Recently we looked at what blood is made of. But in today’s post we want to look at the function it carries out in the body.
At Phlebotomy training we have an intimate knowledge of the way blood works, and moves around the body. But we know that many people may not. To put it simply, we find the role of blood within the body to be utterly fascinating, so we thought we’d write a post about what blood does within the body.
- Blood Protects Us
It does this in two main ways. The first is that it clots at the site of an open wound, preventing you from losing too much blood. The second way is that our white blood cells have antibodies in them, these antibodies defend us from infection and foreign bodies.
- It Fuels Us
Blood carries oxygen to cells and tissues allowing us to move and function properly. It also delivers essential nutrients to cells around the body such as amino acids, glucose, and fatty acids. At the same time it carries away waste such a carbon dioxide, lactic acid and urea.
- It is a Message Deliverer
By transporting hormones around the body blood passes along messages that affect us in a number of ways.
- It is our central heating system
Blood constantly works to regulate our heat. When we are warm, whether this is from exercise or the weather, blood flows to the skin to keep your internal organs cool, and to speed up our body’s natural cooling process (sweating). When we get cold blood retreats into the body to warm and protects our vital organs.
Obviously we are slightly biased here at Phlebotomy Training, but we think blood is quite incredible. Phlebotomy training was founded in 2007 by Alison Purkiss who has over 15 years’ experience working as a phlebotomist. We provide phlebotomy training across the length and breadth of the UK, in cities such as Dublin, Newcastle and Birmingham. Check our course page for more details, or call us on 01609 751 610.