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The muscular system allows for movement of the body, maintenance of posture, respiration, production of body heat, communication, constriction of organs and vessels, and contraction of the heart. There are three types of muscle tissue - skeletal, cardiac, and smooth muscle. Skeletal muscle is responsible for overall body movement and maintaining posture. Muscles of the thorax facilitate respiration. Contracting skeletal muscle produces heat, while smooth muscle constricts organs and blood vessels. Cardiac muscle causes the heart to beat, pumping blood throughout the body.

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16 views

Untitled Document

The muscular system allows for movement of the body, maintenance of posture, respiration, production of body heat, communication, constriction of organs and vessels, and contraction of the heart. There are three types of muscle tissue - skeletal, cardiac, and smooth muscle. Skeletal muscle is responsible for overall body movement and maintaining posture. Muscles of the thorax facilitate respiration. Contracting skeletal muscle produces heat, while smooth muscle constricts organs and blood vessels. Cardiac muscle causes the heart to beat, pumping blood throughout the body.

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FUNCTIONS OF THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM

A runner rounds the last corner of the track and sprints for the finish line. Her arms and
legs are pumping as she tries to reach her maximum speed. Her heart is beating
rapidly, and her breathing is rapid, deep, and regular. Blood is shunted away from her
digestive organs, and a greater volume is delivered to her skeletal muscles to maximize
their oxygen supply. These actions are accomplished by muscle tissue, the most
abundant tissue of the body and one of the most adaptable.

You don’t have to be running for the muscular system to be at work. Even when you
aren’t consciously moving, postural mus-cles keep you sitting or standing upright,
respiratory muscles keep you breathing, the heart continuously pumps blood to all parts
of your body, and blood vessels constrict or relax to direct blood to organs where it is
needed.

In fact, movement within the body is accomplished in various ways: by cilia or flagella
on the surface of certain cells, by the force of gravity, or by the contraction of muscles.
But most of the body’s movement results from muscle contraction. As described, there
are three types of muscle tissue: skeletal, cardiac, and smooth (figure 7.1). Following
are the major func-tions of the muscular system:

1. Movement of the body. Contraction of skeletal muscles is responsible for the overall
movements of the body, such as walking, running, and manipulating objects with the
hands.

2. Maintenance of posture. Skeletal muscles constantly maintain tone, which keeps us


sitting or standing erect.

3. Respiration. Muscles of the thorax carry out the movements necessary for
respiration.

4. Production of body heat. When skeletal muscles contract,heat is given off as a by-
product. This released heat is critical to the maintenance of body temperature
5. Communication. Skeletal muscles are involved in all aspects of communication,
including speaking, writing, typing, gesturing, and facial expressions.

6. Constriction of organs and vessels. The contraction of smooth muscle within the walls
of internal organs and vessels causes those structures to constrict. This constriction can
help propel and mix food and water in the digestive tract, propel secretions from organs,
and regulate blood flow through vessels.

7. Contraction of the heart. The contraction of cardiac muscle causes the heart to beat,
propelling blood to all parts of the body.

https://www.brainkart.com/article/Functions-of-the-Muscular-System_21788/

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