Download The Respiratory System

The Respiratory System
By: Emily Landers
Your respiratory system is how oxygen gets from your nose to your lungs and back out
as carbon dioxide. The oxygen goes from your nose to your pharynx, which is the starting organ
of your throat’s airway. Then, it passes through the larynx and down the trachea; your trachea is
the organ inside your throat that sends the oxygen to the bronchi which is connected to your
lungs that hold the little cell-like things called alveoli. Alveoli trade the blood oxygen for carbon
dioxide within the lungs. Finally, your blood is ready to be sent to your heart to be pumped to the
body to deliver the oxygen it needs to survive.
Your nose is the 2nd most important part of the respiratory system (besides the lungs)
because it is the passage way for the oxygen to get inside your body. Air enters the body through
either an open mouth or the nose. Tiny hairs in your nose trap unwanted particles, while a sticky
liquid called mucus catches all the germs before they get too far into the rest of your body. The
mucus also warms and moistens the air.
About six inches of the trachea is in your throat and the other seven is in your chest. The
lower end of the trachea divides into two bronchi tubes that carry air into the lungs.
Lungs are located in the chest. They bring oxygen into the body and get carbon dioxide
from the body. Inside of the lungs, tubes called bronchi hold the alveoli cells that exchange the
oxygen and carbon dioxide.
The diaphragm is the strong muscle just below the lungs. When you breathe in and out, it
moves up and down against the lung.