The body’s breathing system is known as the respiratory system and is most likely the most vital system within the body. When operating correctly it provides us with the oxygen we must have to survive and removes the carbon dioxide we simply do not need.
The human body can go without any food for weeks, without water for days – but without any oxygen from the air we breathe we cannot last more than a couple of minutes.
Of all the muscles in the body, the muscles we use to breathe are the only ones over which we have dual management; that is, they can work both automatically and voluntarily.
When enough air has been inhaled successfully the muscles and diaphragm rest and the air is exhaled as the lungs tighten. Then the diaphragm contracts once more and the cycle starts again.
When the air passes through the nose it enters the trachea and also the bronchi, Which are small airways that run through every lung.These bronchi turn smaller and smaller, eventually taking the shape of bronchioles, which finish as small air sacs known as alveoli. The alveoli are connected to blood capillaries, which switch over oxygen and carbon dioxide at a really fast rate.
On average we take about twelve breaths per minute, and that rate is controlled by the body consistent with its desires at a particular purpose in time. If there is too much carbon dioxide and very little oxygen, the rate of breathing will increase and the body can gulp or gasp for air.
This could, as an example, occur during strenuous exercise, an asthma attack, or in fright. When the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide come back to normal, breathing returns to its normal rate. Breathing problems are very serious and it is imperative to treat them as soon as possible.