Human Respiratory System

                                              let's

begin this session by doing some deep

breathing

so take a deep breath in hold

and breathe out repeat again

aren't you feeling fresh and energetic

but tell me where does the air actually

go when we breathe

you might say it goes to our lungs

well yes it is correct the air

passes through the respiratory tract and

then

enters the lungs so let's explore the

features

and the parts of the human respiratory

system

the air enters the human body through

nostrils

which then passes through the nasal

cavity

the air is filtered by specialized hair

like structure

in the nasal cavity called celia

the cells of the nasal cavity secrete

mucus

which helps to trap the dust particles

and blocks it from moving ahead

the nasal cavity also provides warmth

and adds moisture to the air the nasal

cavity

has specialized sensory cells that are

sensitive

to smell and odour and yes that is the

reason

why our nose is a sense organ

the nasal cavity opens into a much wider

cavity

called the pharynx the pharynx is a

common passage for air and food

it is easily visible when you open your

mouth

wide yes the region behind our tongue

has this ever occurred to you that while

having

food you cough because the food

accidentally entered the other pipe

well yes this never happens otherwise

this is because the pharynx has a

cartilaginous

flap-like structure called epiglottis

this epiglottis closes the windpipe

when we swallow the food it prevents the

entry of the food in the windpipe

so while swallowing if the epiglottis is

partially closed weak off

followed by fairings is a region called

larynx

the voice box the larynx in males

is often seen protruding out this is

called

the adam's apple from here the air

passes through

a four inch long tube-like structure

called

trachea the trachea is often referred to

as the wind pipe

if you carefully observe the structure

there are many c-shaped

cartilaginous rings present on the

trachea

what do you think is the function of

these rings

these rings prevent the windpipe from

collapsing

close to the lungs the trachea or the

windpipe divides into two

tubes called the bronchi

the single tube is called bronchus

each of these tubes enters their

respective lungs

on entering the lungs each bronchus

further divides

into secondary bronchus which further

divides

into finer tubes called tertiary bronchi

and much finer bronchiole

by repeated branching the bronchioles

ultimately

enter in a cluster of tiny air sac like

structures

called the alveoli they are often

referred to

as the air sacs the alveoli are

surrounded with blood vessels

they are the actual site for gaseous

exchange

now talking about the respiratory organ

lungs

lungs are a pair of air-filled spongy

organ

located in the chest cavity carefully

observe the size of the lung

are the two of the same size the right

lung

is larger than the left lung can you

think

why is it so it provides space to

accommodate the heart

though centrally located the base of the

heart is slightly tilted towards the

left

and this space is provided by the left

lung

the lungs are protected by a ribcage

here is a question for you to think

about why does a ribcage have a

cage-like structure

with gaps in between and why is it not a

closed

sealed structure