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How do lungs work? Explained for kids
When you breathe in, your diaphragm pulls down and air rushes into your two lungs, down tubes that branch smaller and smaller. At the ends, in millions of tiny air sacs, oxygen passes into your blood and carbon dioxide passes out, to be breathed away.
Key facts
- You have two lungs, and the left one is smaller because it shares space with the heart. (healthdirect — Respiratory system)
- The trachea splits into two bronchi, which branch into smaller bronchioles. (healthdirect — Respiratory system)
- There are millions of alveoli (KidsHealth says hundreds of millions). (Lung Foundation Australia — How your lungs work)
- Oxygen moves from the alveoli into the blood through the capillaries, and carbon dioxide moves from the blood into the alveoli. (healthdirect — Respiratory system)
- The diaphragm contracts and flattens to breathe in, and moves up to breathe out. (healthdirect — Respiratory system; KidsHealth)
- When you exercise, your muscles need more oxygen, so you breathe faster and deeper and your heart beats faster. (Frontiers for Young Minds — Ready, Set, Go! How the Heart and Lungs Respond to Exercise)
Explaining it to a child
- Breathe in: a big muscle under your lungs, the diaphragm, pulls down and air comes in.
- The air goes down your windpipe, which splits in two, one for each lung.
- The tubes get smaller and smaller, like the branches of a tree.
- At the very ends are tiny bubbles where oxygen jumps into your blood.
- Breathe out, and the used air goes back out.
The Huff-Puff Club follows one breath of air in 3D, with every word spoken. Its guide for grown-ups lists every source.
Sources
- healthdirect — Respiratory system
- Lung Foundation Australia — How your lungs work
- healthdirect — Respiratory system; KidsHealth
- Frontiers for Young Minds — Ready, Set, Go! How the Heart and Lungs Respond to Exercise
Updated