37. How does our nervous system work?
Our nervous system comprizes of a network of nerves that carry
messages quickly around the body.
These messages are signals produced by sensory cells and passed to
nerve fibres in the brain or the spinal column or messages from the
brain to the organs. Nerves are made up of bundles of small nerve
fibres or neurons and a neuron is a star shaped cell body. The
nervous system controls the various systems in the body like
digestion, breathing and heart beat. These life processes are
controlled by autonomic nervous system and happen on their own.
The voluntary nervous system causes actions like control of muscles,
co-ordination of movements, etc. The reflex action of the nervous
system comes into play when we save ourselves from an injury.
When we touch a hot object, the receptors send a very quick message
along a series of nerves and cause the muscles to move the hand
away without waiting for the brain to instruct.
