What students need to know about the Human Body - An Orientation.

The human body consists mainly of water and of organic compounds—i.e., lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, and nucleic acids. Water is found in the extracellular fluids of the body (the blood plasma, the lymph, and the interstitial fluid) and within the cells themselves. It serves as a solvent without which the chemistry of life could not take place. The human body is about 60 percent water by weight. Human Body Key Facts are: • The human body is a single structure but it is made up of billions of smaller structures of four major kinds: cells, tissues, organs, and systems. • An organ is an organization of several different kinds of tissues so arranged that together they can perform a special function. • A system is an organization of varying numbers and kinds of organs so arranged that together they can perform complex functions for the body. • Ten major systems include the skeletal, muscular, nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular, lymphatic, respiratory, digestive, urinary, and the reproductiv