Blood

What is blood made of? 1.Plasma - the fluid part of the blood that everything travels through 2.Red Blood Cells (RBCs) - carry oxygen to cells using hemoglobin 3.White Blood Cells (WBCs) - seek and destroy foreign invaders 4.Platelets - small pieces of white blood cells that stick together to make scabs Other stuff - nutrients, wastes, water, minerals, sugars, proteins, and hormones

What is blood? Blood is a connective tissue. Blood carries gases, nutrients, and wastes to and from cells in the body. Blood vessels are like highways with blood cells as the trucks! Blood defends the body against infections and other foreign invaders.

Your Blood Your Blood Cells

Blood Pressure

Measuring Blood Pressure Systolic Pressure Diastolic Pressure Systolic pressure is the highest pressure in your blood vessels. It is when the heart is squeezing the blood out into the arteries. Diastolic pressure is the lowest pressure in the blood vessels. It is when the heart is relaxed.

Too High or Too Low? Lower blood pressure is usually a good sign of health.. REALLY low blood pressure (hypotension) can be bad because it may mean parts of your body may not be getting enough blood supply. High blood pressure (hypertension) is a sign that your heart and arteries are being overworked. High blood pressure can eventually lead to stroke, heart attack, kidney damage, eye damage, or artery damage.

Blood Types A person can have one of four blood types: A, B, AB, or O. The letters indicate which antigen you have on the surface of your red blood cells.

Antibodies and Antigens When an antibody recognizes the antigen on a foreign “invader”, it tags it for attack. White blood cells will attack the invader.

Summary Blood pressure is the measure of the force of your blood against your arteries. Too low or too high blood pressure is bad. The four blood types refer to the antigens on the surface of your RBC’s. Antibodies tag other foreign things for attack. SrMk0http:// SrMk0

Make a Model of Blood Use your imagination and some household items to make a model of blood. You should use a plastic sandwich bag or glass jar to enclose your blood. However, you need to figure out the rest. What will represent plasma? What will you use for RBC’s, WBC’s, and platelets? Be creative!

To Get an A+ on your model… Your model must: Have representations of plasma, RBC, WBC, and platelets Be creative Be accurate (see below) Keep in mind that blood is about 50% RBC and 50% plasma. There are only a few WBC and platelets compared to RBC and plasma.