Blood Anatomy
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Blood Anatomy
Blood is a constantly circulating fluid providing the body with nutrition, oxygen, and waste removal. Blood is mostly liquid, with numerous cells and proteins suspended in it, making blood "thicker" than pure water. The average person has about 5 liters (more than a gallon) of blood.
-Red blood cells, which carry oxygen to the tissues
• White blood cells, which fight infections
• Platelets, smaller cells that help blood to clot
Red Blood Cells
-Supply and carry oxygen throughout the body
-makes up 7% of the human body
-Red blood cells develop in bone marrow and circulate in the body for around 120 days.
White Blood Cells
-They fight off disease and foreign bacteria.
-A healthy adult has between 4,500-11,000 wbc's per cubic mm.
-Most occur outside the circulation within tissues that fight off infection
Platelets
-are naturally produced from the body to prevent blood loss
-Clotting occurs after blood reaches the outside oxygen
-A clot that forms in a healthy vessel can reduce oxygen flow through blood.
Blood Plasma
-makes up 55% of the body's total blood volume
-holds blood cells in whole blood during suspension