“How Blood is Formed and Circulated in the Body: A Detailed Guide”

Its main cells are produced in the bone marrow, a gelatinous structure found inside various bones in the body. However, it is the water that people drink that is responsible for the volume of about five liters of blood that circulate through the body. This water is what is part of the blood fluid, or plasma, a substance in which three types of cells produced in the bone marrow are mixed: red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.

YOU MUST HAVE THE MARROW Stem cells: hidden in the bones, they become blood cells or platelets.

1. The bone marrow, as its name implies, is found inside the bones; It is formed by a gelatinous tissue that looks like a sponge swollen with blood. Popularly known as marrow.
2. At birth, all bones have bone marrow capable of producing blood. Over time most of this function is lost, becoming fatty tissue called yellow marrow. Within adult bones, only those that are long (femur, humerus) or flattened (ribs, skull, vertebrae, sternum) have functional bone marrow.
3. The medulla is surrounded by a large network of small blood vessels. It is through these fine capillaries that it receives the supplement of ‘ingredients’ such as iron, vitamins and folic acid, substances that it uses to produce the main components of blood.
4. The blood cell production process begins from a cell found in large numbers in the bone marrow, the hematopoietic stem cell.
5. After a short period of maturity, these stem cells become the major cellular components of blood: red blood cells, white blood cells, or platelets.
6. The marrow works tirelessly. When blood cells are fully formed and mature, they leave the bone marrow and enter the network of blood vessels to replace platelets and blood cells that are about to complete their life cycle.

RED BLOOD CELLS:

Amount per cubic millimeter of blood: just over 5 million. Life time: 120 days. Its function is to transport oxygen to all tissues of the body. Also called red blood cells or erythrocytes. They have a pigment called hemoglobin that helps blood get its red color.

PLATELETS:

Amount per cubic millimeter of blood: between 150,000 and 450,000. Life time: 9 days. Platelets are a fragment of a larger cell called a megakaryocyte. This is shaped like a disc which is essential for blood clotting – without platelets (or thrombocytes) there would be bleeding.

WHITE BLOOD CELLS:

Amount per cubic millimeter of blood between 5,000 and 10,000 Life time: depends on the type, they can live a week. They are the main defense agent of the organism against the attack of bacteria, viruses, etc.

PLASMA:

It is the liquid part of the blood, it has a yellow color and serves to carry water and nutrients to the tissues of the body. Almost 90% of plasma is pure water – where substances such as proteins, mineral salts, hormones and glucose are dissolved – Plasma is basically made up of the water you drink.

BLOOD CIRCULATION

It transports nutrients to cells and collects waste from them.

To understand the volume of blood circulating through our body, imagine blood circulation as a two-way highway; in one direction, the blood carries food, water and oxygen to the cells of the body; in the opposite direction, when it returns from the cells, it carries carbon dioxide and other waste that must be eliminated.

GREAT CIRCULATION:

1. It begins just when the blood leaves the heart in the direction of the rest of the body. The first stage of this journey is through the arteries, which are thick blood vessels with three layers of tissue, including a muscular one.
2. Arteries end in small vessels, called capillaries, which have much thinner walls. When blood passes through the capillaries, part of the liquid passes through the walls and spreads between the closest cells, supplying them with nutrients and oxygen.
3. The other ends of the capillaries connect to venous vessels, also known as veins. It is through them that the blood, now with waste discarded by the cells, goes back to the heart.

SMALL CIRCULATION:

Lungs/Heart

It occurs between the heart and the lungs. The blood that reaches the heart is sent to the lungs, where it exchanges carbon dioxide (CO²) for oxygen (O²). Oxygenated blood returns from the heart to be pumped throughout the body.

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