Module 6 Intro

Module 6—The Motor System and Homeostasis

Lesson Summary

 In this lesson you explored the following essential questions:

• What are the main complications of the muscular system, and what technologies can be used to treat these conditions?
  
  

• How does the motor system support and interact with other body functions, including digestive, circulatory, respiratory, and excretory systems?

You learned about the importance of your muscular system in maintaining your health, particularly when you are involved in physical activity and exercise. The consequences of a failed or faulty muscular system, as reviewed in the discussion of athletic injuries and myopathies, only reinforce the significance of this body system.

Common muscle complications are muscle strain and muscular dystrophy. Muscle strain can be avoided through proper preparation for physical activity, while muscular dystrophy is a genetic condition that cannot be prevented, but it can be treated to a certain extent.

The importance of the muscular system in the function of almost every other body system is apparent. As you move through the remaining modules of Unit D, you will see how muscles involved in the peristalsis of food through the digestive tract play a role in all aspects of life-giving homeostasis. The expansion of the pleural cavity of the respiratory system, the pumping of the heart of the circulatory system, and the elimination of urine from the urinary system’s bladder also play an important role.

Lesson Glossary

atrophy: a reduction in size, tone, and power of a muscle

hypertrophy: an exercised induced increase in muscle mass