Excretion

Difference between excretion and egestion.

Excretion is the removal of metabolic wastes from the body. (Metabolic wastes are wastes

produced from reactions which occur in the body to stay alive).

Excretion and egestion are not the same. Egestion is the removal of undigested matter.

Why is excretion important?

The excretory products are toxic and if left to accumulate, they would damage and kill the body

cells.

Excretory organs in Humans

Humans have several organs that excrete waste products.

❖ Kidneys excrete water, nitrogenous waste (mainly urea), and salts as urine.

❖ Lungs excrete carbon dioxide and water vapour during exhalation.

❖ Skin excretes water, urea and salts as sweat.

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Kidneys

The kidneys are paired, bean-shaped organs. The kidney is made up of many tiny structures

called nephrons. The nephron cleanses the blood and are involved in urine formation.

Urine formation involves two processes-

Ultrafiltration- smaller parts of the blood as glucose, amino acids and mineral ions fit through

the pores and enter the kidney.

Selective reabsorption- substances that are useful to the body as glucose and mineral ions are

selectively reabsorbed by the kidney and enters back into the blood.

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Osmoregulation

Osmoregulation is the control of the amount of water in the blood. The hormone, Antidiuretic

Hormone (ADH) plays an important role in osmoregulation. ADH causes the kidney to reabsorb

more water in the blood.

When there is a lot of water in the blood (eg if a person drank a lot of water), less ADH would be

released and cause the kidney to reabsorb less water. This produces a large volume of dilute

urine.

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When there is little water in the blood (eg if a person didn’t a lot of water or sweat a lot on a hot

day), more ADH would be released and cause the kidney to reabsorb more water. This produces

a small volume of concentrated urine.