gas exchange 2

• Asthma


  A very common condition that affects the bronchioles - the small tubes that carry air in and out of your lungs
• Asthma


  • It has two main components: Constriction - the tightening of the muscles surrounding the airways, and Inflammation - the swelling and irritation of the airways
• Asthma relievers


  Drugs that relax and open up the airways, making it easier to breathe
• Inhaler


  A device that lets you breathe asthma medication in through your mouth and directly into your lungs
• Smoking


  The act of inhaling and exhaling the fumes of burning plant material, most commonly tobacco in a cigarette
• Harmful substances in tobacco smoke


  • Nicotine
  • Tar
  • Carbon monoxide
• Nicotine


  An addictive drug that causes blood vessels to become narrower, increasing blood pressure and risk of heart conditions
• Tar


  A sticky layer that forms inside the lungs, causing breakdown of alveoli walls and reducing gas exchange, leading to emphysema and lung cancer
• Carbon monoxide


  A toxic gas that binds irreversibly to haemoglobin in red blood cells, reducing their ability to carry oxygen
• Exercise


  • Increases the frequency and depth of breathing, as the body requires more oxygen and produces more carbon dioxide
• Capillarisation


  The process of growing more new capillaries at the alveoli in the lungs and in the skeletal muscles, increasing oxygen transfer and carbon dioxide removal
• Regular exercise


  • Increases the strength of the diaphragm and intercostal muscles, and vital lung capacity (the volume of air that can be forcibly exhaled after inhaling fully)