In the Blood Quiz | Science for Kids

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Sometimes we need to have blood tests to see what is making us sick (or sometimes to make sure we are still healthy). Occasionally the blood is taken by a nurse or a doctor but mostly it's taken by someone whose whole job it is to take people's blood. What do we call that type of person?

Answer: Phlebotomist

Phlebotomists are specially trained people who take blood and body fluids for medical testing or research. Normally blood is taken from a vein in the arm (ouch!). Phlebotomists work hard to make sure the blood collection does not hurt too much but also to make sure the blood is collected properly so it can be tested accurately.

2. When your blood arrives at the lab, sometimes it needs to be separated into its different components. What is the name of the machine that separates the blood?

Answer: Centrifuge

A centrifuge is a machine that holds lots of blood specimens at one time. When you turn it on, it spins the blood tubes very fast (about 3000 revolutions, or turns, per minute). This causes the heavy parts of the blood to move to the bottom of the tube while the watery part of the blood (the lighter part called plasma) stays near the top.

This is important as the plasma is used for some tests and the cells for others.

3. One of the most common tests performed on your blood is the blood film. This is where a couple of drops of blood are examined under a microscope. Which one of the four major components of blood of is *NOT* seen under the microscope in a blood film?

Answer: Plasma

For this test, the blood is smeared (carefully) on a microscope slide, stained and then examined. On this slide, you see the cells of the blood: red and white cells and platelets can be seen on the slide. Plasma is the watery straw-coloured part of the blood that contains all the chemicals. The plasma cannot be seen as it is washed away in the staining process.

4. Sometimes we get infections. This is where we get micro-organisms invading one particular area. But we are really sick if we get a micro-organism in our bloodstream. What do we call it when we get a bacterium in our blood?

Answer: Bacteraemia

When we get a sore throat this is usually because of a micro-organism (such as bacteria, virus, fungus, yeast or parasite). When we get a bladder infection we get a micro-organism in our urinary tract. However when we get a micro-organism in our blood, it causes our whole body to be sick.

When the micro-organism is a bacteria that gets in our blood we call that bacteraemia which means literally "bacteria in the blood".

5. One of the reasons we look at a blood film is to check that the red blood cells look like they are supposed to. Their shape should be like a doughnut. What is the condition called when the red blood cells are misshapen?

Answer: Anaemia

Red blood cells carry oxygen to the rest of the cells of the body through a protein called haemoglobin which as part of the red blood cell. When the red blood cell is misshapen of there is a lack of red blood cells, not enough oxygen can be carried to the cells. This is called anaemia which means "without blood".

6. On the other hand, too many white blood cells can cause a really severe disease. Which of the following diseases is caused by far too many white blood cells?

Answer: Leukaemia

When the body produces too much of one particular cell type, this is called cancer. Leukaemia is a type of blood cancer where too many white blood cells are produced. This disease is very hard to treat and successful treatment is helped if the disease is diagnosed early. This is how blood tests can help.

7. Sometimes we need to know which molecules (and how much of them) are contained in the blood's plasma. What do we call this branch of blood testing?

Answer: Biochemistry

Biochemistry is a compound word meaning biology + chemistry. Biochemistry determines the composition and number of molecules in body fluids. These fluids can be plasma (from blood) but it can also be urine, cerebrospinal fluid and sputum as well as many other types of fluid.

8. There will be times we need a blood test to see if we have diabetes. Which specific molecule in the blood is increased when we have diabetes?

Answer: Glucose

Glucose is blood sugar. When we eat food called carbohydrates the sugars in food are broken down into simple sugars like glucose. Glucose is removed from the blood by insulin. When our body does not make enough insulin, the amount of blood sugar rises. The disease caused by too much sugar in the blood is called diabetes.

9. Occasionally, we may need to determine which items such as drugs should *NOT* be in the blood. Which laboratory looks after these types of blood test?

Answer: Toxicology

The toxicology laboratory performs blood tests to make sure there is nothing in the blood that should not be there. For example, an athlete may need to have his or her blood tested to ensure they have not ingested banned substances such as steroids. On the other hand, the toxicology laboratory may monitor blood levels of a therapeutic drug that a person may be taking.

These are drugs that some people have to take to stop feeling ill. Some of these type of drugs need to be measured to ensure the levels in the blood are therapeutic.

Not too little so that the drug is ineffective and not too much that drug levels are toxic and cause harm to the body.

10. Sometimes people need a blood transfusion, and so need to have their blood group determined to make sure they get the right type of blood. What can happen if they get the wrong type of blood?

Answer: They can die

Before you can have a blood transfusion you have to make sure that the donor's blood group is the same as yours. If it isn't, your blood cells can rupture and you can die. Medical scientists and medical technologists have to do lots of training to make sure they determine someone's blood group accurately EVERY time.

Source: Author 1nn1

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor NatalieW before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

In the Blood Trivia Quiz

When we cut ourselves, we see blood. It looks like a simple red liquid. However it is made up of thousands of compounds which keep us healthy. Let us look at exactly what is in the blood. (British spelling used).

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