Interactive Resources for Schools
This topic takes on average 55 minutes to read.
There are a number of interactive features in this resource:
Biology
Human biology
Physical education
Science
A large multicellularmulticellular
Made up of more than one, usually many cells.
organism such as a person needs a transport system to move substances around to the cells. In the human body the transport system consists of:
Together they make up the cardiovascular system.
The cardiovascular system has a number of different functions in the body. These include:
We are very active animals so our cells need lots of oxygen. We have a very efficient system which makes sure our cells get the oxygen they need.
Your heart is not a single pump - it is in effect two pumps joined and working together. One part of the heart pumps deoxygenated blooddeoxygenated blood
Blood which has given up the oxygen it was carrying to the tissues.
to the lungs to get rid of waste carbon dioxide and pick up oxygen. The other part of the heart pumps this oxygenated blood all around the body. This is a double circulation.
However your cardiovascular system is not a simple system of boxes. There are different types of blood vesselsblood vessels
The tubes through which blood is carried around the body, e.g., arteries, veins and capillaries.
(arteries, veins and capillaries) and the blood flows through lots of different organs.
Every time the heart pumps the blood is pushed around the cardiovascular system. It flows in a constant stream (see the animation below).
Blood flow in the cardiovascular system