We explain what the female reproductive system is and its main functions. Also, what are its parts and possible diseases.
What is the female reproductive system?
As its name indicates, the female reproductive system is the set of organs, tissues and ducts present in female human beings (as well as other higher animals), which fulfill the various functions involved in sexual reproduction.
This involves everything from preparation for intercourse, fertilization of the egg, pregnancy (or its equivalents in other animals, such as laying eggs) and birth. It is also known as the female genital tract.
In the case of humans, the female reproductive system is responsible for physically and biochemically promoting the encounter between the sperm ejaculated by the man inside the woman's vagina, and the eggs generated by the woman. This union occurs in the uterus and, once the cells have been fertilized, a zygote is generated that after nine months of growth will become a new human individual.
The entire process of gestation of said new individual in the uterus is known as pregnancyand during the nine months that it takes, the woman's body will be hormonally, biochemically and physically ready to provide the fetus with the necessary nutrients for its correct development.
When it is ready to exist outside the womb, the muscles around the uterus will contract and the cervix will dilate, to expel it through the birth canal (vagina).
The female genital apparatus, thus, It is essential for the reproduction of the species and it is evolutionarily designed to activate during puberty, along with hormonal and sexual awakening, a stage that is part of adolescence.
Menstruation, thus, is a normal activity of uterine maintenance, which discards unfertilized eggs and renews the walls of the endometrium, so that the following month the probabilities of fertility are always as high as possible.
Function of the female reproductive system
As has been said, the function of the female reproductive system could not be more essential for the species: promote fertilization and serve as a container for the new individual until the completion of its gestation.
However, it should not be thought that this function is merely passive. The production of eggs begins with puberty, along with menstruation, despite the fact that women are born with the total number of formed eggs that they will have during life.
For their part, the eggs do not simply wait to be fertilized, but rather they secrete molecules that attract the sperm to them and, once they have met, facilitate the absorption of the sperm content to obtain the zygote. It is a complex process that occurs in the connection between the fallopian tubes and the uterus where the baby will be gestated.
Parts of the female reproductive system
The female genital tract is made up of two parts, each involving different sets of organs, glands and ducts.
- External organs. The female genitalia are collectively known as the vulvaand are necessary to carry out copulation (sexual relations with penetration of the penis into the vagina). This includes the clitoris, the labia majora and labia minora, the mons pubis, and the openings of the urethra and vagina.
- Internal organs. The largest portion of the female genital tract is inside the body, and includes various organs that deserve separate mention:
- The vagina. It is the duct that allows the penis to enter the interior of the female body, accompanying it with the necessary lubrication and secretion during intercourse. Once the pregnancy is over, it widens and allows the newborn to emerge.
- The uterus. The sac where fertilization occurs, the fetus is gestated and contains it until the day of delivery.
- The ovaries. Organs where the eggs are gestated and prepared to leave the uterus, once a month. There are usually two of them and they are also responsible for hormonal production for the sexual development of women.
- The fallopian tubes. Ducts between 10 and 13 cm that connect the ovaries with the uterus, and in which fertilization can occur (but the fertilized zygote is rarely implanted in them).
Diseases of the female reproductive system
The woman's reproductive system can suffer various ailments, such as:
- Cancer Especially in the cervix, it has been associated with certain sexually transmitted diseases (such as HPV) as well as hereditary factors.
- Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs). Just like men, women can be afflicted by infectious diseases that are spread through intercourse, such as gonorrhea, syphilis, human papillomavirus or chlamydia.
- Endometriosis It is a disorder in which the tissue that lines the uterus grows abnormally outside of it.
- Infertility Due to various causes, some congenital and others of a biochemical nature, such as a pH that is too high (which annihilates the sperm) or vaginal mucus that is too thick (which prevents them from moving).
