How is digestive system related to respiratory system

Your skeletal system relies on the nutrients it gains from your digestive system to build strong, healthy bones. A body system is a group of parts that work together to serve a common purpose. Your cardiovascular system works to circulate your blood while your respiratory system introduces oxygen into your body. Each individual body system works in conjunction with other body systems. The circulatory system is a good example of how body systems interact with each other.

Your heart pumps blood through a complex network of blood vessels. When your blood circulates through your digestive system, for example, it picks up nutrients your body absorbed from your last meal. Your blood also carries oxygen inhaled by the lungs. Your circulatory system delivers oxygen and nutrients to the other cells of your body then picks up any waste products created by these cells, including carbon dioxide, and delivers these waste products to the kidneys and lungs for disposal.

Each of your body systems relies on the others to work well. Your respiratory system relies on your circulatory system to deliver the oxygen it gathers, while the muscles of your heart cannot function without the oxygen they receive from your lungs.

The bones of your skull and spine protect your brain and spinal cord, but your brain regulates the position of your bones by controlling your muscles. The circulatory system provides your brain with a constant supply of oxygen-rich blood while your brain regulates your heart rate and blood pressure. The trachea divides into two when it enters the lungs, a process known as bifurcation. The result is the two pathways known as the prinary bronchi.

The bronchi continue to branch into more and more bronchioles throughout the lungs. The nasal mucosa helps warm incoming air. The trachea becomes thinner when it enters the lungs, as opposed to wider and thicker. Alveoli are responsible for absorbing oxygen; oxygen cannot be absorbed by neighboring capillaries in the trachea or bronchi.

The trachea bifurcates splits in two to create the left and right bronchi upon entering the lungs. Bronchioles arise from the subsequent branching of the bronchi, and eventually send oxygenated air to the alveoli for gas exchange with deoxygenated blood via adjacent capillary beds.

The esophagus is used to transport food and liquids from the mouth to the stomach, and is not involved in the respiratory system or lungs.

The trachea conducts air between the larynx and the bronchi. The bronchi conduct air from the trachea to the lungs. The epiglottis is a flap of cartilage in the pharynx that covers the opening to the larynx during swallowing and directs food and liquids down the esophagus. The mouth and pharynx are the first two structures air travels through during inspiration, or inhalation, in the respiratory system. The pharynx is located at the back of the mouth, and is the upper region of the throat that connects the nose and mouth.

Although there is a tendency to confuse the trachea and the esophagus, students should understand the fundamental difference. The trachea is a respiratory structure, which transports air and gases between the external atmosphere and the internal environment of the lungs.

The esophagus is a digestive system structure, which, through the muscular contractions of peristalsis, carries ingested food down to the stomach. Thus, esophagus is the correct answer. The process of air moving into and out of the lungs is called pulmonary ventilation. Cellular respiration refers to the process by which fuel molecules are converted into energy molecules such as ATP think back to glycolysis, Krebs cycle, and electron transport.

Pulmonary respiration refers to the specific process of gas exchange between the body capillaries and the environment air inside the alveoli. Aleveoli are small sacs in the lungs which help with the exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen from the bloodstream to the lungs. The trachea and bronchi are surrounded by thick connective tissue cartilage and thus, their walls are much too thick to allow gas exchange, thus they function to transport air to and from the alveoli.

The pleura are the membranes surrounding the lungs and lining the thoracic wall, and thus never come into direct contact with air. The thorax is not a part of the lungs, rather, it is the anatomical region we commonly refer to as the chest. If you've found an issue with this question, please let us know. With the help of the community we can continue to improve our educational resources.

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Hanley Rd, Suite St. Louis, MO Subject optional. Email address: Your name:. Example Question 1 : Understanding Respiratory Organs. What are the two primary divisions of the respiratory tract? Possible Answers: The inner and outer divisions. The pre-alveolar and the post-alveolar divisions. Correct answer: The upper and lower divisions. Explanation : The organs of the respiratory system are organized into the upper respiratory tract and the lower respiratory tract.

Report an Error. Example Question 2 : Understanding Respiratory Organs. This oxygen-rich blood then flows back to the heart, which pumps it through the arteries to oxygen-hungry tissues throughout the body. In the tiny capillaries of the body tissues, oxygen is freed from the hemoglobin and moves into the cells. Carbon dioxide, made by the cells as they do their work, moves out of the cells into the capillaries, where most of it dissolves in the plasma of the blood.

Blood rich in carbon dioxide then returns to the heart via the veins. From the heart, this blood is pumped to the lungs, where carbon dioxide passes into the alveoli to be exhaled. Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor. Search Spectrum Health. Search KidsHealth library. What Are the Lungs and Respiratory System?

This exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide is called respiration. What Are the Parts of the Respiratory System? The respiratory system includes the nose, mouth, throat, voice box, windpipe, and lungs. Reviewed by: Larissa Hirsch, MD. Smoking Asthma Center Cystic Fibrosis. Print Send to a Friend.