Your
heart, quite simply, is a pump. but it is one of the most fascinating
pumps you'll ever learn about. First you must understand that every
cell in our body - from the cells in our hair to the cells in our toes
need OXYGEN and NUTRIENTS to survive and keep us alive. Since they can't
get these nutrients themselves, blood is used to deliver them right
to the cells. (sort of like room service)
The
basic job of the heart is pump that blood through your body so that
the blood can deliver the oxygen and nutrients right to the cells. The
heart keeps your blood pumping at all times as it picks up oxygen from
your lungs and nutrients from your digestive system and sends them to
all cells of your body. Your heart is the power behind the delivery
system.
Inside
the heart is four chambers. Two of those chambers send the blood up
to your lungs to get oxygen, then the other two chambers send that oxygen
rich blood to the rest of your body. Valves inside of the heart make
sure that the blood only moves in one direction.
The
younger you are, the faster your heart beats. A baby's heart beats about
90 times a minute. A twelve year old heart beats about 78 times a minute
and an adult heart beats about 70 times a minute. Of course the more
active you are, the more your heart beats, since the cells need oxygen
faster to keep you moving.
