Calcium Homeostasis

Homeostasis – Re: Calcium Homeostasis refers to a stable internal balance or an internal equilibrium within the human body. The body and its systems work together to keep itself in the state of balance, but it mostly refers to how the human body reacts to different changes and keep itself within certain guidelines to insure that it can properly function. These reactions include a range of responses, from the release of hormones to regulate internal balances to sweating to lower body temperature. An understandable comparison for homeostasis is that it is like a set of scales. Consider if weights are placed onto one side of the scale, that side will drop; if an equal amount of weight is added to the adjacent side, the scale then becomes balanced once again. If more weight is added to one side, the scale becomes unbalanced again. Our body functions in an identical way, working constantly to obtain a state of balance. Unlike scales, the body is extremely complex, requiring several minuscule adjustments every second as new details are frequently putting the body off-balance. When one of the body’s systems falls out of balance in some way, a process known as negative feedback signals the problem or the sudden state of change. The body responds by regulating the necessary organ systems with the aim of returning to homeostasis rather than going too far in the wrong direction. In positive feedback, the body encourages the rapid increase of an activity to deal with an emergent situation; for example, the body may increase white blood cell production to attack an infection. The most abundant and substantial mineral in the human body is calcium. Our human body requires an accurately balanced exchange of calcium to maintain homeostasis. Calcium is vitally important, not just for providing strength and rigidity to bones, but also for the proper functioning of nearly every cell in the human body. The vast majority of the calcium in our bodies is stored

Cited: Martini, Frederic, Judi Nath, and Edwin Bartholomew. Fundamentals of Anatomy & Physiology. 9th ed. Boston: Benjamin Cummings, 2011. Print O’Connell Smeltzer, Suzanne, and Brenda Bare. Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing. 10th ed. Chicago: Lippincott, Williams, & Wilkins, 2003.