🔋 Energy and balance

When you eat, your body breaks food down into tiny fuel bits and carries them in your blood to every cell. Each cell combines that fuel with the oxygen you breathe to release energy, a little like a slow, gentle fire with no flame. That energy powers everything you do.

Sweating is your body's clever way of cooling down. When you get hot, tiny glands push salty water onto your skin, and as it dries into the air it carries heat away, leaving you cooler. That is why you sweat more when you run or when the day is hot.

Hormones are tiny chemical messengers that travel in your blood to tell parts of your body what to do. One hormone gets you ready to run fast when you are scared, another makes you feel sleepy at night, and others quietly help you grow. They keep your body working smoothly without you thinking about it.

Your body works hard to stay around the same cosy temperature all the time. When you get cold you shiver, which makes heat, and your skin traps warmth close. When you get hot you sweat to cool down. A part of your brain acts like a thermostat, keeping the balance just right.