Part of the human circulatory system is an amazing network of natural tubes called veins and arteries. This network of tubing is responsible for delivering vital blood throughout the human body. Not only is the body nourished by essential nutrients and oxygen found within the blood, but much of the waste found in the body is taken away in the process. But, these tubes and blood are not the only part of the human circulatory system. If it were not for the heart, the process would fail and the body would soon die.
Some refer to the heart as the key to the circulatory system. The heart is responsible for keeping the blood flowing in the correct cyclical process throughout the body. The muscle of the heart is what allows it to continually pump over and over. It does most of the work as it repeatedly contracts to force blood into, and then out of, each of its four chambers, and then throughout the intricate network of veins and arteries in the body.
Throughout this process the body feeds itself off of the oxygen, and nutrients, found in the blood that are vital to its survival. At the same time, waste from the body is carried away in the blood, and eventually removed from the body. It is truly an amazing feat, and if it were not for the heart, impossible.
Think of it this way. When a house is on fire the fire department is called in. A fire truck responses to the scene, and pumps water through a network of hoses that are attached to it in order for the water to do what it is supposed to do (put out the fire). Without the fire truck (the heart) the hoses (the arteries and veins) would be unable to deliver the water (the blood) to the place where it is needed (throughout the body) in order for it to accomplish the task at hand (feed and cleanse the body). It’s a rough analogy, but one that shows how the circulatory system works.
What would happen if the fire truck were taken out of the equation? The water wouldn’t be pumped to where it needed to go and the fire would, no doubt, rage on out of control until it utterly destroyed whatever was on fire. All this because the life-saving water couldn’t be sent through the hoses to the fire. If your heart failed to pump blood throughout your body, your body would starve, and quickly begin to die from lack of oxygen. It becomes apparent just how vital the heart is to the human circulatory system.
So, the next time you take your pulse, and you feel the blood rushing through the vessels just below your skin, you’ll have a better understanding of what’s taking place inside your body, and just how important your heart is to the whole process.
