BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Homeostasis

Science
Homeostasis
Conditions in the body are controlled, to provide a constant internal environment. This is called homeostasis. The conditions that must be controlled include body temperature, water content, carbon dioxide level, and blood sugar level. Diabetes is a condition where the body cannot effectively regulate the levels of blood sugar.

Homeostasis
It is important that the bodys internal environment is controlled. For example, the amount of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream must be carefully controlled. Maintaining a constant internal environment is called homeostasis. The nervous system and hormones are responsible for this. Here are some of the other internal conditions that are controlled:

Blood sugar level

This is controlled to provide cells with a constant supply of energy. The blood sugar level is controlled by the release and storage of glucose, which is in turn controlled by a hormone called insulin .

Body temperature
This is controlled to maintain the temperature at which enzymes work best, which is 37C. Body temperature is controlled by:

controlling blood flow to the skin sweating shivering The bodys water content
This is controlled to protect cells by stopping too much water from entering or leaving them. The process is called

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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Homeostasis

osmoregulation.

Osmoregulation
Controlling water content of the body
This is controlled to protect cells by avoiding too much water entering or leaving them. Water content is controlled by water loss from:

the lungs when we exhale the skin by sweating the body, in urine produced by the kidneys Ion (salts) content of the body
This is controlled to protect cells by avoiding too much water entering or leaving them. Ion content is controlled by loss of ions from:

the skin by sweating the body, in urine produced by the kidneys

Thermoregulation
Controlling body temperature
Human enzymes usually work best at 37C, which is human body temperature. This can be measured in several places, including the ear, finger, mouth and anus. There are various ways to measure body temperature, including using a clinical thermometer, heat-sensitive strips, digital probes or thermal imaging cameras. Extremes of body temperature are dangerous:

high temperatures can cause dehydration, heat stroke and death if untreated low temperatures can cause hypothermia and death if untreated Control mechanisms
The bodys temperature is monitored by the brain. If you are too
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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Homeostasis

hot or too cold, the brain sends nerve impulses to the skin, which has three ways to either increase or decrease heat loss from the bodys surface:

1. Hairs on the skin trap more warm air if they are standing up, and less if they are lying flat. Tiny muscles in the skin can quickly pull the hairs upright to reduce heat loss, or lay them down flat to increase heat loss. 2. If the body is too hot, glands under the skin secrete sweat onto the surface of the skin, to increase heat loss by evaporation. Sweat secretion stops when body temperature returns to normal. 3. Blood vessels supplying blood to the skin can swell or dilate - vasodilation. This causes more heat to be carried by the blood to the skin, where it can be lost to the air. Blood vessels can shrink down again vasoconstriction . This reduces heat loss through the skin once the bodys temperature has returned to normal.
Muscles can also receive messages from the brain when you are cold. They respond by shivering, which warms you up.

Controlling temperature Too cold Too hot

A - Hair muscles pull hairs on D - Hair muscles relax. Hairs end. lie flat so heat can escape.

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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Homeostasis

B - Erect hairs trap air. C - Blood flow in capillaries decreases.

E - Sweat secreted by sweat glands. Cools skin by evaporation. F - Blood flow in capillaries increases.

A very common mistake in exams is to write that the blood vessels move up and down in the skin. The blood vessels do not move during vasodilation and vasoconstriction.

Thermoregulation - Higher tier

If you become too hot or too cold, there are several ways in which your temperature can be controlled. They involve sweating, shivering, skin capillaries and hairs.

Too hot sweat glands in the skin release more sweat when we get too hot. This evaporates, removing heat energy from the skin. vasodilation occurs. Blood vessels leading to the skin capillaries become wider (dilate) allowing more blood to flow through the skin, and more heat to be lost. Too cold muscles contract rapidly and we shiver when we're cold. These contractions need energy from respiration, and some of this is released as heat. vasoconstriction occurs - blood vessels leading to the skin capillaries become narrower (constrict) letting less blood flow through the skin and conserving heat in the body.
The hairs on the skin also help to control body temperature. They lie flat when we are warm, and rise when we are cold. The hairs trap a layer of air above the skin, which helps to insulate
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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Homeostasis

the skin against heat loss. Now try a Test Bite- Higher tier.

Hormones
Hormones are chemicals secreted by glands in the body. Different hormones affect different target organs. The bloodstream transports hormones from the glands to the target organs. Bodily reactions to hormones are usually slower and longer lasting than nervous reactions. Move the mouse over the different glands to see what they do. You need to know the locations of the pancreas, ovaries and testes. You should also know which hormones they produce.

Hormones produced by glands and their target organs gland ovary ovary hormone oestrogen target organs ovaries, uterus

progesterone uterus liver male reproductive organs

pancreas insulin testes testosterone

Blood glucose regulation

Glucose is needed by cells for respiration. It is important that the concentration of glucose in the blood is maintained at a constant level. Insulin is a hormonehormone : chemical messengers produced in glands and carried by the blood to specific organs in the body produced by the pancreas that regulates glucose levels in the blood.

How glucose is regulated Glucose Effect on level pancreas Effect on liver Effect on glucose level

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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Homeostasis

too high

insulin secreted into the blood insulin not secreted into the blood

liver converts glucose into glycogen liver does not convert glucose into glycogen

goes down goes up

too low

Use the animation to make sure you understand how this works.

Glucagon Higher tier

The pancreas releases another hormone, glucagon , when the blood sugar levels fall. This causes the cells in the liver to turn glycogen back into glucose which can then be released into the blood. The blood sugar levels will then rise. Now try a Test Bite- Higher tier.

Diabetes
Diabetes is a disorder in which the blood glucose levels remain too high. It can be treated by injecting insulin. The extra insulin allows the glucose to be taken up by the liver and other tissues, so cells get the glucose they need and blood-sugar levels stay normal. There are two types of diabetes.

Blood sugar level meter and insulin shot pen

Type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is caused by a lack of insulin. It can be controlled by:

monitoring the diet injecting insulin

People with type 1 diabetes have to monitor their blood sugar levels throughout the day as the level of physical activity and diet affect the amount of insulin required.
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BBC - GCSE Bitesize - Homeostasis

Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is caused by a person becoming resistant to insulin. It can be controlled by diet and exercise. There is a link between rising levels of obesity (chronic overweight) and increasing levels of type 2 diabetes.

Rising levels of obesity and type 2 diabetes are linked.

Obesity
As obesity is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes doctors are keen to monitor the situation. Someone is considered obese is they have a body mass index (BMI) of more than 30. BMI is calculated by:

Now try a Test Bite. Back to Revision Bite

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