Ever wonder why the body shivers when it gets cold? Homeostasis keeps body conditions steady and constant. So, this means that when the body shivers, that is homeostasis taking place trying to keep your body temperature at a constant degree. Homeostasis maintains normality in the body in many different ways. Some examples include osmoregulation, thermoregulation, chemical regulation, and behavioral homeostasis. While homeostasis controls these processes, homeostasis must also go through a separate process of its own in order for things like osmoregulation to be carried out.
These “inner processes” are called negative and positive feedback. These processes will be explained in depth throughout the paper. Homeostasis uses negative and positive feedback when a sensor is alerted in the body. The sensors will alert the brain, and then the brain decides whether to activate either negative or positive feedback based on the situation it is trying to control. One process of homeostasis is called osmoregulation. Osmoregulation helps maintain a constant state in the body by cleaning out all of the extra water, salt, and urea in the body.
Osmoregulation cleans the unnecessary particles out of the body by sending them out through the kidneys, urinary bladder, ureters, urethra, pituitary glands, and the lungs. Osmoregulation is considered a homeostasis process because in order to keep things such as the kidneys and the bladder constant and steady, being cleaned out is a very important part in keeping those things working correctly (ck12, February 15, 2015). Another process of homeostasis is thermoregulation. Thermoregulation is the process of the body maintaining a constant body temperature.
The body performs thermoregulation by sweating and dilating the blood vessels in order to bring the body temperature back down to a constant degree. If the body temperature is too low, the body will begin to shiver, constrict the blood vessels, and provide insulation in order to bring the body temperature back up to the steady degree. The insulation used in this process comes from adipose tissue and a breakdown of tissue combined (ck12, February 15, 2015). Homeostasis will also cool the body down by pilorelaxation.
This is when the hair on the body flattens to the skin in order for the temperature to cool down to the “set point” temperature. Homeostasis can also bring the body temperature up by piloerection. This is when the hairs on the body stand up so heat can be taken in and bring the body temperature back up to a constant degree. There are two types of heat regulation when it comes to the thermoregulation process, endothermic and exothermic. Endothermic heat occurs in mammals, for example humans. An endothermic organism regulates its own body temperature.
However, an organism that is exothermic, their body temperature is usually relatively close to the temperature of the environment in which it lives in (Claydon, January 1, 2012). Thermoregulation uses multiple body parts in order to achieve its goal of maintaining a constant body temperature. The body parts that are involved and used in thermoregulation include the muscular system, nerves, blood vessels, skin, and adipose tissue (ck12, February 15, 2015). In addition to the processes above, chemical regulation also occurs in homeostasis.
Chemical regulation aids in maintaining homeostasis by regulating the glucose levels in the body. This is completed by secreting insulin and glucagons into the blood stream to either bring up or lower the glucose level. Chemical regulation also adjusts the breathing rate based on the amount of carbon dioxide levels in the blood stream. In addition to that, chemical regulation also keeps the creating of red blood cells constant by releasing erythropoietin from the kidneys (ck12, February 15, 2015). Chemical regulation can also involve the hormonal system.
The hormones that the body needs are created in the area of the pancreas called the islets of Langerhans. If there happens to be a rise or spike in the glucose levels, beta cells will detect the rise or spike. After the beta cells are alerted, the cells will then make more insulin. The extra insulin that was created in the pancreas would then be used to link together receptor proteins in the liver. That allows for more protein channels to be opened up, and that allows the glucose to enter the beta cell. Once the glucose has entered the cell, it will then be converted into glycogen (Claydon, March 9, 2007).
Another major process of homeostasis is called behavioral homeostasis. This process is the body trying to remain constant by altering the actions/ responses of the body due to its environment. Behavioral homeostasis is very similar to thermoregulation. Behavioral homeostasis performs much like a thermostat in a house would work. If the thermostat is set to a certain temperature, the air conditioner/ heater will come on and off based on whether the room needs to cool down or heat up in order to reach that steady temperature.
For example, if a thermostat was set at a certain degrees and the temperature of the room was falling, the thermostat would turn the heat on until that constant, set temperature is maintained. If the temperature in the room began to rise, the thermostat would kick on the air conditioning unit until the room temperature was back down to the constant degree. Homeostasis, the controlling of all of the inner bodily functions, might sound like a simple process. However, homeostasis has its own process that can also get quite complicated. Homeostasis does not simply just happen.
In order for these things to occur, there is a process behind osmoregulation, thermoregulation, chemical regulation, and behavioral homeostasis also. In order to maintain a constant state, other functions must go on even before beginning the process of returning to normality. These functions are known as negative and positive feedback. Negative feedback is the part of homeostasis that kicks in when a system needs to be slowed down or stopped completely. An example of negative feedback taking place would be when a person is eating. Digestion of the food starts when it reaches the stomach.
Hormones and nervous impulses are used to stop and start acids from releasing from the stomach. Another example of negative feedback taking place would be when the body begins to over heat. Negative feedback will sense the body over heating, so it will stop the rise of the body temperature. This causes the body to sweat. This is one of the body’s many ways of cooing down back to its normal temperature (Rader, February 12, 2006). On the other hand, positive feedback is the part of homeostasis that supports the system that is carrying out the job.
Positive feedback can be thought of as an encouragement factor to help the system work more efficiently and effectively. Whether it is felt or not, positive feedback is constantly occurring in the body over and over again until it is stopped by a negative feedback. A great example of positive feedback taking place would also occur in the stomach. The pepsinogen that is created in the stomach is then converted into an enzyme commonly known as pepsin. This process is repeated over and over again until there is a sufficient amount of pepsin molecules to digest all of the proteins that are in the stomach (Rader, February 12, 2006)
Even though negative and positive feedback are considered “inner processes”, they do not just take place all on their own either. Something has to occur to make them happen also. Inside the body, there are millions of little sensors. These sensors are present all over the body so that if there happens to be a spike, rise, or a drop in the supply of an item or particle that is necessary to the body, they can detect that. If a sudden spike, rise, or drop is detected, the sensor will then send an alert signal to the brain and let it know what is going on.
After the brain has been alerted, it will then activate either negative or positive feedback based on what is needed to solve the problem with the body system. Then, either negative or positive feedback will be activated, and either stops the process completely, slows the process down, or encourages the process so that it works effectively and completes the task in which it has been assigned (Ohio Assessments for Educators, March 10, 2015). On the other hand, homeostasis can also occur in plants, grasses, and flowers.
In plants, photosynthesis is referred to as homeostasis. Photosynthesis is the process of releasing water from the plant, and taking in carbon dioxide. It is necessary for photosynthesis to be carried out. If photosynthesis is not performed and a plant does not maintain a constant state, it will wilt and die just like a human would. The stomata of the plant would be the place where all the gases, like carbon dioxide, could enter the cell through, and the water could also leave the cell through here. In every stomata, there is an object called a guard cell.
Guard cells act as the “security” or the “gate keepers” for the stomata. The guard cells only open for special reasons. They open to take in carbon dioxide, and to release water. The guard cell will also open on rare, needy occasions. For example, the guard cell will also open when the plant is running low on the availability of water. These structures help the plant maintain its version of homeostasis (Buckley, January 16, 2002) As you can see, homeostasis is a very vital, important factor in keeping humans and other organisms alive and thriving.
With out osmoregulation, thermoregulation, chemical regulation, and behavioral homeostasis, the body would not be able to function in the way that it is designed to work. This will eventually cause all of the organs inside of the body to begin to shut down. This will result in almost certain death. However, without negative and positive feedback, homeostasis itself would not even occur. That is why even the tiny objects inside of the body, for example sensors, play such an important role in the process of homeostasis.
The body does not react or adjust to change very well. So, it is important for homeostasis to be present and keep all of the systems going at a constant state in order for humans to be alive and healthy. This is even true with plants also. If homeostasis (photosynthesis) is not taking place and working correctly, the plant will also almost certainly wilt and die. That is why homeostasis is an extremely important and necessary function that all living organisms must have in order to survive.
