Together with the heart, the lungs are located at the top of the chest and ensure that you can breathe properly. When you inhale, the air goes through your nose or mouth and travels to your lungs through the trachea. With healthy lungs, you do not have to make an effort for this; it happens automatically, without thinking about it. With your lungs, your body can receive oxygen every four seconds. That is more than twenty thousand times a day, or eight million times a year.

Breathing

The air you inhale through your mouth or nose travels through the trachea to the lungs. The trachea is constructed with rings of cartilage, among other things, so that this tube is always open and allows air to pass through it. At the end, the trachea splits into two; a left and a right branch (bronchi), which go to the left and right lung respectively. These branches further divide, and at the end of the branches, there are the pulmonary alveoli. This makes them somewhat resemble an inverted tree.

Left and right lung

The left lung (pulmo sinister) is divided into an upper and a lower lobe. The right lung is larger and has an upper, middle, and lower lobe.

Protection through mucus membrane

They consist of delicate tissue, they are soft and spongy. The mucus membrane, present in your nose, mouth, and throat among other places, helps to protect them. When harmful substances and/or bacteria are inhaled, they stick to the mucus membrane. The bronchi and the lungs themselves are also lined with mucus membrane. The mucus membrane contains small hairs that can move the incoming debris upwards towards the throat. The mucus can be coughed up or swallowed there. This way, they can keep themselves clean.

Sources

• Long fonds: alles over longen. Available at https://www.longfonds.nl/alles-over-longen