School Science Lessons
Animal physiology, human physiology
2012-05-13 SPwp
Please send comments to: J.Elfick@uq.edu.au
Table of contents
9.1.0 Blood and circulation, body temperature
9.2.0 Digestion, teeth
9.3.0 Human body, skeleton, weight, height, skin, hair
9.4.1 Metabolism and excretion, kidney, urine, liver, faeces
9.6.0 Nervous system
9.1.0 Blood and circulation, body temperature
9.215 Blood cells (humans)
9.214 Blood constituents (humans)
9.214.1 Blood donors
9.217 Blood flow in a fish
9.218 Blood flow in a frog
12.3.01 Blood pressure (humans)
5.17 Body temperature (Clinical thermometer)
9.45.7 Body temperature, diurnal variation
12.8.15 Detect iron in fruit juice using back tea (haeme and non-haeme iron)
15.05 Electrolytes in the blood and urine (humans)
24.7.3 Heat loss by the human body
9.215.1 Immunity (humans)
9.216 Osmotic behaviour of red blood cells (humans)
9.219 Women feel colder then men
9.2.0 Digestion, teeth
9.223 Bile, Function of bile, bile salts
7.8.3.5 Bile salts as an emulsifying agent
2.13 Count your teeth (Primary)
9.222 Digestibility of different protein foods
9.225 Digestibility of fats
5.20 Digestion in a chicken
9.224 Digestion in the intestines, pancreatin suspension
9.220 Digestion in the mouth, reaction of the enzyme ptyalin, salivary amylase
9.221 Digestion in the stomach, reaction of pepsin
9.221.1 Reflux and heartburn
9.236 Shakir strip and malnourished child
9.227 Small intestine, model with dialysis tubing
6.6.3 Surface / volume ratio
9.226 Teeth and toothpaste
9.211 Teeth scrapings (bacteria)
9.3.0 Human body, skeleton, weight, height, skin, hair
9.230 Bones and skeleton
3.13 Describe your bones (Primary)
3.14 Feel your bones (Primary)
5.16 Fingerprints (Primary)
1.19 Length game (Primary)
2.14 Measure your body in hand spans (Primary)
9.231 Measure your height
3.15 Measure your height (Primary)
9.235 Measure your weight
2.15 Measure with your body (Primary)
3.16 Move your arms (Primary)
9.232 Muscles
9.230.1 Osteoarthritis
1.20 Pace distances (Primary)
1.13 Same and different (Primary)
9.233 Skin, hair and fingerprints
2.19 Skin and hair (Primary)
3.18 Volume of your fist (Primary)
19.0 Your body (Primary)
9.4.1 Metabolism and excretion, kidney, urine, liver, faeces
9.228 Body Mass Index (BMI)
9.229 Children with diarrhoea, ORS special drink
15.05 Electrolytes in the blood and urine
4.2.11 Glycemic index (GI)
6.14 Shakir strip, (Test for malnourished child)
9.5.10 Urine tests
9.6.0 Nervous system
9.253 Circular movement of foot
4.22 Memory games (Primary)
9.6.0 Nervous system, central nervous system, peripheral nervous system
9.254 Optical illusions
9.6.2 Reflex arc
9.6.1 Senses
4.24 Speed of reaction (Primary)
2.2.6 Speed of reaction, Human reaction time
1.15 The five senses (Primary)
4.23 Test your reflexes (Primary)
5.15 Breathing in and out
See diagram 9.242: Simulated diaphragm
Be able to observe what happens to your bodies when you breathe in and out.
Use a watch with a second hand, bucket with a handle. This lesson is designed with two aims:
1.1 To give children more experience in observing their breathing mechanism and so be able to improve observation of their own bodies.
1.2 To learn about the importance of oxygen gas (O2) to the body. Use a watch with a second hand or you could count seconds "one and two and three and four".
1. Sit quietly watching you. What they are doing? [Nothing, they are just sitting still.] They are not doing anything. They are breathing in and out. Did they realize they were breathing? [No.] What made them breathe in and out. [You don't know.] Your brain makes you breathe in and out. They don't have to think about it. It is automatic.
2. Sit quietly watching you. Tell the children to close their mouths, hold their noses and stop breathing. They will count to 100, then they can start breathing again. Give the order and start counting. When do they start breathing again? [After 20-30 seconds.] Why they didn't wait until the count of 100. [You had to breathe again.] What made you breathe again? [The brain.]
3. Breathe in and out very deeply 20 times. Then say "Stop" and start counting. How long can you hold your breath now? [About one minute.] Why can you hold your breath longer? Explain that when you breathe in and out your body takes in oxygen gas from the air. your body needs oxygen gas. If you breathe in deeply your body stores some oxygen gas in the lungs so you can hold your breath longer.
4. Push one finger up under the lowest right rib. Breathe deeply in and out. What happens to their ribs when you breathe in? [They rise.] Show the bucket. If your rib is like the handle of the bucket, when you breath in it is like raising the handle of the bucket. When you breathe out, the handle of the bucket goes down. Feel up under your ribs again and breathe in deeply. What happens to your finger when you breathe in? [It is pushed down.] What pushes it down? Explain that a big muscle called the diaphragm pushes the finger down. If you run a long way, you may get a pain in your diaphragm called a "stitch".
5. If the chest gets bigger or smaller when you breathe in. [Bigger, the chest expands.] What part of the chest moves? [Two parts, the ribs turn up like a bucket handle and the diaphragm pushes down.] When you breathe in where does the air go? [Into the lungs.] Where are the lungs? [There is one on each side of your chest.]
6. Why do you breathe in air? [Our body needs oxygen gas.] At the start of the lesson why were you breathing quietly? [You do not need much oxygen when you are sitting quietly.] What happens to your breathing when you start running? [You breathe in and out more quickly and deeply.] Why do you breathe more when you are running? [The body needs more oxygen gas.]
Sentence Completion: your body needs [oxygen] gas. When you breathe in, your body gets oxygen gas from [the air]. You breathe [slowly] when you are sleeping or sitting quietly because you do not need so much [oxygen gas]. When you are running, you need much oxygen gas so you breathe [quickly].
Extra Activity: 1. Breathe in and out rapidly through your nose and through your mouth. What do you notice? [The nose warms the air before you breathe it in.]. 2. Close your mouth and hold your nose then try to breathe out. What do you notice? [Pain inside the ear.] This is the air pressing against skin in the ear called ear drums. If you swallow, the pain will go away. They may feel this pain when you are in a landing aircraft.
5.16 Fingerprints
See diagram 9.233: Fingerprints
A. Be able to describe their fingerprints.
You will need a stamp pad, magnifiers soap and water.
If you do not have a stamp you can use carbon paper or make carbon paper from aluminium foil:
1. Use a piece of aluminium foil or silver paper. 2. Hold it in a candle flame so that the lower side becomes covered evenly with a layer of carbon. 3. Test the carbon foil you have made. It is like carbon paper. You can use it to make fingerprints.
1. Look at the skin on your finger tips. There are lines on them. Look for lines with the shapes in the diagram: whorl, loop, arch
2. Make a print of your thumb use a stamp pad or pour some ink onto absorbent. Press your thumb onto the inky paper. Wet it all over with the ink. Then press your thumb onto a sheet of clean white paper.
3. Look carefully at the thumb print. Look for arches, whorls, and loops.
4. Look at the thumb prints of other children. Are any prints the same? [No] Police use finger prints to identify people.
Extra activity: Lengths of fingers, 1. Measure the lengths of your fingers as shown in the diagram. 2. Calculate the ratio: length of middle finger/length of little finger. 3. Is this ratio the same for all children? Is it the same for boys or girls?
B. Be able to describe and compare fingerprints among human beings.
Use ink or stamp pads, magnifying glass. This lesson is designed to train children in the skills of description and comparison. Also it is interesting because police use fingerprints to identify people. No two people in the world have the same fingerprints.
1. Explain how police use fingerprints. If a robber breaks into a house he leaves invisible fingerprints on anything he touches, e.g. door handle. The police can put a special powder on the door handle and record the fingerprints. Later the police can catch a man who could be the robber. The police put ink on the man's fingers and take the fingerprints. Then they compare the man's fingerprints with those they took off the door. If the fingerprints match then the police have caught the robber.
2. Give each group some ink or a stamp pad. Put the ink on the thumb then press the thumb on the paper. Hold the fingerprint up to the light and look at it with a magnifying glass.
3. Fingerprints can be described: 3.1. whorls, 3.2. loops, 3.3. arches
Draw the outline of your thumb. Draw in the whorls, loops and arches.
4. Make fingerprints of your other fingers. Do they have the same pattern as your thumb? [No.]
5. Compare the fingerprints of different children. Are they the same?
Extra Activity: "Fingerprint Game" Each child in the group makes two sets of fingerprints. The teacher takes one set, then gives back one print of the "robber". Now compare the "robber's" fingerprint to all the fingerprints. Who is the "robber"?
5.17 Body temperature
See diagram 23.7.02: Clinical thermometer
Be able to measure the temperature of your body using a clinical thermometer.
Use a clinical thermometer. You must use a clinical thermometer and not any other type of thermometer. You will also need a glass of water with some antiseptic in it. Make sure that you can read the thermometer. Normal body temperature is marked with an arrow of 37oC. In a clinical thermometer there is a constriction in the bore. This allows the mercury to expand (rise) showing a rise in temperature but it does not allow the mercury to contract (fall) again. This lets you take a thermometer out of a patient's mouth and does not give a falsely low reading. To move the mercury down again you have to flick the thermometer with a quick turn of their wrist. Practise flicking it to make the mercury go down. Do not drop it on a concrete floor. Practise flicking the mercury down standing on the grass. Do not be alarmed at small differences in temperature between people. In women, the body temperature changes with the menstrual cycle.
Take the temperature of each child in the class.
1. Show the clinical thermometer. Have they seen it before? Explain that this measures how hot your body is. In healthy people the body has a constant temperature: 37 degrees Celsius (37oC) but it can vary slightly. It is lower when you wake up and it is higher if you run about a lot. If the body temperature is much higher or lower this means that you are sick.
2. Draw the scale on the chalkboard.
3. Take your own temperature. Draw an arrow on the chalkboard diagram to show your own temperature, e.g. 37.2oC.
4. Flick down the mercury. Wash the thermometer in antiseptic then read the temperature with each child. Tell each child to draw an arrow on the chalkboard to show your temperature.
5. Look at all the arrows. What conclusion? [The average temperature is 37oC, some temperatures are a bit higher or lower.]
Extra Activity: Compare these two groups of temperature readings, 1. Adult / child / babies, 2. Boys / girls, 3. Lying down after running around the classroom. Make a table and compare your readings for each group. Besides this you could try outside the class by going to a nearby Health Centre or hospital to collect information on temperature readings.
5.18 Feel your pulse
See diagram 9.239: Feel your pulse | See diagram: 9.239.1: Electrocardiogram
Be able to feel your pulse and notice how it changes with different body activity.
Practice feeling your own pulse. How many beats of your pulse per minute? [About 70.]
1. Children must be seated quietly and not move about.
2. Put your forearm on the desk, palm up with the wrist on the edge of the desk and hand in the air.
3. Press the four fingers of the other hand down on the side of the wrist. Wait a little while, keep still, and you will feel the pulse. Start counting the pulse.
4. Now tell the children to run around the classroom and feel the pulse again. [It is faster.]
5. The pulse tells us how fast the blood is pumped around the body. If you are sick or after a big meal it is faster, when you are asleep it is slower.
6 . Roll up some paper to make a tight tube. Hold it against the chest of another child. Press your ear against the other end. Can you hear the heart pump the blood?
Extra Activity: Use a watch to tell the children when a minute starts and stops. Write down your pulse rates on the chalkboard in beats per minute. What is the average pulse rate? An electrocardiograph records the electric currents generated by the heartbeat and records them on an electrocardiogram.
5.20 Digestion in a chicken
See diagram 50.6.3: Digestive organs (chicken)
Be able to observe and discuss what happens during digestion by examining an animal's stomach.
Use food, chicken or rat, scissors and knife, chloroform solution and lens. The teacher has to recall the methods of studying internal organs of animals by means of dissection.
1. Digestion of food is in two stages:
1.1 Breakdown of food into smaller parts using teeth and tongue in the mouth.
1.2 Softening of the food by saliva in the mouth and acid in the stomach.
2. Let the children bite a dry biscuit. Their teeth and tongue will break it into smaller pieces. Soon it tastes sweet because the saliva changes starch into sugar.
3. Kill a chicken or toad and show the stomach. It is like a bag made of hard muscle. This muscle can mix the food with acid.
4. Cut open the stomach with scissors. Turn the stomach inside out and show the digested contents.
5. Wash out the inside of the stomach and let the children examine it with a magnifier. Can they see the folds in the walls?
Extra Activity: Show the inside of a cow's stomach called tripe. You can buy this in a butcher's shop. Compare the size with the stomach of a rat or rabbit.
6.16 Volume of air breathed out
See diagram 6.16: Volume of air breathed out
Be able to measure how much air breathed out by displacement or water.
Use marked jars, each group should have at least three jars, buckets, basins or any pool of water, lengths of rubber hose or hollow pawpaw sticks. Each child will probably need three jars to measure how much air in the lung.
The children take turns using the jars. Do the activity outside because water will be spilt. Take a deep breath. Blow air out slowly into one jar until all the water has been pushed out. Transfer to the next jar and blow more air out until your lungs are empty. You may need a third jar. The volume of the air in this person's lung is 1 000 cm³ + 1 000 cm³ + 200 cm³ = 2 200 cm³. The children will need help adding up how much air in each jar.
1. How can you make air replace water? [We did before by blowing air into upside down jars filled with water.] This time you will measure the volume of the lungs by measuring the volume of water the air pushed out.
2. Use one group to show the rest of the class how to fill the bottles of water, blow into the jar and refill with water. How much air breathed out is about equal to how much air is in the lungs.
3. Let each child to try to find out how much air in the lungs.
4. Draw a table of results on the chalkboard. Which child has the largest volume of air in the lungs?
Be careful! Do not let children blow hard and do not make them blow if they feel sick!
9.6.0 Nervous system
1. Central nervous system
1.1 Brain and spinal cord
1.1.1 Grey matter
1.1.2 White matter
2. Peripheral nervous system
2.1 Autonomic nervous system
2.1.1 Sympathetic nervous system, emergency action (fight or flight), parallel action to adrenaline but more immediate
1. increase heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, 2. Dilation of pupil, trachea (lump in throat), 3. contraction of hair erector pili muscles (hair "stands on end", tingling spine, ruffling of cat's fur and feathers, 4. Constriction of blood vessels to skin (turned white in fright), salivary glands (dry mouth) constricted 5. Contraction of bladder wall (urination due to fright) 6. Inhibits digestion
2.1.2 Parasympathetic nervous system, return to normal after emergency
9.6.1 Senses, (1 to 5 = "the five senses")
1. Sight, vision
2. Hearing, audition
3. Taste, gustation
3.1 Sweet, 3.2 Salty, 3.3 Sour, 3.4 Bitter, 3.5 Umami, the savoury taste of glutamates, monosodium glutamate.
4. Smell, olfaction (flavour is taste and smell of food)
5. Touch, tactition
6. Balance and acceleration sense, equilibrioception
7. Temperature sense
7.1 Heat receptors, 7.2 Cold receptors
8. Kinesthetic sense, proprioception
8.1 Skin sensors, 8.2 Joint and bone receptors, 8.3 Body organ receptors
9. Pain sense, nociception
10 Internal senses
Brain, vasodilatation causing headache
Colon, stretch during colic (excess gas pressure, "wind")
Lungs - stretch
Oesophagus, swallowing, vomiting, reflux oesophagitis (heartburn)
Pharynx, gagging reflex, cannot swallow
Skin, touch, pressure
11, Direction, magnetoreception (in some birds and cattle)
9.6.2 Reflex arc
A reflex arc is a simple nerve pathway for reflex actions, e.g. patellar reflex (knee jerk) . The pathway has a minimum of three neurones, sensory neurone from a receptor through a spinal nerve and into the spinal cord or brain, connector neurone within the spinal cord, motor neurone from the spinal cord and through a motor spinal nerve to a muscle, gland or other effector. The three neurones are connected by synapses. It is a theoretical idea because nobody has ever dissected out a simple reflex arc.
A conditioned reflex involves a new response behaviour, e.g. a dog associated the sound a bell with feeding so when a bell rings the response is to salivate.
9.214 Blood constituents
See diagram 16.3.5.2: Haeme
Blood circulates through the body tissues carrying oxygen, nutrients, hormones and waste products to the excretory organs. It contains red cells (erythrocytes), white cells (leukocytes), platelets (thrombocytes, fragments of cytoplasm needed for blood coagulation)), water (77 to 79%) proteins, lipids, enzymes, hormones blood sugar, vitamins and some inorganic substances. The blood cells are suspended in the straw-coloured watery blood plasma. Blood serum is the liquid that separates from clotted blood or when blood plasma is allowed to stand. Blood serum is blood plasma without fibrinogen and other substances involved in the mechanism of blood clotting. Red blood cells contain the red pigment haemoglobin, a protein of four polypeptide chains each with the haeme prosthetic group, the oxygen binding site. Blood is slightly alkaline and has relative density 1.054 to 1.00. Haeme contains iron. Methaemoglobin forms if iron in the haeme molecule is oxidized from the ferrous (Fe2+) to the ferric state (Fe3+) caused by certain drugs, water contaminated with nitrates, nitrites, drinking antifreeze and is a rare genetic deficiency causing "blue" people, e.g. the Hindu god Shiva and some native American tribes. The medical condition methaemoglobinaemia is treated with high flow oxygen or methylene blue that converts the haeme back to the ferrous state. Arteries appear red and veins appear blue because of the relative concentration of haeme carrying oxygen in the blood.
9.214.1 Blood donors
The students at the University of the Queensland are given the following advice before giving blood. Compare this advice to that given in your region or local hospital.
1. To prepare yourself before donating, increase fluids (preferably water or juice), have a good size meal, and bring some form of personal photo ID,
2.  If the following apply to you, please phone our the Australian Red Cross Blood Service to discuss your eligibility to donate.
You have a sore throat or the beginnings of a cold, are taking antibiotics, have taken your last antibiotic less than 5 days ago, have had a tattoo in the last twelve months, have lived in England for a cumulative of 6 months or more between 1980 and 1996 [precaution against transmission of mad cow disease], have any history of heart disease, stroke or epilepsy, are pregnant or are a female with a child younger than 10 months of age.
Comprehensive information on excluded donors can be obtained from the Red Cross website:
9.215 Blood cells
See diagram 9.215: Human blood cells (Romanowsky stain)
1. Red blood cells, erythrocytes: no nucleus, biconcave discs, haemoglobin, from red bone marrow, live 80 to 120 days until destroyed in spleen and liver
2. White blood cells, leucocytes
3. Granulocytes, granular cytoplasm, multilobed nucleus
3.1 Neutrophils, 56% of total white blood cells, ingest bacteria
3.2 Eosinophils, 2.7% of total white blood cells, allergy reaction
3.3 Basiphils, produce heparin (blood clotting) and histamine (capillary permeability)
4. Monocytes, phagocytes in tissues after leaving blood
5. Lymphocytes, 34% of total white blood cells, produce antibodies
Human blood contains red blood cells (erythrocytes) white blood cells (leukocytes) and platelets (thrombocytes). The erythrocyte count is 4.2 to 5.9 × 1012 cells per litre. The hematocrit, packed cell volume, measures the proportion of blood volume occupied by red blood cells, males 40% to 54%, females 37% to 47%. The ratio of white blood cells to red blood cells constitutes 1 white blood cell for every 600 to 700 red blood cells. White blood cells are larger than red blood cells and have nuclei with variable shapes. Platelets are irregular in shape and are usually seen in small groups like piles of coins. Platelets help the blood clotting processes. Blood cells are suspended in the straw-coloured blood plasma, a solution of inorganic salts and proteins. Blood serum is blood plasma with fibrinogen and other  blood clotting agents removed.
When capillaries are broken blood leaks into the surrounding tissue and the haemoglobin  produces the red-purple colour of a bruise. The haemoglobin breaks down into green biliverdin and yellow bilirubin so changing the colour of the bruise. Excess bilirubin in the skin causes the yellow colour of jaundice, e.g. hepatitis and some new born babies. Bilirubin can be broken down by ultraviolet light, a treatment for bruises.
Do not take blood samples from other people in the class or from yourself! Use frog blood, mammalian blood from a slaughterhouse or butcher shop or whole blood from a hospital. You may have to seek approval to work with animal blood or human blood because blood may spread disease. Wear safety glasses, protective clothing and disposable surgical gloves for handling animal tissue and blood products. Instead of using human blood use prepared slides of mammalian blood cells purchased from a laboratory supply company. Prevent mammalian blood clotting by adding a 2% sodium citrate solution in the ratio 1 part of solution to 4 parts of blood.
1. Study frog blood and mammalian blood with a microscope for a comparison of blood cells with a nucleus and without a nucleus.
2. Make a staining bath. Push two pairs of paper clips opposite each other halfway down the side of a flat transparent dish, so that each clip forms an eyelet above the edge of the dish. Push a long glass rod through each pair of eyelets and then push the paper clips to secure the glass rods in a parallel position. The glass rods become a bridge for the flat transparent dish staining bath.
3. Put the slide with the drop of blood at an acute angle about one centimetre from the shorter edge of a second slide on the bench. Push the slide along the second slide to spread the blood evenly as a smear over its surface. Allow the smear to dry then place it, smear upwards, across the bridge of the staining bath. For fixing the air-dried blood smear, cover the entire surface of the slide with methanol, methyl alcohol. After three minutes, tip off the methanol and cover the slide with dilute Giemsa solution (Giemsa stain can be purchased from a laboratory supply company). After twenty minutes tip off the Giemsa solution, rinse under running water then leave to dry. Examine the preparation under high power.
Observe the following:
3.1 red blood corpuscles, erythrocytes, with no nuclei, have dumbbell shape seen in profile and pale in the centre is seen from broad surface.
3.2 nucleated white blood corpuscles, leukocytes, and
3.3 irregular shaped platelets, thrombocytes.
Red blood cells will appear pinkish grey, platelets will appear deep pink, and white blood cells will have purple-blue nuclei and a lighter cytoplasm.
4.1 Fill a 100 mL graduated cylinder to the 100 mL mark with mammalian oxalated blood purchased from a qualified supplier and allow it to stand. You may have to seek approval to work with animal blood or human blood because blood may spread disease. Wear safety glasses, protective clothing and disposable surgical gloves for handling animal tissue and blood products. Within 24 hours, the blood separates into an opaque, red fraction at the bottom with a yellowish liquid above. For horse blood, the red fraction is 55% by volume. Oxalated blood usually contains potassium oxalate.
4.2. Transfer a drop of the yellow liquid to a microscope slide with a glass rod. Apply a coverslip and examine under high power. Note the non-suspended bodies.
4.3. Pour the yellow liquid only out of the graduated cylinder. Use a glass rod to transfer a drop of physiological (0.9%) saline (sodium chloride in deionized water) to a microscope slide. Add to this drop some opaque red sediment from the measuring cylinder and mix well. Apply a coverslip and examine under high power. Note the numerous round pale yellow-red cells without nuclei, the red blood corpuscles, erythrocytes. They appear shaped like a dumbbell when viewed from the side because of the central indentation of both sides. Some lie close together like cylindrical heaps of coins.
4.4 Let the oxalated blood stand so that the blood cells settle. The yellow blood plasma above contains no corpuscles or other bodies. The white blood corpuscles can be seen only if the iris diaphragm is almost closed. Usually, they are stained with Giemsa stain (methylene blue and eosin).
9.215.1 Immunity
1.1. Antigens are usually foreign proteins that stimulate an immunity reaction.
1.2. Antibodies are the globular proteins (immunoglobulins) produced to counteract the effect of specific antigens in an antibody-antigen reaction.
1.2.1 Bacteria may produce toxins that may be counteracted by specific antitoxins.
2. Immunity is the ability to resist infection, diseases and unwanted biological invasion by the action of lymphocytes, phagocytes and antibodies in an immune reaction.
2.1.1 The T lymphocytes attract phagocytes, cause inflammation, control B lymphocytes, and contain the memory of past infection to allow long-term immunity.
2.1.2 The B lymphocytes in the lymphatic tissue and lymph nodes produce plasma cells that secrete antibodies.
2.2 Phagocytes, i.e. leucocytes and monocytes, engulf bacteria.
2.3 Antibodies can:
2.3.1 clump, pierce, coat and inactivate bacteria,
2.3.2 neutralize toxins,
2.3.3 as the protein interferon, prevent viruses multiplying.
3. Natural immunity is the immunity we are born with without any previous contact with disease.
3.1 Acquired (passive) immunity is additional short-term immunity from:
3.1.1 Antibodies that cross the placenta and antibodies from colostrum before breast milk secretion and from breast milk.
3.1.2 Injection of antibodies in an antiserum, e.g. snake poison antibodies in horse antiserum
3.1.3 Injection of immunoglobulins into a sick person from another person who has been infected by the same disease, e.g. chickenpox, hepatitis C.
4. Active immunity is the long-lasting immunity from a host producing antibodies in response to:
4.1 Natural infection
The "hygiene hypothesis" is that childhood exposure to pathogens primes the immune system and that children reared in the very clean environments of affluent families do not develop a mature immune system.
4.2 Injection of a non-potent form of antigen (attenuated antigen) in a vaccine to produce a slow primary immune response but which leads to a fast secondary immune response to later infection by this antigen because of the new memory stored in the T lymphocytes.
Vaccinations given in Australia
Disease Vaccine

1. Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, Hepatitis B

 DTPa-hepB
2. Haemophilus Influenzae type B Hib (PRP-OMP) or Hib (PRP-OMP)-hepB
3. Poliomyelitis OPV
4. Measles, Mumps, Rubella MMR
5. Diphtheria, Tetanus Td
6. Pneumococcal disease Pneumococcal vaccine
7. Influenza Influenza vaccine
Make list of the vaccinations given to persons in your class or family.
9.216 Osmotic behaviour of red blood cells
Experiments using live human blood cells may not allowed in some school systems.
1. Use a glass rod to transfer one drop of deionized water on a microscope slide. Let a drop of blood fall into the drop of water on the slide. Mix the blood and water well. Place a coverslip over the mixture and examine the preparation immediately under a microscope, magnification 400 X. Describe any changes in the red blood cells. The contents of the red blood cells are hypertonic to the outside solution so the blood cells swell because of endosmosis, gain of water.
2. Use a glass rod to transfer one drop of deionized water on a microscope slide. Let a drop of blood fall into the drop of water on the slide. Add one drop of 6% sodium chloride solution to the slide and mix well. Apply a coverslip and examine under a microscope, magnification 400 X. Describe any changes in the red blood cells. The contents of the red blood cells are hypotonic to the outside solution so the blood cells shrink because of osmosis, loss of water.
3. Use a glass rod to transfer one drop of deionized water on a microscope slide. Let a drop of blood to fall into the drop of water on the slide. Add one drop of 0.9%, sodium chloride solution to the slide. Apply a coverslip mixture and examine under a microscope, magnification 400 X. Compare the observations made in the three experiments. The 0.9% salt solution is called physiological saline, salt solution. Describe any changes in the red blood cells. The contents of the red blood cells are isotonic with the outside solution so the blood cells stay the same size with no gain or loss of water.
9.217 Blood flow in a fish
See diagram 9.3.65.1: Fish circulation
Study the circulatory system of a fish. Show the circulation of blood in the tail of a fish. Wear safety glasses, protective clothing and disposable surgical gloves for handling animal tissue and blood products. You may have to seek approval to work with live fish. Put a goldfish, 5 cm long with a light colour caudal fin in a beaker containing 200 mL of 1.2% ethyl carbamate solution. Be careful! Ethyl carbamate is a possible carcinogen so work in a well-ventilated area. The fish becomes paralysed. Remove it from the solution and lay it on a glass dish. Cover the entire body of the fish, except the caudal fin, with wet absorbent paper placed close to the skin. Drop water from a pipette on the caudal fin to keep it moist. Put the caudal fin on the stage of a microscope. Use low power to see the movement of blood through the capillaries and the movement of the red blood corpuscles. Put the fish back in water where it will become mobile again.
9.218 Blood flow in a frog
See diagram 9.3.65.2: Frog circulation
Study the circulatory system of a frog and observe the blood cells. Wear safety glasses, protective clothing and disposable surgical gloves for handling animal tissue and blood products. You may have to seek approval to work with live frogs or toads. Be careful! Do not use frogs or toads that release toxins. Wrap the frog in a wet cloth and pin it to a soft board with a hole in the cloth for observing with a microscope. Mount the webbing between the toes of the frog under the hole and put the board and frog on a microscope stage. Observe blood cells squeezing through the extremely small blood vessels of the thin webbing between the toes.
9.220 Digestion in the mouth, reaction of the enzyme ptyalin, salivary amylase
See 16.10.1: Breakdown starch to sugars, hydrolysis of starch, iodine test, Fehling's test | See 9.142: Tests for starch, Fehling's tests for starch:
You may have to seek approval to work with human saliva because it can spread disease. Instead of using human saliva, use salivary amylase from a laboratory supply company.
1. Put 10 mL of 1% starch solution in three test-tubes standing in beakers containing water at 40oC.
1.1 Add 5 drops of dilute (10%) hydrochloric acid to the first test-tube.
1.2 Add 5 drops of human saliva to the second test-tube.
2. The third test-tube contains only the starch solution and is the control. Every 30 seconds remove a drop from each test-tube and add 2 drops of dilute iodine solution to do the iodine tests for starch. Repeat the experiment with beakers of water heated to 100oC. Saliva contains the enzyme, salivary amylase.
3. Cut the crust off a slice of white bread and divide the rest of the slice into two pieces. Chew the first piece quickly and swallow it as soon as possible. Chew the second piece for 5 minutes before swallowing. Describe the tastes of the two slices.
4. Do not make any chewing motion, then let 5 mL of saliva drop from the lower lip into a beaker. Dilute the saliva with an equal amount of water. Put 10 mL of starch solution into each of three test-tubes. Do the iodine tests for starch drop by drop into each test-tube until a clear blue colour appears to show the presence of starch.
4.1 Put diluted saliva into the first test-tube, then do Fehling's tests for simple sugars.
4.2 Put an equal volume of water in the second test-tube, then do Fehling's tests for simple sugars.
4.3 Do Fehling's tests for simple sugars on the contents of the third control test-tube. Compare the colours of the contents of the three test-tubes.
9.221 Digestion in the stomach, reaction of pepsin
You may have to seek approval to work with human saliva because it can spread disease. Instead of using human saliva, use salivary amylase from a laboratory supply company.
Pepsin enzyme is secreted into stomach to hydrolyse protein linkages in proteins. Gastric juice contains the enzyme pepsin and 0.2-0.5% hydrochloric acid. You may notice the acid in the gastric juice if you belch. The pain of "heartburn" (reflux oesophagitis) is caused by excessive gastric juice irritating the lower oesophagus.
1. Add the following solutions to four test-tubes:
1.1 10 mL of water in the first test-tube.
1.2 9 mL of 1% pepsin solution + 1 mL of water in the second test-tube.
1.3 9 mL of water + 1 mL 5% hydrochloric acid in the third test-tube.
1.4. 9 mL 1% pepsin solution + 1 mL 5% hydrochloric acid in the fourth test-tube.
Put a piece of boiled fish into each test-tube. Put the test-tubes in a beaker of water at 37oC. Try to keep the water in the beaker at that temperature overnight, then compare the contents of the test-tubes.
2. Put uncooked starchy food, e.g. flour, rice, spaghetti, potato, in a first test-tube. Put an equal volume of the same food cooked in a second test-tube. Add the same volume of diluted saliva solution to both test-tubes then stir them with glass rods. Leave for two hours. Compare the contents of the two test-tubes.
3. Cut cooked meat, uncooked meat, egg, and cheese into very small pieces. Wear safety glasses, protective clothing and disposable surgical gloves for handling animal tissue and blood products. Put the cut food into different test-tubes. Add 5 mL of 1% pepsin solution and 2 drops of dilute (10%) hydrochloric acid to each test-tube. Shake the test-tubes occasionally for one hour. Compare the contents of the four test-tubes. A similar process occurs in the human stomach.
9.221.1 Reflux and heartburn
Reflux, gastro-oesophageal reflux (GORD), is caused by stomach acid rising into the oesophagus and irritating it as a painful burning sensation, heartburn. Heartburn has nothing to do with the heart. The burning sensation may be accompanied by a bitter taste in the throat, burping, bloating and difficulty of swallowing. The contents of the stomach are normally prevented from moving into the oesophagus by the lower oesophageal sphincter muscle (LOS) that acts as a valve to let food enter the stomach but prevents the acid contents from reaching the sensitive oesophagus. Heartburn occurs in many people after a large meal and when lying down.. It may be caused by a particular food, e.g. chocolate, peppermint, deep fried foods, onions, garlic, coffee, alcoholic beverages, citrus juice, soda water, tomatoes, and spices. The most common immediate treatment is to take antacids as tablets, e.g. aluminium hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, calcium carbonate, bismuth subsilicate, or as a solution, e.g. sodium bicarbonate. Persistent heartburn requires medical attention.
9.222 Digestibility of different protein foods
Fill four test-tubes with 9 mL of 1% pepsin solution + 1 mL of 5% hydrochloric acid. 1. Put a piece of boiled egg white in the first test-tube. 2. Put an equal volume of boiled fish in the second test-tube. 3. Put an equal volume of low fat cheese in the third test-tube. 4. Put an equal volume of lean boiled beef in the fourth test-tube. Put all the test-tubes in a beaker of water at 37oC. Leave for one hour then compare the contents of the four test-tubes.
9.223 Function of bile, bile salts
Bile salts emulsify fats to increase their surface area for digestion. Ox bile can be purchased from a laboratory supplier.
Add 10 drops of olive oil to the first test-tube that is half full of water. Hold the thumb over the mouth of the test-tube, shake it several times then place it in a test-tube rack. Add an equal volume of 40% ox bile solution to the second test-tube that is a quarter full of water. Add 10 drops of olive oil. Hold the thumb over the mouth of the test-tube and shake it several times, then place it in a test-tube rack. Compare the contents of the two test-tubes.
9.224 Digestion in the intestines, pancreatin suspension
The pancreas secretes several enzymes in the pancreatic juice. Pancreatin suspension is a mixture of pancreatic enzymes.
1. Fill two test-tubes each with 5 mL of 1% starch solution. Add 2 drops of dilute iodine solution to do the iodine tests for starch.
1.1 Add 5 mL of water to the first test-tube.
1.2 Add 5 mL of 1% pancreatin suspension to the second test-tube. Note: digestive enzymes can be purchased by laboratory suppliers. Cover each test-tube with the thumb, invert it to mix the contents, and put them in a test-tube rack. Compare the contents of the two test-tubes.
2. Fill four test-tubes with 9 mL of 1% pancreatin suspension.
2.1 Put a piece of boiled egg white in the first test-tube.
2.2 Put an equal volume of boiled fish in the second test-tube.
2.3 Put an equal volume of low fat cheese in the third test-tube.
2.4 Put an equal volume of lean boiled beef in the fourth test-tube. Put all the test-tubes in a beaker of water at 37oC. Leave for one hour then compare the contents of the four test-tubes. The pieces of food in the test-tubes gradually disintegrate.
9.225 Digestibility of fats
The bile and the enzymes of the digestive juices can attack and decompose melted fats more easily because of their larger surface area.
Prepare three squares of copper gauze, 150 × 150 mm.
1. Put a cube of margarine on the first gauze square.
2. Put an equal volume of lard (pig fat) on the second gauze square.
3. Put an equal volume of beef suet (solid kidney fat) on the third gauze square. Fold each gauze square to enclose the sample of fat completely, then put each in a separate beaker of water at 37oC. Put the beakers on black paper. Look down to observe the melting fats. Note droplets of fat rising to the surface of the warm water. Note which fat is the most digestible.
9.226 Teeth and toothpaste
See diagram 9.226: Temporary teeth, "milk teeth", Permanent teeth | See diagram 9.226.1: Order of new teeth breaking through gums | See diagram 9.226.2: Molar tooth V.S.
Teeth are important for the first stages of the digestion process. However, tiny particles of food collect plaque (plaque, Dutch: plakken, to stick) around them and provide a breeding place for bacteria. The breakdown of sugary foods by bacteria, e.g. Streptococcus mutans, in the mouth produces organic acids that dissolve the teeth. Tooth decay occurs if the food contains sugars or starches, e.g. sweets, biscuits, cakes and soft drinks containing sucrose. Avoid these foods between meals. Cleaning of the teeth immediately after meals will lessen decay, especially if the last food eaten is fruit or raw vegetable. Another way to reduce dental decay is to drink tap water containing sodium fluorides and to use fluoridated toothpaste. The enamel in teeth is mostly calcium hydroxyl apatite, Ca5(PO4)3OH usually written as Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2, that can be converted by fluorine to Ca10(PO4)F2 that is an even tougher enamel. Fluoride in water supplies dosed at 1 ppm = 1 mg fluoride per litre is a level harmless to humans and may cause a 12.5% decrease in dental caries. However, in some individuals, but it may cause long-term problems of dental fluorosis and skeletal fluorosis leading to brittle teeth and bones in old age. Solid sodium silicofluoride or fluorosilicic acid is usually added. Other sources of fluorine are tea, spinach, bone meal, and fish protein. Fluoridated toothpaste may contain the active ingredient 0.76% W/W sodium monofluorophosphate or 0.22% W/W sodium fluoride, and microparticles of calcium as an abrasive and polishing agent, with Mohs' scale below 5.5. Modern toothpaste contains no sugars. The solid phase, polishing agent, is suspended in polyalcohols, e.g. aqueous glycerol or sorbitol or propylene glycol, and a suspending agent, sodium carboxy methylcellulose. A toothpaste is designed to remove food residue, plaque, and calculus (tartar, calcium phosphate, Ca3(PO4)2.2H2O). Calculus is calcified plaque.
Plaque bacteria change carbohydrates, e.g. sugar in food and drink, left on teeth to acid. This acid demineralizes teeth like the action of acid on an eggshell. Some foods already contain acid so dentists recommend avoiding sweet sticky foods and acidic drinks particularly between meals to reduce the frequency of acidic episodes. Chewing pressure forces food to be trapped between teeth and inside the pits and fissures where most cavities develop. Expansive fillings or fissure sealants prevent food being trapped and greatly reduce decay. Some sugarless foods, e.g. like nuts, are hard to displace and act as temporary sealants and displace previously trapped food to reduce acid demineralization. Chewing also provides better access for saliva and fluoride to neutralize acid and remineralize demineralized tooth. Tooth decay is the most common disease particularly in teenagers, even with fluoridation. Though most food is left trapped between teeth after every meal or snack, more than 80% of cavities develop inside pits and fissures in grooves on chewing surfaces. Most cavities occur between the age of 12 and 21. Tooth caries disease has an economic impact comparable with that of heart disease and diabetes.
Ca5(PO4)3 (s) + H+ (aq) --> Ca5(PO4)3+ (aq) + H2O (l)
tooth apatitie + organic acid --> tooth decay + water
Ca5(PO4)3+ (aq) + F-(aq) --> Ca5(PO4)3F (s)
calcium phosphate ion + fluoride toothpaste --> hard calcium fluorophosphate
1. Examine your diet and teeth cleaning habits and decide whether they lessen the chance of tooth decay. Examine a toothpaste packet and note the contents.
2. Look at your teeth in a mirror and note the four different kinds.
2.1 The front teeth, incisors, are for cutting food.
2.2 The "eye teeth" or canines are for tearing food. Dogs have big tearing teeth.
2.3 The premolars are crushing teeth.
2.4 The back teeth or molars, are for grinding. Cattle have big grinding teeth. Biting teeth, incisors, move up and down to bite in a cutting action. Bite an apple and examine the bite marks. To use tearing teeth, canines, bite into the food and pull back on it, like a dog. Chewing teeth, premolars and molars, move from side to side to grind food into little pieces.
3. Compare the teeth of a child, 5 to 7 years of age with the teeth of an adult or use images from the internet. Humans have two sets of teeth in their lifetime. The first teeth, milk teeth, consist of four incisors, two canines, two premolars and one molar. The second teeth, permanent teeth, consist of four incisors, two canines, two pre-molars and three molars.
4. Compare the molars of a 10 years old child with the molars of a person 17 to 25 years, or older. The older person usually has the extra third molar each side of the jaw called the "wisdom tooth". However, sometimes the wisdom teeth do not erupt properly and remain imbedded in the jawbone, requiring serious dental surgery.
5. Examine the jawbone of a rat or a rabbit or use images from the internet. Compare the arrangement of their teeth with human adult teeth.
9.227 Small intestine, model with dialysis tubing
You may have to seek approval to work with human saliva because it can spread disease. Instead of using human saliva, use salivary amylase from a laboratory supply company.
Before cutting dialysis tubing, rub the end of the tubing between thumb and finger under water. When the surfaces of the tube begin to slide, select the length needed and blow into the wet end. Hold an end of the dialysis tubing under water until it is soft. Tie a knot in it and pull the tubing so that the knot is tight. Hold the other end of the tubing under water until it is soft. Rub your fingers back and forth on that end to open it. Cut three lengths of tubing, 10 cm long.
1. Pour starch solution into the first piece of tubing to a depth of 5 cm, then rest it in a beaker.
2. Pour the same volume of starch solution into the second piece of tubing and add 2 mL of dilute saliva solution. Shake the piece of tubing to mix the starch and saliva, then rest it in a beaker.
3. Add glucose solution to a depth of 5 cm in the third piece of tubing, then rest it in a beaker. Add water at 37oC to each beaker so that the level of water in each beaker is the same as the level of the solutions in the tubing. Leave the beakers until the next day. Dialysis tubing and sausage skin are similar to the membrane lining the small intestine.
9.228 Body Mass Index (BMI)
BMI is a ratio calculated from weight in kilograms divided by (height in metres)2. BMI provides an indicator of body fitness and can be used to screen for weight categories that may lead to health problems. BMI categories: BMI 30 (obese) BMI 25-29.9 (overweight) BMI 18.5-24.9 (normal) BMI < 18.5 (underweight). BMI obese patients may have a higher risk of heart-related disease, but BMI overweight patients may have better survival value and fewer heart problems than BMI normal or underweight patients. In some countries, fashion models with BMI < 18.5 are not allowed to walk the catwalk in fashion parades because some very thin models allegedly died of over-dieting. Calculate your BMI.
A new alternative to BMI is BAI, (Body Adiposity Index), that uses the correlation of hip circumference and height with percentage body fat as a measure of  obesity.
9.229 Children with diarrhoea, ORS special drink
See 6.14: Shakir strip, (Test for malnourished  child)
1. Diarrhoea means frequent watery stools. Often children with diarrhoea also have vomited and have a swollen belly with cramps. The stools smell different from normal stools, faeces. Children die of diarrhoea usually because their bodies lose too much water, dehydration. The signs of dehydration are as follows:
1.1 almost no urine that is dark yellow,
1.2 dry mouth,
1.3 sunken tearless eyes,
1.4 sunken soft spot (fontanelle) on top of a baby's head,
1.5 skin loses its stretching. If you lift up the skin and you can still see the fold after you let go, the child is dehydrated.
2. In many places, diarrhoea is the most common cause of death in small children, and is specially frequent in babies between six months and two years. It is more common and dangerous in children who are malnourished. Bottle-fed babies have diarrhoea more often than breast-fed babies. Diarrhoea can be prevented by breast-feeding babies for as long as possible, good nutrition and cleanliness. Take the child with diarrhoea to a doctor if the child shows any signs of dehydration, cannot drink or will not drink, makes no urine for six hours, has diarrhoea too often and cannot drink one glass of water per stool, has blood in the stool, and if diarrhoea lasts more than two days.
3. Children with diarrhoea must be given food, if they can take it. Replace the water lost through diarrhoea and vomiting with coconut water or the ORS drink (oral rehydration salts drink) sometimes called the "special drink". To make the ORS special drink, dissolve 4 teaspoons of sugar (sucrose) and half a level teaspoon of salt in 1 litre of clean water. Taste the drink before giving it to a sick child. It should taste no more salty then tears. Too much salt can be dangerous for a sick child. Start giving the sick child the ORS special drink, or coconut water, when diarrhoea begins. The child should drink a glass of special drink each time a stool is passed. If the child vomits up the drink, keep giving more because some will stay in the stomach. Give the drink in sips every two or three minutes. If the child does not want to drink, gently insist that the child try to drink something. Keep giving the drink, day and night until the child urinates normally. If the child will not drink and you are concerned about dehydration, seek professional medical advice. The sugar and salt for the ORS special drink is often available in special packets from the pharmacy or health workers in rural areas.
9.230 Bones and skeleton
See diagram 9.230: Skeleton 1 | See diagram 9.231: Skeleton 2
1. Examine different animal bones and describe their function, e.g. skull bones, backbones, ribs, shoulder bones, hip bones, arm and leg bones. The skull protects the brain. The jaws move the mouth and the teeth are attached to them. The vertebrae join to form the spine that connects all the bones. The shoulder and hip bones connect arms and legs to the spine. The ribs protect the lungs and heart, and allow the chest to get bigger and smaller. The arm and leg bones allow movement of arms and legs. Compare a young bone with an old bone. The young bone is softer and contains haemopoietic tissue that makes blood. Old bones are strong and may contain fat. Broken bones are very dangerous for old people because fat may leak out of the broken bone into the bloodstream and cause blockages.
2. A joint is where a bone joins another bone.
2.1 Hinge joints allow forwards and backwards movement, like a door, e.g. the knee joint.
2.2 Ball joints allow movement in a circle, swinging the arm in a circle, e.g. the shoulder joint.
2.3 Pivot joints allow turning movement, turning the handle of a door, e.g. the forearm.
2.4 Fixed joints do not move, but allow plates of bones to grow, e.g. the bones in the skull. A foetus and a very young baby have joints in the skull, fontanelles, where the bones have not joined. These joints allow the skull to expand and grow. When putting a baby down to sleep always have one hand under the head.
3. Examine the different kinds of joints in the body: jaw (hinge) elbow (hinge and pivot) finger (hinge) foot (pivot) upper leg (ball) backbone (pivot) neck (pivot and hinge).
4. The formula for the height of a full grown adult is as follows:
height of adult = average of heights of the two parents (+ 7 cm for men) (-7 cm for women).
9.230.1 Osteoarthritis
Pharmaceutical Society of Australia
See diagram 9.230.1: Normal joint, Joint with osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a disease that damages the cartilage in joints. Fingers and load-bearing joints (knees, feet, hips and spine) are the joints most often affected. It is the most common type of arthritis and develops with increasing age in more than half the adult population.
Normal joints
Joints, where two moving bones come together, are designed to protect bone ends from wearing away and to act as shock absorbers. A joint is made up of:
Cartilage is a hard, slippery, protective coating on the end of each bone
Joint capsules are a tough covering that holds all the bones and other joint parts together
Synovium is a thin membrane lining inside the joint capsule
Synovial fluid is a fluid that lubricates the joint
Muscles, ligaments, and tendons keep the bones stable and allow the joint to bend and move.
Osteoarthritis
In a joint affected by OA, the cartilage that protects the ends of the bones deteriorates and wears away. Bits of bone or cartilage can break off and float inside the joint space and lumps of bone (spurs) may grow on the joint edge, As the damage progresses, the joint loses its smooth movement, the space between the bones narrows and the bones may eventually rub against each other. The joint may lose its normal shape and become larger and inflame.
Signs and symptoms
OA usually develops slowly and often the first sign is joint pain during or after physical activity. As the disease progresses joint pain may occur with least movement or during rest.
Symptoms include:
Joint pain and tenderness
Joint stiffness
Limited movement of the joint
Crunching or grating sensation in joint
Bony lumps around the joint
Joint swelling (occasionally).
The symptoms and severity of OA vary from person to person. Severe OA can make it difficult to do the activities needed for daily living, leading to fatigue, anxiety and depression.
Managing Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis cannot be cured, but can be well managed. Treatment plans include ways to reduce pain, maintain joint and muscle function and manage the tasks of daily living. Joint care, lifestyle changes and mechanical aids are vital to successful management. Medicines can give additional relief. Joint surgery, e.g. a joint replacement, may be needed when symptoms are disabling.
Self care
Learn how to protect and care for your joints and to manage the symptoms of osteoarthritis.
Pain relief
Heat therapy, e.g. hot packs, a heated pool, can relieve joint pain and stiffness.
Cold therapy, e.g. cold packs, can relieve joint pain and swelling.
Ask a doctor or physiotherapist about how and when to use heat and cold therapy.
Rest and joint care
Learn to recognize when your body needs to rest.
Learn and practice relaxation techniques. Regular relaxation can improve symptoms.
Maintain good posture to limit stress on joints and muscles.
Wear appropriate footwear. Insoles or cushioned shoes can help redistribute weight and reduce joint stress.
Walking sticks, braces and splints can protect and support joints.
Mechanical devices and other aids can help with daily living and household tasks, e.g. hand rails, tap turners, reaching aids.
Ask an occupational therapist about splints, aids and devices.
Exercise
Regular exercise can improve the mood, reduce joint pain and stiffness, increase flexibility, and strengthen muscles, bones and ligaments.
Warm water exercise can be especially helpful as the warmth and buoyancy of the water make movement easier.
Ask a physiotherapist or doctor about exercising with osteoarthritis.
Weight control
Keep to a healthy weight to limit stress on weight-bearing joints. Exercise regularly and have a healthy diet, including plenty of fruit, vegetables and whole grains. Limit foods high in fat, sugar or salt.
Joint awareness
Strain or injury to a joint, e.g. sports, occupational, can lead to osteoarthritis in that joint. Proper treatment of injuries and appropriate joint protection during physical activity can help to limit or avoid osteoarthritis later in life.
Medicines
Pain relievers
Paracetamol can relieve OA pain without causing serious side effects. For optimal pain relief, paracetamol needs to be taken regularly three or four times a day. Sometimes stronger pain relievers, e.g. codeine, tramadol, oxycodone ("Oxycontin"' "Oxynorm"), oxycodone hydrochloride ("Endone"), are also needed.
Non-Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs), e.g. aspirin, ibuprofen, diclofenac. naproxen
They can relieve joint pain, swelling and stiffness. Oral NSAIDs (tablets, capsules, mixtures) and topical NSAIDs (creams and gels) are available. Oral NSAID can cause serious side effects, so are best used only if regular paracetamol gives inadequate pain relief.
Cox-2 inhibitor NSAIDs, e.g. celecoxib, meloxicam are types of oral NSAIDs that may cause fewer gastrointestinal side effects.
Corticosteroids are anti-inflammatory medicines that can be injected into a joint to relieve pain and inflammation.
Hylanscan be injected into a joint to increase the lubricant and shock-absorbing properties of the synovial fluid.
Complementary medicines, e.g. glucosamine, chondroitin, may help relieve symptoms of OA, but the scientific evidence for their effectiveness is not conclusive.
9.231 Measure your height
A student stands against the wall with feet together, heels against the wall, back against the wall, hands to the sides, head against the wall, looking straight out. Use a ruler, book, pencil or chalk, metre stick or tape measure on the head and at right angles to wall. Push down bushy hair. Push the back of the head, shoulders, buttocks and heels against the back of the wall. Use a metre stick or tape measure with zero on the floor or draw a metric scale or attach a metre stick to wall. Mark heights on the wall with a ball point pen or felt pen. Measure the heights in centimetres and to a nearest millimetre. Draw a bar graph of heights to the nearest centimetre. Record heights and dates in a book on the same day every month.
9.232 Muscles
See diagram 9.232: Arm muscles
1. The three kinds of muscle are as follows:
1.1 Striated muscle, voluntary muscle, attached to bones in the skeleton
1.2 Smooth muscle, involuntary muscle, in the walls of the stomach, intestines, bladder and blood vessels
1.3 Cardiac muscle in the wall of the heart
Muscles work only by contraction, i.e. pulling, so for each muscle that bends a limb, another muscle can straighten it again. Pairs of muscles with opposite action are called antagonists. For example, the biceps muscle bends the arm at the elbow and the triceps muscle straightens the arm again. When a muscle contracts it changes in shape but it does not change in volume. Grab the upper arm with the left hand with the fingers above the arm and thumb below the arm. While bending and straightening the right arm, feel the muscles contract and expand.
2. Close one hand, form a fist, then bend that arm at the elbow, while feeling the muscle of the upper arm with the other hand. Feel the change in shape of the muscle as the arm is raised and lowered. As the arm is raised, the muscle becomes short, fat and hard.
3. Lie on the ground on the back and feel the stomach while raising the legs.
4. Try different movements, e.g. walking on the toes, lifting objects, press-ups, standing on hands, knee-bends. Feel and see the muscles and joints working.
5. Keep a straight back then bend the knees until the hands touch the floor. Note where you feel pain. Feel behind the legs above the knees, when you bend, when you straighten. Feel the muscle that straightens the legs.
9.233 Skin, hair and fingerprints
See diagram 9.233: Skin, hair and fingerprints
1. Examine fingerprints and finger length. Use a magnifying glass to examine the lines in the skin of the fingertips. Make a print of the thumb with a stamp pad or ink poured on absorbent paper. Also, hold a piece of aluminium foil in a candle flame so that it becomes covered with a layer of carbon and press your thumb on the foil. Press the thumb on a sheet of clean white paper. Use a magnifying glass to examine the thumbprint. Look for arches, whorls, and loops. Examine the thumbprints of others. No two thumbprints are the same, not even in identical twins, so police use fingerprints to identify people.
2. Measure the lengths of your fingers. Calculate the ratio: length of middle finger to the length of little finger. Note whether the ratio is the same for other people. Note whether the ratio is the same for boys and girls.
3. List the places where hair grows on the body. List the places where hair does not grow on the body, e.g. palms of the hands, soles of the feet.
4. Find the longest hair of all the people in the class. Note whether the longer hairs come from males or females.
5. Pull out a hair from the head with a quick pull and put it on the sheet of white paper. Note the part of the hair from above the skin, which is dead, and the hair root from below the skin. At the end of the root is the bulb where cells divide to increase the length of the hair.
6. Use a magnifying glass to examine the skin on the back of the hand and on the palm of the hand. Note the hair follicles where the hairs come out of the skin.
9.235 Measure your weight
Use a bathroom scale or sling scale to record the weight in kilograms of each student on the same day each month, e.g. 15th day of the month. Record the weights on a wall chart. At the end of the year each student draws a graph of the recorded weights. Calculate the average weight of the students each month. Discuss how to measure the weight of your head.
9.236 Shakir strip and malnourished child
See 6.14 Shakir strip, (Test for malnourished  child)
Learn to use the Shakir Strip. When babies are about one year old, they have much fat under the skin of their arms. By the time they are five years old the fat is replaced by muscle, so the circumference of the upper arm is almost the same between the ages of one and five. To detect malnourished children, measure around the middle of the upper arm of children between the ages of one to five years with a specially marked tape, the Shakir strip. It is made of unstretchable material one centimetre wide and forty centimetres long. The colours along the length of the strip in sequence are grey 6 cm, red 6.5 cm, yellow 1 cm, green 6.5 cm and a length of grey to make up a total of 40 cm. Measure from the grey zone end. If the circumference of the upper arm > 13.5 cm, green zone, the child is healthy and not malnourished. If the circumference of the upper arm is between 12.5 and 13.5 cm, yellow zone, the child is probably malnourished. If the circumference of the upper arm is < 12.5 cm, red zone, the child is certainly malnourished. Make a Shakir strip and measure the circumference of the upper arms of children before their fifth birthday.
9.253 Circular movement of foot
Sit on a chair. Lift your right foot off the floor then move it in a clockwise circle. While keeping the foot moving in a circle use the pointing finger of your right hand to draw the number 6 in the air. Your right foot changes the direction of circular movement.