Mid-unit Summary

The focus of this unit is the Cardiovascular system. Its function is vital to life because it is in charge of transporting oxygen and blood throughout the body and making the heart beat. The heart is composed of four major chambers, the left and right ventricle, and the left and right atrium. It is sometimes referred to as a double pump, because the left side transports oxygenated blood, and the right side deals with the returned deoxygenated blood. Blood vessels transport this blood between chambers and then disperses it throughout the body. Veins carry blood to the heart from tissue, and arteries are vise versa. Hypertension can occur in which the rate at blood is being pumped is faster than vessels can transport it. This can also be influenced by disorders such as atherosclerosis, where blood vessels can become obstructed and clot can occur. Atherosclerosis can trigger aneurysms when vessels burst due to blockage. The blood that is transported by vessels are two types: red blood cells, and white blood cells. Red blood cells are composed of hemoglobin which carry oxygen and do not have nuclei. Anemia can occur when there is a lack of oxygen carried in these cells and is genetically inherited. White blood cells have five types: neutrophils (ingest bacteria), basophils (inflammation and allergic reactions), eosinophils (also elevated in reactions), lymphocytes (destroy bacteria and attack threatening cells), monocytes (similar to lymphocytes but are larger with more intercellular space). Diseases can occur within the cardiovascular system like heart attacks and strokes. These occur when there is reduced blood flow to the heart or complete cut off. Symptoms may not show or are overlooked easily because blocked arteries do not always appear blocked.  Strokes however, occur in blood vessels in the brain or leading to the brain. When blood can not properly flow, arteries can burst, which can be life threatening.

Blood Pressure Lab Analysis

Analysis Questions
1) The systolic blood pressure is when the heart contracts, and the diastolic blood pressure is when the heart relaxes. The systolic number will always be higher than the diastolic number because it takes more pressure to squeeze blood out of the heart through the body than to relax and return less blood to the heart.
2) A stethoscope is used to measure heart rate by counting the number of heart beats heard in 30 seconds and multiplying by 2. A blood pressure cuff, or sphygmomanometer, is used to measure blood pressure by cutting off the blood circulation and slowly releasing the constriction.
3)Using your thumb to measure pulse is not ideal because there is a pulse in your thumb and when taking other people's heart rates you can begin to count your own rate rather than someone else's.
4)To use a blood pressure cuff, you first put the cuff around the upper arm and make sure the air bladder is deflated. Place the stethoscope just under the cuff  and inflate fairly quickly. Watch the pressure gauge and stop squeezing around 150 mmHg when a pulse cannot be heart anymore. Slowly open the valve and listen for the return of the heart beat and note the number, and when you can no longer hear the heart beat as well. The systolic blood pressure over the diastolic pressure is the final blood pressure.

Chalk Walk

In this chalk walk, we reviewed the flow of blood throughout the circulatory system. The heart is composed of four main chambers, the right and left ventricle, and the right and left atrium. The right side transports de-oxygenated blood through the system to the left side that transports oxygenated blood. Deoxygenated blood enters through the right atrium, passing through the tricuspid valve into the right ventricle. From here it passes through the pulmonary arteries into the lungs. The lungs inhale oxygen, which is transported through the blood into left pulmonary veins. It passes through the left atrium, past the bicuspid valve and dumps into the left ventricle. Once going through the aorta and inferior/superior vena cava, the blood recycles through the process again.

Unit 2 Reflection

Unit 2 was focused around the five pillars of health: nutrition, sleep, stress, exercise and social. I learned that all of these factors must be balanced down to microscopic level in order to make sure that our bodies function properly. Each pillar is intertwined with the next because exercise reduces stress, stress reduction increases sleep ability,and nutrition allows body to move and work. Cortisol has been a very important hormone in this unit. It is a stress trigger hormone that signals fight or flight responses, but also controls sleeping habits. Therefore it must be balanced enough to maintain emotional stability, but still vary in levels to direct the body to wake up and go to sleep.

In the nutritional analysis project, I found that my diet is not as balanced as I thought it was. I am taking in 50% of the amount of calories I should, which is very dangerous for the higher level intensity activity I participate in. I am becoming much more aware of what I am eating, I try to find foods that are high in calories, but not high in carbohydrates. A goal of mine is to eat three consistent meals a day so that I am not constantly snacking throughout the day. It will be easier to measure my caloric intake because it isn't spread out.

The sleep diary showed that I am not getting enough sleep, especially on week days when I have school and other extracurriculars. I have always known that I struggle with insomnia, but I rarely change habits which might provide a positive outcome. For the longest time, I did not understand why we need sleep, psychologically there is no requirement as our brains are more active during night. I learned in this unit that we physically need sleep so that cell waste in the brain can be flushed out, lowering brain disease risk.

In conclusion, I learned about many different components to health in this unit. It was informational, but I also had the chance to apply the facts to my own life. I gained self awareness for my health, especially with sleep and nutrition. I plan to continue to make changes in my life in order to benefit my overall wellbeing.

Sleep Diary Reflection

Sleep Diary Reflection

From Wednesday September 28th until Tuesday October 4th, I kept track of my sleep habits, which included: wakeup time, bedtime, number of awakenings during the night and caffeine intake. I have struggled with stress-induced insomnia all of my life, and so keeping track of my sleep is a fairly familiar routine for doctors to analyze. I've learned a lot about sleep from specialists, and I find it an extremely interesting process. I learned that it is more important to have a consistent wake up time rather than trying to focus on a set bedtime. This is because it is impossible to force sleep, but it is easier to wakeup. 

I personally have found a routine that works for my body, I go to bed later but I sleep more soundly than if I tried to lie down at an earlier time. Spending too much time in bed lying awake creates stress and anger, making it even more difficult to fall asleep. The sleep diary that I did for this assignment looks very similar to the ones I have kept in the past. I only get 7 hours, on average, of sleep but I wake up a lot less in the night than when I tried to get 8 or 9 hours of forced sleep. Uninterrupted sleep feels more refreshing than a restless night. Overall, this assignment is a good reminder that sleep is important to my wellbeing and the consistency that I have found has been beneficial for the other health pillars of my life.