1.

3 The Importance of a Healthy Respiratory System

List the substances which are harmful to the respiratory system

Explain the effects of pollutants on the respiratory system

List the diseases that affect the respiratory system

Practise good habits to improve the quality of air

List The Substances Which Are Harmful To The Respiratory System

1) Nicotine

2) Tar
3) Sulphur dioxide

4) Carbon monoxide

5) Haze
Effects Of Pollutants On The Respiratory System

Cigarette smoke can cause:

a) emphysema
b) heart diseases
c) bronchitis
d) lung cancer
e) worsen respiratory problems such as asthma and pneumonia

Cigarette smoke contains poisonous chemicals such as:

a) Tar
b) Nicotine
c) Carbon monoxide
Tar
- Tar collects in the lungs and it is a mixture of many toxic chemicals
- Tar is carcinogens, that is they cause cancer.

Nicotine (in tobacco)

- Causes addiction to smoking
Carbon monoxide
- Reduces the amount of oxygen in the blood because it combines
with haemoglobin at least 200 times easier than oxygen does
Sulphur dioxide
- Acidic
- Irritates the air passage of our respiratory system and damages lung
tissues
Haze
- Irritates the air passage of our respiratory system and damages the
lungs

Passive Smoker
a) A non-smoker may inhale the cigarette smoke from smokers
b) This smoke is called secondary smoke and it will harm the non-
smoker
c) This is called passive smoking by the non-smoker
Lung of a non-smoker (LEFT) and lung of a smoker (RIGHT)
Diseases That Affect The Respiratory System

a) Bronchitis
- An inflammation of the lining of your bronchial tubes which
carry air to and from your lungs

b) Asthma
- Your airways narrow and swells and produce extra mucus

c) Emphysema
- Damages the alveoli in your lungs and making you progressively
more short of breath
d) Pneumonia
- Swelling (inflammation) of the tissue in one or both your lungs
(which may fill with fluid)

e) Influenza
- A viral infection that attacks your respiratory system
(example: bird flu)

f) Tuberculosis
- TB, a disease caused by a bacterium
- Usually attack the lungs
- Chronic cough with phlegm or blood

g) Lung cancer
- Tar damages the healthy cells of the lungs and turns them in
cancer cells
- Cancer cells can grow very quickly and block the air passages
that carry air in and out of the lungs of a patient
Practise Good Habits To Improve The Quality Of Air

WHAT CAN YOU DO?