into your lungs. In your lungs,
they split up in bronchioles. The bronchioles all connect to alveoli, small airsacs.
These air sacs are connected to blood vessels.

1.5

Inhaling and exhaling

There are two types of breathing: thoracic breathing and abdominal breathing.
Thoracic breathing:
Inhaling:
Ribs and ribcage move upwards chest becomes larger lungs become larger
air is sucked in.
Exhaling:
Ribs and ribcage move downwards chest becomes smaller lungs become
smaller air is pushed out.

Abdominal breathing:

Inhaling:
Diaphragm moves downwards chest becomes larger lungs become larger
air is sucked in.
Exhaling:
Diaphragm moves upwards chest becomes smaller lungs become smaller
air is pushed out.
When the diaphragm moves downwards, the abdomen (belly) is pushed to the front,
so your belly gets bigger.

1.6

Healthy lungs and bronchi

Lungs can have disorders, like asthma or COPD.

With an asthma attack, tiny muscles in the bronchioles subtract which makes it more
difficult to breathe. When an asthma patient is not having an asthma attack, nothing
is wrong with their breathing.
COPD is an inflammation caused by smoking. More mucus is produced and the
bronchioles become blocked. This makes breathing more difficult.
Asthma and COPD patients are often allergic for things like animal hairs, smoke or
dust.

Hay fever involves an allergic reaction. People with hay fever are allergic to certain
kinds of pollen grains. Symptoms are itchy and irritated eyes, itchy nose, or a blocked
or runny nose.
What exactly happens is that the pollen grains come in contact with the mucus, which
causes production of more mucus. You are born with hay fever. It can take a while for
the symptoms to start, but they can also fade away after a while. Hay fever is not
harmful.
The best remedy is avoiding pollen. The worst weather for hay fever patients is
sunny and windy days, because theres lots of pollens in the air then. Also, it helps to
wear sunglasses.
The best way to avoid allergic reactions is to avoid what triggers it.

1.7

Smoking

Smoke consists of:

Tar stops cilia from doing their job. Mucus is longer in the throat
Nicotine makes you addicted
Carbon monoxide makes your blood less able to transport oxygen

Passive smoking is getting smoke in your lungs by inhaling the air while someones
smoking.
There are some measures against smoking: cigarettes cannot be advertised, you
cannot sell cigarettes to people under the age of 16, and it is forbidden to smoke in
public spaces.

Because of the nicotine, there are some withdrawal symptoms from smoking. For
example, you can get easily irritated, and you might want to eat a lot of sweets, which
will make you fat. The withdrawal symptoms will fade.

1.8

Vocal chords

Your vocal chords are located in the larynx, behind the thyroid cartilage (Adams
apple). They consist of two flaps of skin which ca vibrate. The vocal chords are found
between two pieces of corniculate cartilage. Those pieces can twist a little. The
opening between the vocal chords can become bigger or smaller. Air passing through
the vocal chords can cause them to vibrate. Your tongue, teeth and lips make it a
recognizable sound.

1.9

Vital capacity

The tidal volume is the amount of air you normally breathe.

The vital capacity is the largest amount of air you can breathe.