urinary system Flashcards
The wastes our bodies produce:
- Sweat, released through pores in the skin
- Carbon dioxide and water vapour are exhaled from the lungs
- Feces, undigested food materials are formed into feces in the intestines
- Urine
The main function of the urinary system is
to filter blood to remove waste and excess substances such as water and minerals.
function of Kidneys:
- Filters blood through millions of nephrons ( small filtrations units )
- The kidneys receive blood from the renal artery ( which is connected through capillaries surrounding the nephrons)
- Blood circulates in the capillaries, and nephrons filter it by removing excess substances through the process of diffusion.
what is urine made of
mostly water but also, urea, uric, acid, potassium, sodium and urochrome.
what does urochrome do and where does it come from?
Urochrome gives urine its yellow colour and comes from the destruction of hemoglobin in old red blood cells
urine can also contain what?
it can also contain glucose and proteins ( but this could indicate a health problem like diabetes. )
function of Ureters:
They are tubes connecting the kidneys to the bladder and they carry urine to the bladder.
function of the Bladder:
- It is a stretchy bag made of muscles and it stores urine before it is expelled.
- A sphincter (circular muscle) is at the bottom of the bladder contracts to stop the flow of urine and relaxes to expel it.
function of Urethra:
The urethra is a tube that carries urine from the bladder to outside the body.
what is Homeostasis, explain
It is the bodyβs ability to maintain balance (mineral salts in the blood, Blood pH, water, temperature, etc)
example: When we drink a lot of liquids, thereβs too much water in the blood, making the volume of the blood increase. The pituitary gland sends a message to the kidneys which will remove water from the blood, resulting in more diluted urine. Therefore, the concentration of mineral salts in the blood will return to a normal level.