FUNCTIONS OF THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM Delivery of oxygen

FUNCTIONS OF THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM

Delivery of oxygen and nutrients • Main role of the CV system is transportation. • Exercise increases the demand for oxygen and nutrients to come from the lungs and digestive system to feed our muscle cells, when we exercise. • Blood is a specialised tissue which carries out these functions. Red blood cells – carry oxygen as the protein haemoglobin found in the red blood cells has a binding site called the Heme.

Removal of waste products • The oxygen and nutrients get transported to where they are required in the body. • To remove the waste products from the organs and tissues the blood transports them to the lungs and kidneys where they get excreted. • E. g Co 2 is transported in the plasma in the blood via the veins back to the lungs to be expired out.

Thermoregulation • The body temperature should be between 35 - 37 degrees. • Thermoregulation is controlled by the hypothalamus in the brain. • When we exercise, our body temperature rises due to heat being a by-product of the metabolic processes within the cells which occur during exercise (e. g break down of energy) • To allow for this heat to escape, blood gets diverted to the capillaries in the skin, where vasodilation occurs. • If your were to be cold vasoconstriction would occur to keep in the heat.