Download 4.9 Immune System Readings

The Immune System
Station 1: An Overview
The word immune means “to be protected.” So then it makes sense why your
immune system is responsible for fighting off sickness. Your immune system is
made up of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to protect your body.
White blood cells are part of this system. There are two types on white blood cells;
one kind, phagocytes, eat up the germ invaders, the other kind, lymphocytes, allow
the body to remember the germ invader incase it attacks again in the future.
These white blood cells are found in lots of places in your body so your immune
system is always ready to fight infection if it has to.
The Immune System
Station 2: Immune System Responses
When a germ, also known as a pathogen, infects a person their body can react in
many ways.
One of the more obvious ways is having swollen lymph nodes. Usually lymph
nodes are small and round so you can’t normally feel them. However, lymph nodes
become swollen when you get sick because they act like filters in the blood stream
to filter out the germs that are causing your cold.
Lymph nodes aren’t just in your neck, you also have them in your knees, your
armpits, and in your groin … just to name a few!
Sometimes your immune system can be triggered by something other than a germ.
An example of this is when you have allergies, or an allergic response to something.
Allergies are when your immune system overreacts and treats something harmless
(like pollen or peanuts) as something dangerous to the body.
The Immune System
Station 3: Protecting Yourself from Germs
There are a few really easy ways that you can protect your body from getting
invaded by germs; first, and most simply, is by washing your hands regularly using
soap and water. Another way you can protect yourself from infections is by eating
well and getting enough sleep and exercise. Some other ways that you can prevent
the spread of germs is by sneezing into your elbow, rather than your hand or with
nothing covering your mouth.
Lastly, getting your regular shots, also known as vaccines, can help protect your
body from more serious infections. Vaccines work by putting a dead or weakened
version of a germ into your body. This allows your white blood cells to remember it
and produce antibodies against the germ in case it attacks again in the future.