Blood plasma, red and white blood cells and platelets
The five to six liters of blood flowing through your body are made up of many different substances. The red blood cells are probably the best known, they also give the blood its red color. But our blood consists of even more parts.
The two main components of blood are the blood cells and the blood plasma.
Plasma
The plasma (serum) is responsible for about 55 percent of the blood and consists mainly of water. This water contains minerals, carbohydrates, vitamins, fats, hormones and more than a hundred different proteins.
Protein
All these proteins have different functions. This way you have albumin that has a water-absorbing function. This keeps the water in the blood vessels and prevents it from leaking into the tissues. In addition, the plasma contains various proteins that, together with the platelets, play an important role in the blood clotting process.
There are also antibodies in the water of the blood plasma. These proteins protect the body against infectious diseases by attaching to invaded viruses and bacteria.
blood cells
About 45 percent of the blood is filled by blood cells. These blood cells are made in the bone marrow. Our blood has three types: red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.
Red blood cells
The main function of red blood cells, erothrocytes, is to absorb oxygen in the lungs and then transport it to the organs. The cells contain hemoglobin. This substance gives blood its red color and binds with the oxygen.
In the organs, the oxygen is released and exchanged for carbon dioxide. This is a waste product of the cells in the tissues and organs. The red blood cells carry the carbon dioxide back to the lungs. With the exhalation, this waste leaves the body again.
White blood cells
Leukocytes, white blood cells, is a collective name for various cells. The cells are larger than red blood cells, but you have fewer of them. Collectively, the white blood cells have two important functions.
First of all, defending the body against infections with foreign substances and invaders such as bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi and yeasts. With an infection there are also more white blood cells in our body.
The second function is to clean up dead substances in the body.
Platelets
The third group of blood cells are the platelets, thrombocytes. This is the smallest cell in the blood. Thrombocytes are particularly important for blood clotting. They aid in wound healing by stopping bleeding and forming a scab.
Blood cells have a limited lifespan. Red blood cells live for 120 days, white blood cells two and platelets ten days. The body breaks down the cells itself and replaces them with new ones.
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