Jim is a 21-year-old male in his third year of college, and he has decided that it is time for him to get back in shape. During
high school, Jim was active in sports and followed a healthy diet, but the demands of work and study, and his social life have taken their toll on Jim’s health. He weighs more, doesn’t exercise, drinks on the weekends, eats a lot of fast foods like hamburgers and French fries, donuts, and pizzas, and he began smoking about three years ago. Due to the pressures of study and work, Jim also gets very little sleep.
Since Jim has decided to get back in shape, his first step was to get a checkup in the school’s health clinic. During the physical exam, the nurse measured Jim’s height, weight, and blood pressure. Jim is 1.8 meters tall, weighs 90 kilos, and his blood pressure is 132/84 mmHg. Jim was not concerned until his doctor informed him that high blood pressure or hypertension is a blood pressure of 140/90 mmHg or higher. Jim’s blood pressure value qualified him as prehypertensive, which means that he has an increased risk of developing hypertension in the future. Jim told his doctor that several family members on his dad’s side of the family have hypertension, and some had died before the age of 50 of heart attacks.
Hypertension is a disease of the cardiovascular system that is correlated with an increase in heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease and vision problems. Most people consider hypertension to be a disease of middle age, but almost one in five young adults are affected as well, making it one of the major health risks facing young adults.
After speaking with his doctor, Jim realized that he knew very little about how his body worked, and had never considered how his life style choices influenced his health. He was determined to learn more about how his body functions, especially the cardiovascular system. He also wants to work on making positive changes in his lifestyle, starting with changes in his diet. He needs your help with his new objectives.
1. Identify and describe at least five risk factors that the patient has for developing disorders of the cardiovascular system. Justify your answer.
2. Explain the function of the cardiovascular system by describing the cardiac cycle and how it relates to blood pressure, how blood flows through the heart and the blood vessels, capillary exchange, and the function of all the components of blood (plasma, red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets). Use illustrations to demonstrate functions.
3. Explain the function of the respiratory system and how it works with the cardiovascular system to achieve respiration. Describe ventilation, external and internal respiration. Include illustrations of each process.
4. Explain the functions of the urinary system by describing the function of each organ, describe the nephron and its blood supply, and finally describe the process of urine formation using examples of substances that are filtered, reabsorbed and excreted. Use illustrations
5. Calculate the patient’s BMI to determine his nutritional status, and then make at least ten dietary recommendations to improve his overall health.
