The Human Body

A closer look at your Heart in Action

The Human Heart

• Muscle– Pumps blood

• Not the typical heart– Upside-down pear

• Size of clenched fist– Weighs 11 ounces

Four Chambers

• Atrias- top 2 chambers

– Left – Right

• Ventricles- bottom 2 chambers

– Left• Pumps blood to rest of

body• Is the strongest

– Right

Valves

• There are four valves

• Help to direct blood flow

• Opening and closing causes it to make a beating sound– This is why the doctor uses a stethoscope to

see if your valves are working correctly.

Interesting Facts

• The human heart beats 40 million times a year.

• It pumps 4300 gallons of blood a day.

• Beats about 72 times a minute

• It will have beaten 2.3 billion times when you are 70 years old.

• Your heart pumps 2.4 ounces a heart beat