Note 4 Occupational Anatomy and Physiology

4.1 Meaning of Anatomy and Physiology in Relation to Occupational Health

4.2 Muscles and Work Performance
4.3 Bones, Joint and Work Performance
4.4 Blood Circulation and Respiration during Work
4.5 Co-ordination of Physiological Functions during Work
4.6 Health Status and Working Capacity
4.7 Diet and Work
4.8 Work Skill Training
4.9 Age, Aptitude and Work
4.10 Curve of Physiological Work and Biological Rhythm
4.11 Work Fatigue
4.12 Measurement of Physical Work
4.13 Oxygen Consumption
4.14 Heart Rate
4.15 Conclusion
4.16 Summary
4.17 Assignment

4.1 Occupational Anatomy and Physiology Anatomy deals with the study of the structural parts
of human organism while physiology entails the study of the functions of these structural parts.
Occupational anatomy and physiology could be defined as the study of the structural and
functional body parts of humans during work performance with a view to ensuring optimal
performance and safety.
4.2 Muscles and Work Performances All physical work is done by muscles, in which the
necessary energy is created. The first task of the muscles is to maintain the body in the required
posture and then to effect the various movements. It is through them that useful work is finally
done. Muscles work by alternating contraction and relaxation of the component fibres, resulting
from chemical action. Muscle fibres, which are mostly arranged in groups or bundles in different
parts of the body, cause various movements by acting on the bones. Muscles also cause
movements in internal organs. The energy required to contract the muscle fibres is provided by
the oxidization of glucides. The combustion residues include lactic acid, water and carbon
dioxide. Since the chemical reactions take place within the fibres themselves, it becomes
necessary for the oxygen and the fuel to be brought to these fibres and for the waste products of
combustion to be removed, either to be discharged outside or to be re-introduced in a
regeneration cycle. The working capacity of muscle therefore depends on the number of fibers
(musculature), the capacity of the transport routes (arteries and veins), the speed of the transport
(blood flow), the functioning of the regulatory system which has to harmonize the physiological
phenomena with the effort exerted, and the pulmonary function which ensures the renewal of the
oxygen in the blood and the elimination of gaseous waste.
4.3 Bones, Joints and Work Performance
To effect movements of the body, muscles require a firm anchorage. Bones are practically rigid,
thereby providing the anchor that muscles require to act. To a certain extent they are also elastic,
especially in young persons. This elasticity, however, does not play any part in work; it is needed
to take the strain of heavy loads. If the elasticity is insufficient, as is often the case in accidents, a
bone will break. Most bones in the body are connected by joints (such as the knee, the hip and
the elbow), or they are semi-rigidly connected by ligaments or cartilage (as the ribs are to the
upper part of the spinal column), or they are fastened together like the bones of the skull, whose
purpose is to protect the brain.
The spinal column has quite a special structure. The vertebrae are so shaped that the upper part
of the body can assume the most widely differing positions in relation to the lower part, and it
can also rotate independently. There is a special reason for this structure, in that the spinal
column protects the abdominal organs. Since it can only move by arching and cannot bend like
the knee, these organs always have enough room. It does happen that in certain positions of the
torso some organs are slightly compressed, but their functions are only very slightly impaired on
this account. In order to leave the organs with the space that they require and to maintain the
torso in a suitable position, the vertebrae are connected by joints that are only slightly mobile and
by ligaments called meniscuses or intervertebral discs. Because of their inelasticity, the
meniscuses are very sensitive to repeated jolts, such as those caused by the bumping of a vehicle
that has neither springs nor shock absorbers.
The spinal column protects only the hinder part of the abdomen; the rest is protected by a wall of
ligaments and muscles. The muscles are superimposed and the fibres are crisscrossed so as to
constitute an envelope that is both elastic and strong. This enables the body to bend forwards
and sideways, and hence allows it to work in a bent position. When the abdominal wall is
overloaded, especially when heavy weights are lifted, the weakest points may give way and this
may lead to hernias.
The thorax, which can move only a little, protects not only the vital organs the heart and the
lungs but also the top of the stomach, the liver, the gall bladder and the spleen. The vertebrae are
connected by muscles and ligaments, and the shoulder-bones and collar-bones are connected to
the chest by the same means. The back muscles play an important part in maintaining the
position of the body. The less they are developed, the more the vertebrae are pressed together,
and consequently the greater the risk of deformation of the spinal column. The back muscles are
also needed to compensate for the efforts made when the arms are working. The strength of
bones is invariable over a good part of a person's lifespan, and it is wrong to suppose, as often
happens, that because old people are particularly subject to bone fractures, they have soft and
weak bones. In fact, a predisposition to bone fractures is the result of poor musculature that is no
longer able to hold the bones together adequately, coupled with vagueness and lack of
coordination of movements.
4.4 Blood Circulation and Respiration during Work
One of the principal determinants of the power of muscles is the amount of blood flowing
through them. The total amount of blood may be considered as a personal constant because
normally it is subject to only slight variations. The amount of red pigment(haemoglobin)
determines the amount of oxygen that can be fixed in the blood. The velocity of the bloodstream
and the volume of the vessels (arteries and veins) govern the quantity of oxygen available in
muscles. The blood is moved by the heart, first through the lungs where it fixes the oxygen, and
then through the muscles and the organs where part of the oxygen is consumed.
From these it returns to the heart and lungs. It is not only the size of the heart but also, and
directly, the rate at which it beats (pulse) that determines the blood flow. Hence, measurement of
the rate of beating or pulse is of great importance in assessing the strength required to perform a
given job. Naturally, the amount of oxygen consumed is directly proportionate to the muscular
energy produced. It is, however, more difficult to measure this than the heart rate. All that is
usually done is to compare the oxygen content of the inhaled and exhaled air, whereas at the
same time it is necessary to measure the respiration, which is proportionate to the effort
expended.
During inhalation the lungs fill with fresh air, rich in oxygen; this air passes through the
membranes of the alveoli of the lungs, enters the blood stream and is fixed by the haemoglobin.
Each cell can fix and transport only a certain amount of oxygen. Muscular work depends on the
amount of oxygen that the blood can convey to the muscles; similarly, the rate of elimination of
carbon dioxide depends on the blood flow through the body. Consequently, good circulation and
respiration are of essential importance to working capacity. The heavier the demands made on
muscle power, the faster the blood must flow and the faster the human must breathe, because the
concentrations of energizing substances and cells transporting oxygen are almost constant. When
the composition of the blood is normal, the amount of oxygen that it transports is sufficient for
combustion.
However, if it is too poor in haemoglobin the oxygen flow is insufficient and the muscle cannot
do as much work; if, in such a case, it is desired to intensify muscular work, the circulation of the
blood must be accelerated and the shortage of haemoglobin must be compensated by an
acceleration of the rate of oxygen exchange in each muscle. In a person whose blood is poor in
haemoglobin, the amount of muscular work will be less than in a person whose blood contains a
normal amount of haemoglobin. The requirements of a muscle considered in isolation naturally
depend on the work it has to do.
 During periods of rest, at each heart beat the pumped blood is distributed among the different
organs in accordance with a fixed pattern. During work, an additional flow of blood must irrigate
the regions producing the energy so as to feed the muscles and remove the waste products. The
regulatory mechanism of the circulatory system works with extraordinary precision and
sensitivity. It’s reaction to change must be almost instantaneous, because the movements of the
body alter very quickly. One needs only to think, for example, how quickly the different muscles
of the legs act in turn when one is walking; and the same, of course, applies to the muscles of the
arms and legs, or the hands and arms, in other movements. The blood flow per minute is
regulated by the rate at which the heart pumps; this can be measured by the pulse, and is only
slightly influenced by variations in the size of the heart. The quantity of blood flowing towards
any particular part of the body depends on the cross-section of the blood vessels concerned. The
blood arrives through the arteries and leaves through the veins.
When the blood supply to a certain region has to increase, the arteries carrying it have to dilate in
order to increase their carrying capacity, as do the veins when the blood is returning to the heart.
When certain regions of the body need intense irrigation, the arteries and veins contract in other
regions, in which irrigation is thereby reduced so that the circulation can meet the increased
needs of the first-mentioned regions. It is true that the vital organs continue to receive just
enough blood to enable them to function, but in these conditions, they are not particularly active.
It is, however, very important to maintain the irrigation of the brain. The amount of blood
required there is small in comparison with that required by the large muscles, such as those of the
thighs when they are working at full capacity.
The brain however needs blood that is rich in oxygen and its activity declines when the demand
for blood becomes too high in other parts of the body. Naturally, other organs, such as those of
the digestive system, may compete with the muscles for blood supply. After meals the digestive
system needs a large quantity of blood, not only to make its own muscles work but also to
transport and distribute the products of digestion. Man should therefore stop working during and
immediately after meals so as not to hinder the working of the digestive tract. This is also the
reason why the zeal for work declines even before the meal break.
This changing blood distribution between organs and muscles is also due to the regulation of
circulation. The system is so responsive to the variations with which it has to deal that it can
work for several decades without breaking down. Thus, working capacity depends also on the
proper working of the regulatory mechanism of the circulation.
Basal Metabolism
A minimum expenditure of energy is always required, independently of any activity, and even
during sleep. This is "basal metabolism". Itis the minimum energy exchange that is essential for
the maintenance of life. Basal metabolism (measured in calories) depends on the weight of the
body and its surface area (temperature regulation) and varies slightly with sex and age. Such
determinations of basal metabolism as may be necessary for medical reasons or for work study
must be carried out in a specially equipped laboratory.
Static Work
So far emphasis has been only on dynamic muscular work, i.e., work done by movements of the
body. There is, however, another kind of work: static work, or the work of maintaining a
position. Such work entails constant effort by the muscles that maintain certain parts of the body
in particular positions (crouching, kneeling, sitting, and squatting). Carrying loads on
outstretched arms or on the head are examples of static work. If the body is to maintain a certain
posture, the first requirement is that the head is in such a position that the functioning of the
brain is not hampered. Second, the posture should be such that the reactions of dynamic work
(for instance, when walking or making tractive effort) can be absorbed without loss of balance.
As discussed earlier, muscles work by alternating contraction and relaxation of their component
fibres. However, the work of maintaining a position cannot be accomplished by continuous
contraction, since muscular relaxation is indispensable to irrigation by the blood and to the
removal of the waste products of oxidizations. In static work, the contraction phase of each fibre
is much longer than the relaxation phase, and there are therefore always more contracted than
relaxed muscles. Consequently, the time available for removing waste products is much shorter
than in dynamic work, and static work causes fatigue much more quickly. A given group of
muscles produces 15 per cent less effort in static than in dynamic work. Carrying an object with
outstretched arms soon causes fatigue, and standing still for a long time may cause fainting due
to imbalance of the circulation. Work done by the hand in static contraction, on a tool, a work-
piece, a pen or other object often causes pain, indicating an accumulation of waste products in
the muscles. Posture during work and the manner of working therefore have a considerable effect
on output
Thermal Regulation
If all the vital functions of the human body are to remain unimpaired, the body's internal
temperature must be maintained at or about37°C. If a human lives in a cool or cold environment,
he/she is constantly dissipating a certain amount of heat. This leads to the intensification of basic
combustion in order to make up for the constant loss of calories. In adults, the basal metabolism
needed for the functions of the various organs represents between 1,200 and1,600 kcal per day,
or between 0.85 and 1.1 kcal per minute. But this amount of heat is not enough to compensate
for the losses unless the environmental temperature is at least 20°C. In agricultural work it is
practically impossible to regulate the environmental temperature, and the clothing must therefore
be adapted to the working conditions. The additional heat produced by physical work is
sometimes very great and may amount to several times that of basal metabolism. For an eight-
hour day, depending on the effect required, the expenditure of energy ranges from 2,000 to 3,000
kcal. The average is therefore 4-6 kcal/min, with peaks which may reach 12 kcal/min. This great
amount of heat has to be eliminated as quickly as possible. The body dissipates heat by radiation,
convection or evaporation (sweat). Radiation and convection, by which the body can dissipate
only 2-2.5 kcal/min, are restricted by clothes. The heat losses by radiation and convection depend
primarily on the difference in temperature between the skin and the environment, and this is
regulated to a certain extent by the circulation of the blood.
The greater the amount of excess heat to be removed, the more the circulation increases at the
level of the skin and the faster the heat exchange with the environment becomes. The thermal
conductivity of the skin is different in the two sexes, being lower in women than in men. This is
why women can generally bear to be more lightly clothed than men. The dissipation of body heat
increases in a draught, which is constantly bringing cooler air into the vicinity of the skin. If the
work generates more heat than can be dissipated by radiation and convection, sweat is produced,
which evaporates on the skin.
The phenomenon of sweat evaporation enables large quantities of heat to be dissipated in the
environment. The larger the sweating area of the skin and the drier the environmental air, the
greater the dissipation of heat by sweat. While for light work the humidity of the air is of no
great significance, intensive work can be done only if the air is not saturated with humidity (that
is, if it is comparatively dry), as otherwise the sweat cannot evaporate. Sweat can remove excess
calories only by evaporating, and this is why streaming sweat represents a useless waste of
energy.
As evaporation depends on the environmental temperature and air movements, clothing is an
important factor here too. Since sweating is not uniform over the whole surface of the body,
underclothes may facilitate the dissipation of heat if they are completely soaked with sweat.
Thus, underclothes should rapidly absorb sweat, distribute it and ensure uniform and regular
evaporation. The larger the surface of the garments, the more effectively will they fulfil these
tasks. Natural fibres such as wool and cotton are impregnated more slowly than synthetic fibres.
Closely woven materials are less effective than loose materials, such as knitted garments.
Equatorial and tropical countries are normally regarded as "hot countries". They may
nevertheless have temperate seasons and cool upland regions (for instance, the east central
African plateau, which is at an average altitude of 1,500 m and has intensively cultivated areas
up to an altitude of about 3,000 m near the equator). As a rule, workers in the tropics cannot be
expected to have the same output as those in temperate countries.
4.5 Co-ordination of Physiological Functions during Work
The foregoing brief description of some physiological functions suggests the existence of a very
precise regulatory system for the necessary harmonization of these functions. This regulation is
controlled by the nerves, which receive their impulses from widely differing centres, most of
them in the brain. It is almost entirely unconscious and involuntary, and depends on the
physiological automation that keeps the body alive. The over-all co-ordination of the
maintenance of body balance, the adaptation of respiration and circulation and the dissipation of
heat are automatic reflex functions that do not require any voluntary interference. Automatic
regulation is surer and more precise than conscious regulation and also seems to need a smaller
expenditure of energy.
This is in fact the reason why, whenever possible, man tends to replace certain processes,
movements and actions by reflexes. Advantage is taken of this fact in training and working.
However, this natural tendency, imposed on man as it were by his physiology, has as its
counterpart an attitude, varying in degree, of inertia towards changes in working habits. In fact,
every new process has first to be controlled by the will; only later does it come within the
province of reflexes, which, if necessary, will succeed and replace reflexes controlling the
processes adopted hitherto. The precision of regulatory functions varies with the importance of
each in the maintenance of vital equilibrium, health and welfare.
While internal temperature is regulated very precisely, the oxygen content of the blood is less so,
and the water content of the body still less. Some types of regulation, such as that of blood
supply to muscle, are almost instantaneous; others, such as the reconstitution of energy reserves,
sometimes take several hours. Some have a daily rhythm-for instance, the alternation of activity
(day) and rest(night)-and others have a periodicity of a year or more (duration of sleep in
summer and winter, variation of activity with age). The organs can retain their vitality only by
functioning regularly; they have no need of prolonged rest. On the contrary, inaction may
atrophy them and put an end to the corresponding regulatory function. The proper working of the
regulatory system depends on healthy development in childhood and adolescence, suitable
training during growth and continuous exercise later.
Adaptation to environment
The co-ordination of the different functions of the body is not the sole task of physiological
regulation; it must also ensure the correct adaptation of the individual to the environment. This is
of utmost importance for the maintenance of maximum working capacity inface of the enormous
variations that may occur in the nature and place of work. For example, muscular energy must
correspond to the effort demanded, and the dissipation of heat to the environmental temperature.
This adaptation can be easily observed by the following:
 if the intensity of the effort increases
 the pulse and breathing rates steadily increase too.
 The eye adapts itself automatically to the luminosity and distance of objects.

These are only a few of the countless regulatory activities induced by stimulation from the
environment.
4.6 Health Status and Working Capacity
Health underlies every activity of man, obligatory and non-obligatory. No worker can exceed the
capacity to which his/her health status can support. Human's working capacity therefore depends
on the sum total of his/her physiological functions. It is based to some extent on a certain natural
predisposition, but more on the development and training of the body, muscles and regulatory
organs and centres. A person's working capacity is thus closely bound up with his state of health.
Physical work calls for certain qualities that human, if he enjoys good health, can develop fully
by training. It requires well developed muscles, a robust skeleton, sound organ (circulatory,
respiratory, renal, digestive, etc.) and a good neuro-endocrin ian regulatory system.
3.7 Diet and Work
An adequate diet is one of the indispensable conditions of satisfactory working capacity. The
more muscular work a human does, the greater must be his consumption of the substances
required for chemical combustion. Energy reserves must therefore be replenished by a diet rich
in carbohydrates. Most of the carbohydrates in a diet come from cereals: wheat in Europe and
North America, rice in Asia and maize in Latin America. In Africa, carbohydrate chiefly comes
from cereals and root and tuber. Human other plants are rich in carbohydrates, such as sorghum,
manioc and potato.
In making bread and paste, cereals must be treated to make them more digestible; they also
undergo transformation in the body. On the other hand, sugar can be absorbed without any
preparation and quickly passes into the blood, so that it is a very important food in intensive
work. When a human does less strenuous work, his diet should contain correspondingly fewer
carbohydrates. It is a problem peculiar to modern nutrition in industrial countries (in which
muscular work is steadily declining and consequently the consumption of carbohydrates should
decline to the same extent) that because of habit or appetite people still consume large quantities
of carbohydrates. This leads to obesity, which is not only inimical to work but is also at the
origin of human diseases.
In addition to carbohydrates, food should contain proteins and fats, the latter contributing to the
energy balance, more especially in the internal organs. Protein is needed in the formation of cell
tissue, which is constantly being renewed; this is why muscle too needs a supply of protein. It is
obvious that an adolescent whose muscular growth is not completed will need more protein than
an adult; but the adult must have a certain minimum amount to maintain his energy balance. The
body needs various proteins, and if a diet is to be balanced it must be adequate in quantity and
quality. If it is not, there will be a food deficiency. Above all, there must be a minimum
proportion (about 30 per cent) of animal protein for persons doing heavy, difficult or intellectual
work.
All food is transformed in the digestive tract before being conveyed to the organs for which it is
intended. Digestion is a cyclic and not a continuous process, but since requirements in muscular
energy are either continuous (in the heart muscle, for example) or spread evenly over the hours
of the day (as in the muscles of locomotion), reserves have to be constituted. Thus food can be
absorbed and digested at the intervals fixed by meals. In healthy persons the body has sufficient
reserves to enable it to burn, over a period of several days, more substance than is supplied by
the food consumed during those days. In the long run, however, the food intake must restore the
balance or exhaustion will result. The more energy the work demands, the richer and more
frequent the meals should be; but meals should be spaced out if the work falls off. Thus a human
doing heavy work needs five meals a day, while a tractor driver, for example, if he is comfortably
seated, is so little affected by eight hours of work that he should easily be able to manage with
three meals a day. The proper working of the digestive system is just as important for working
capacity as are the soundness of the skeleton and the development of muscles.
3.8 Work Skill Training
Working capacity is determined by muscular development as well as by food and by the
adaptation of the circulatory and respiratory systems as well as their regulatory mechanisms. It is
possible to develop individual predispositions by training, up to an advanced age, and to
maintain them at a high level. In physical training stimulations are produced by muscular work,
the maximum stimulation corresponding to overwork up to the limit of fatigue. A short spell of
overwork, say from two to five minutes, for example, is the best form of physical training.
Naturally, persons suffering from pathological changes or disorders should avoid such efforts.
The stimulation produced by training may be deliberate, as in sport, and be intended to develop
the muscles of a particular part of the body, but it occurs automatically in all work. The greater
the amount of work required of the different parts of the body, the better will be the physical
condition.
Thus, varied muscular work, as encountered in many agricultural activities, is one of the best
means of achieving a harmonious development of the body. The physical development of
adolescents should therefore be promoted systematically, by means of work suited to their body
strength and their age. Muscular stimulation that is due to training and causes muscles to
developed so strengthens certain organs that participate indirectly in muscular work. Both the
heart muscle and the regulatory mechanism of circulation benefit from the training constituted by
steady work. The functions of each are decisive for the maintenance of a person's working
capacity. The regulation of the circulation is a very good example of the organization of an
aggregate of physiological reflexes designed to produce the requisite effect at any point and
moment.
Physiological regulation operates at two different levels. One is involuntary and therefore outside
conscious control. This regulation is essentially concerned with the maintenance of life. It
comprises the regulation of the heart, the circulation and the respiration, the regulation of the
digestive system, the co-ordination of circulation and respiration, and so on. The other consists of
regulatory mechanisms that is voluntary and therefore depends on conscious control. This aspect
of regulation governs processes bound up within voluntary action. But as a result of exercise and
training, the control of work very soon passes into the domain of automatic reflexes.
It must be supposed that unconscious regulation is more economical, and at the same time
quicker and more precise, than conscious regulation. The performance of any job requires a rapid
and precise system of regulation. This system also is subject to the laws of training: the more it is
used, the better itis trained and the more serviceable it becomes. There are limits in both
directions to these biological processes. The science of work has long concerned itself with
discovering human's optimum working capacity. The permanent optimum rate is attained when
the energy supply just balances the loss.
There is also a lower limit to physical work. We all know that after a long spell in bed the body
has lost strength and must be laboriously retrained for work. This is because the stimulation of
training has been absent for too long, and consequently the muscles, muscular movements and
organic regulation have all become too weak. The optimum working capacity lies between
insufficient work and excessive work; however, frequent alternation of working intensities,
lightwork, normal work, and heavy work is, within certain limits, probably more beneficial to the
body than working at uniform intensity for a very long spell. If training is to be effective, the
same exercises must be repeated often and correctly. In simple work, the effects of training are
felt very soon, generally after a few hours. It is not necessary to repeat the exercises without a
break; they can be performed on alternate days. This is very important in agricultural operations,
some of which cannot be carried on for long without a break. However, in all the repetitions the
course of the process must be identical. Work operations requiring very close co-ordination of
various movements or perceptions, and those involving analogous but very varied actions, need
longer training periods (up to 50 or 60 hours). Here too, however, one may count on a sufficient
degree of assimilation, which means that the work is performed correctly under the control of the
unconscious.
This sufficiency of assimilation of operations is particularly important for the agricultural
worker, who can rarely concentrate on the actual work, being frequently obliged to watch the
results so as to control quality. The farmer, acting both as the head of an undertaking and as a
worker, is even more bound to watch the result of the work, so that he has no time to see how the
work is actually being carried on. Thus, for the farmer, the introduction of new processes means
a heavy psychological strain, and attempts should be made to lighten it by all possible means.
4.9 Age, Aptitude and Work
No worker can work beyond the extent to which his/her age status can support. Apart from age,
aptitude which connotes the potential to learn new task and undertake the work demand
successfully also plays significant role in work. If the individual limits for these factors are not
exceeded, working capacity can be maintained over the whole span of active life. With age, it is
true, many functional capacities decrease, as well as aptitude for training, but this does not matter
much if the work done remains fairly constant. Moreover, the elderly worker often replaces
failing strength by greater skill. Re-training elderly persons for new and arduous operations is
difficult, but a man of 60 can do most field work just as well as a man of 30, except for those
operations wherein man reaction time may be critical. If ability to work is to be measured by age,
it may be said that it can equally well begin relatively early and continue well beyond 65 years.
The quality declines only slowly with age if activity is regularly maintained. There is practically
no wear on muscles and organs, as was once thought. However, the effects of illness increase
with the years, because the aptitude of the body and its functions for training continuously
decline. This is why convalescence period in old people is more prolonged than in the young.
4.10 Curve of Physiological Work and Biological Rhythm
The working capacity of an individual varies in the course of the day, and does so in a rhythm
that is independent of the actual work. It increases in the morning from 6.30 to 8 a.m., reaches its
maximum at about 10 a.m. and declines towards 11 a.m. In the middle of the day, between noon
and 1 p.m., it is low, whatever the meal taken, and then it raises again. The afternoon maximum,
between 2:00 and 3:00p.m., is a little lower than the morning maximum. After 4 p.m. working
capacity falls rapidly. At night it is always lower than in the day time. No training can alter this
natural rhythm. It persists even among persons who have worked only at night for several years;
their working capacity remains greater during the day than during the night.
4.11 Work Fatigue
Whatever the nature and intensity of work, human, as a bio-mechanical organism has the
tendency of experiencing fatigue. Fatigue is a complex physiological condition involving a
reversible lowering of working capacity. In addition to muscle fatigue due to work, which is
acute, the more the work is concentrated in a few muscle groups, humans usually experience
general fatigue. There are days when a person feels very tired after work; there are others when
after the same work he is less tired. Fatigue is thus a subjective phenomenon that depends on
both physiological and psychological factors.
Normal fatigue occurring at the end of the day is usually overcome by sleep, so that when a
human wakes up he is ready to resume work. However, matters are not always so simple; after
the night's rest some fatigue may remain, but this may be eliminated one or two days later by a
good night's sleep. On the average, daily fatigue due to work should not exceed the maximum
that can be overcome by a night's sleep. If overwork persists, fatigue accumulates and may cause
serious trouble, or at least reduce working capacity. Even purely muscular fatigue is overcome by
rest, chiefly by nightly rest. However, local phenomena may also occur in muscles; they are
mostly due to insufficient elimination of waste products, which is often the result of the manner
of working as much as of the intensity of the work.
Static effort is always particularly arduous and tiring, and this is why attempts should always be
made to eliminate it from methods of working. If this is impossible, spells of static work must be
shortened and interrupted by spells of dynamic work. If static work lasts too long, the minimum
results will be local cramp (for example, tractor drivers suffer from cramp in the right calf when
the accelerator pedal is badly placed and requires excessive effort by the foot). Intense muscular
fatigue and stresses on the brain and the sense organs (eye, ear and so on) lead to considerable
strain on the central nervous system and consequently to general fatigue, which in turn is
characterised by a general lowering of working capacity. It will even affect body organs that have
taken scarcely any part in the effort. The working environment can also affect the functioning of
the central nervous system and contribute to the development of fatigue. This is more particularly
so in workplaces that are dark, noisy and hot to an unhealthy extent. Monotonous work causes
drowsiness and can lead to extremely serious problems in many kinds of work.
4.12 Measurement of Physical Work
Since the degree of fatigue is not always directly proportionate to the work done, and since even
today it cannot be measured, other criteria have been sought for measuring human work. One
that has been applied for a long time, and is very suitable for measuring dynamic work, is the
amount of oxygen consumed. This amount is infact directly related to the energy consumed, so
that the amount of oxygen consumed is a direct indication of the intensity of the work.Naturally,
it can be used only to measure dynamic muscular work, to the exclusion of static work and
intellectual work which consume comparatively little oxygen. The consumption of oxygen is
measured as follows: the subject, whose nose is pinched, has in his mouth a valve that allows
him to inhale fresh air. All the exhaled air passes through a volumetric counter which gives a
reading of the amount of air breathed. Part of the exhaled air is collected in a vessel and then
analysed in the laboratory. The carbon dioxide content and the oxygen content are determined
and compared with the content of the inhaled air. This latter content need not be specially
determined unless the air has been contaminated by exhaust or other gases, but can be taken from
tables.
4.13 Oxygen Consumption
The difference between the oxygen content multiplied by the volume of air inhaled gives the
oxygen consumption, from which, with the aid of tables, the calorie production can be found. To
find the number of calories produced by the work, the number due to basal metabolism must be
deducted from this result. Although the apparatus used is much less cumbersome than formerly,
the valve for breathing does inconvenience the subject and he needs a certain time to get used to
it before exact measures can be taken.
Table 4.1. Work classification according to oxygen uptake and calorie expenditure
Physiological variables Work intensity
Very light (1/min) Cal/min
Light <0.5 < 2.5
Moderately heavy 0.5-1.0 2.5-5.0
Heavy 1.0-1.5 5.0-7.5
Very heavy 1.5-2.0 7.5-10
Extremely heavy 2.0-2.5 10.0-12.5
Oxygen uptake > 2.5 > 12.5

4.14 Heart Rate

As the intensity of physical work gradually diminished, it became necessary to find another
method of measurement independent of oxygen consumption. A good indicator of work is the
pulse. Since the amount of blood delivered by each heart beat is almost constant for an
individual, within certain limits, the pulse rate is a direct indication of the amount of blood
demanded by a particular part of the body. Measuring instruments are used for pulse counting
during work. In simple investigations integrating instruments count the pulsations during a
minute or a number of minutes. For more precise investigations, instruments that record each
pulsation are used. Some have a small lamp which is placed under the lobe of the ear and the
light of which is momentarily dimmed as each surge of blood passes. The variation in the light is
converted into electric impulses that are shown on the recording instrument. Other instruments
pick up the nervous impulses directly by means of electrodes. Heartbeat scan be recorded
electrically on magnetic tape or mechanically on paper reels. It is essential to obtain recordings
that are as accurate as possible, for it is not at all easy to interpret them. In fact, the pulse rate
does not depend solely on the oxygen consumption, and hence on the amount of dynamic work.
Static effort will accelerate the pulse, and hence measuring the heart rate usefully supplements
the measurement of oxygen consumption.
Mental and intellectual activities also affect the heart rate, as do many other factors, especially
psychological factors such as anguish, bad temper, joy and mental effort. Their influence is seen
in the circulation. Moreover, regulation of the heart rate is subject to quite precise laws that are
related to work. For example, the rate increases before work begins; during work it decreases to
correspond with the intensity of the work. When the work is finished, the rate decreases slowly
until it corresponds to the rest conditions prevailing before the work began. If this does not
occur, it must be supposed that some fatigue remains after the work. To measure this, the method
just described can be used. When it is desired to measure the pulse rate during work, the rest rate
must be subtracted from the rate measured. The rest rate can be measured when the subject has
rested for a sufficient time lying down. It varies greatly from one person to another, and so must
be determined not only for each person separately but also several times for the same person,
before and after work. In many measurements it is better to count only the pulsations above the
number corresponding to the period immediately preceding the work; for example, for work
done in a sitting position the pulse rest rate in that position would be subtracted, for work done in
a standing position the rest rate would be subtracted, and so on. This "starting rate" is useful in
most effort tests. The "effort" pulse rate is the difference between the aggregate rate during work
and the rest rate or starting rate. Table 4.2. Classification of physical work by heart beat Degree
of effort Heart rate (pulse/min) Very light 175 Measurement of the heart rate, rather than
measurement of the oxygen consumption, makes it possible to determine the limit of continuous
work. If the pulse remains constant during the work, this is within normal limits; but if the pulse
rate continuously rises while the work remains constant, the work is exceeding the limits of
normal effort. This test often brings to light organic defects or functional troubles that render a
person unfit for heavy work.
In conclusion anatomical and physiological functions are highly dependent on the extent to
which the work environment is safe and healthy for workers to discharge their duties.
Occupational disease, injury or accident in the work environment affects anatomical and
physiological functions of man. Almost all the systems in man and their associated organs are
vulnerable to occupational disease, injury or even death. It is thus emphasized that there is need
to keep the work environment safe from hazards that will result in health problems in the nearest
future or even immediately.
Summary
 Anatomy is concerned with the study of the structural part of humans while physiology is
tailored towards gaining understanding of the functions of these structures.
 The essence of occupational anatomy and physiology is focused at helping industrial workers
and their managers to maintain an optimal level of health.
 Anatomical structures like the muscle, bones and joints play important role in industrial
health as no tasks can be fulfilled without the above-mentioned anatomical structures.
  Physiologically, the circulation of blood also makes certain vital characteristics of man
possible. For instance, respiration, just like almost every other system in man is dependent on
proper and adequate circulation of blood.
 Circulation involves movement of blood to and from the heart through the blood vessels. •
During work, different physiological processes take place. It is important for coordination of
these numerous activities. The nerves constituting the nervous system plays important role in
harmonization of these physiological functions.
 Beyond optimal physiological functioning, health status and diet are also central to work
performance in the industrial setting.
 Skill training, age of workers and their aptitude also affect their work performance. Workers
exposed to training adapt very well to the work environment just as do workers with high
aptitude. Aged worker and under-aged workers might find it difficult to cope with the
demands of the work environment.
 Workers just as every other human are biomechanical being with the tendency of getting
tired. Work fatigue refers to the condition by which the worker reaches the natural limit of
his/her ability to sustain a uniform muscular contraction. This way, the worker experiences
muscular fatigue and in some instances, burn out.
 Work performance is usually measured using oxygen consumption or heart rate.

Assignment
1. State a simple definition of anatomy and physiology as they apply to the work conditions
2. Briefly explain the functions of muscles in discharging work duties
3. Briefly describe the place of health status in working capacity
4. Briefly explain work fatigue