Science Common Sense

1588 - What are the processes involved in respiration?

Breathing, or respiration, has two main processes:

  1. Inhalation (Breathing in):
  2. We breathe in air through our nose or mouth.
  3. Air enters our throat and goes down the trachea (windpipe).
  4. The air then reaches the lungs through two smaller airways (bronchus).

  5. The air moves into the tiny air sacs (alveoli) in the lungs.

  6. Exhalation (Breathing out):

  7. The air filled with bad stuff (carbon dioxide) in the lungs comes back up to the trachea.
  8. We breathe out the bad air through our nose or mouth.

Two more processes also happen inside the cells of the body:

  1. Oxygen absorption (in the lungs):

  2. Oxygen from the air we breathe in is absorbed by the blood in the lungs.

  3. Carbon dioxide removal:

  4. Carbon dioxide is taken from the cells to the lungs by the blood, where we breathe it out.
  5. The oxygen in the blood is given to the cells so we can use the energy we have eaten.

This keeps our body working properly, and gives us the energy we need to do the things we love.

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