Water Balance and Excretion
by Aidan Temple
What is it?
Water balance is the maintenance of perfect levels of fluid in your body through the alternating acts of consumption and excretion. It is an act of homeostasis.
Quick Facts
The primary unit of the excretory system is the nephron
Nephron filters the blood and removes all the waste, however some things are reabsorbed for the preservation of homeostasis
Water reabsorption is controlled by the hormone ADH which released from the hypothalamus to control water balance in the body
Controls
Rather than the nervous system telling your body how much water to remove from the body and excrete. The level of water excreted through the kidneys as urine is controlled by Antidiuretic Hormone (ADH) through the hypothalamus and is directly tied to the level of sodium in the body
Process
Water is reabsorbed in the descending loop of Henle in the nephron
The amount of water reabsorbed is controlled by the hormone ADH
Because the water is directly tied to the level of salt in the body, salt levels are regulated at the same time.