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The heart and circulatory system
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The heart is made of muscle and it’s job is to pump
blood around the body. The heart muscle contracts
constantly to make sure every part of the body receives
food,oxygen and heat.
The heart is found between the lungs and is slightly left
of the centre of your body. The heart and lungs are
both protected by the rib cage.
The heart and circulatory system
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Blood is transported around the body through blood
vessels. There are valves in your heart which make
sure that the blood always flows in the right direction
through the blood vessels. Your circulatory system is a
one-way system!
The closing and opening of these valves can be heard
as heart beats.
Blood vessels
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There are three types of blood vessels:
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Arteries
Capillaries
Veins
Arteries carry blood Away from the heart. They start at
the heart as very large vessels but divide many times
until they become tiny vessels called capillaries which
can be found in your body tissues.
Capillaries allow food and oxygen to move from your
blood into your body tissue and pick up waste such as
carbon dioxide.
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Capillaries then join up to form large vessels
called veins which take blood back into the
heart.
Copy and complete the flow chart by writing in
the three types of blood vessel
From heart
To heart
Pulse
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When the heart beats the arteries swell a little. This
can be felt by placing the fingertips on any artery near
the skin.
The average pulse rate is 66 beats per min but can
range from 60-80 beats per min.
Pulse rate depends on size, age, and fitness of a
person.
A high resting pulse rate can lead to heart disease. A
low resting pulse can indicate fitness.
Pulse can be measured using fingers and stopclock or
a pulsometer.
Recovery time
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Fit people usually have low resting pulse rates
and short recovery times.
Their hearts and lungs are so efficient that their
pulse returns to normal rate very quickly after
exercise.
Pulse rate and recovery time can be reduced
by getting fitter.