Urinary System

Getting Rid of Waste

The urinary system includes the kidneys, bladder and tubes. These organs control
the amount of water and salts that are absorbed back into the blood and what is
taken out as waste. This system also acts as a filtering mechanism for the blood.
- Kidney
- Bladder
The kidneys are a filter for the blood. The body has two kidneys located in the
middle of the back at about the location of your elbows. Blood is pumped from the
heart to the kidneys to be cleaned. Each kidney has about 1000 nephrons that act as
filters. As the blood goes into a nephron, everything that is dissolved in the blood
(waste products, food) is pushed out of the blood into small tubules. As these
things travel through the tubule, the water and anything else the body needs goes
back into the blood. The rest of the waste products keep moving through the tubule
into the urethra. The urethra is the tube that leads to the bladder. The cleaned blood
leaves the kidney and travels throughout the body.

About 150 liters (33 gallons) of fluid pass through your kidneys every day. But
99% of this cleaned and goes back into your blood. In their lifetimes, adults pass
about 40,000 liters (8.800 gallons) of urine. This is enough to fill 500 bath tubs.

The bladder is where urine is stored to be released from the body. It can hold
between one half to two cups of urine before it needs to be emptied.

Everyday about two to five cups of urine pass through the bladder.

The more water you drink, the more urine is produced. If it is hot outside and you
produce a lot of sweat, you will not make as much urine.

About 96% of urine is water. It also contains some waste salts and a substance
called urea. Urea is made during the breakdown of proteins in your liver. Urea may
also leave your body in sweat. If urea builds up in your body, it is a sign that your
kidneys are not working properly.

Kidney failure can be fatal if it is not treated quickly.

1
Vocabulary:

urinary system ‫انجهاس انثىني‬ bladder ‫انمثانح‬

absorb ‫يمرص‬ waste ‫نفاياخ‬
act ‫يعمم‬ filtering mechanism ‫آنيح ذزشيح‬
located ‫يقع في‬ elbow ‫مزفك‬
pump ‫يضخ‬ nephron ‫نيفزون‬
dissolve ‫يذوب‬ push out ‫يذفع‬
tubules ‫أناتية صغيزج‬ products ‫منرجاخ‬
urethra ‫مجزي انثىل‬ gallons ‫جانىناخ‬
fluid ‫سائم‬ lifetime ‫حياج‬
urine ‫انثىل‬ bath tub ‫أحىاض اسرحمام‬
store ‫يخشن‬ hold ‫يسرىعة‬
sweat ‫انعزق‬ substance ‫مادج‬
urea ‫انيىريا‬ breakdown ‫ذكسيز‬
liver ‫انكثذ‬ build up ‫يرزاكم‬
properly ‫تشكم صحيح‬ failure ‫فشم‬
fatal ‫مميد‬ sign ‫عالمح‬
Questions

Answer the following questions:

1. What are the parts of the urinary system?

2. What is the function of the urinary system?

3. What is the function of kidneys?

4. Where does a urethra lead to?

5. What is the function of bladder?

6. When is Urea made?