THE URINARY SYSTEM

 

WHAT IS THE URINARY SYSTEM?

The urinary system contains the kidneys, bladder, ureters, and urethra. These organs work together primarily to create, store and eliminate waste, namely urine.

In order to function properly, the human body extracts nutrients from food and uses them to produce energy and repair damages. Once food has been broken down and the body has retrieved what it needs, waste products stay behind in the bowel and the blood until they are removed via the urinary system. Successfully ridding the body of waste is essential to maintaining optimal health. That's the job of the urinary system: Its construction is relatively simple, but the processes that occur within it are complex and vital to health and well-being.

How Does the Urinary System Work?

How the urinary system works is relatively simple, although the supplementary roles of the kidneys can be complex.

Blood is transported to the kidneys via the renal artery. A system of filtration units within the kidney regulates levels of dilution (water), salts and other small molecules in the filtrate. Any excess or undesired products travel through each ureter and are deposited into the reservoir of the bladder, while purified blood re-enters the circulatory system by way of the renal vein. Urine is stored in the bladder until the urinary nervous system releases the contents through the urethra and out of the body. The passing of urine is known as micturition or urination.

The urinary system is split into the upper and lower urinary tract. The former consists of the kidneys and ureters, the latter of the bladder and urethra.