0:00:23 > 0:00:25He's Dr Chris.
0:00:25 > 0:00:27And he's Dr Xand.
0:00:28 > 0:00:34- Yep, we're twins.- Do you know just how brilliant your body really is?
0:00:34 > 0:00:36Well, now's the time to find out.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40We'll be uncovering the ins and outs of what you're made of.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43I've got a big hole in my head.
0:00:43 > 0:00:45We'll be doing awesome experiments...
0:00:45 > 0:00:47- SQUEAKY VOICE:- You sound ridiculous.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50- DEEP VOICE:- Pipe down, squeaky.
0:00:50 > 0:00:54..as we push our own bodies to the limit...
0:00:54 > 0:00:56- OK, here we go.- Oh...
0:00:56 > 0:01:01..to show you all the incredible things your body can do.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07Hang around because this is going to be fun.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11- Coming up today... - ..On Operation Ouch!
0:01:11 > 0:01:15We join an Air Ambulance crew at the scene of an emergency.
0:01:15 > 0:01:18We discover what this guy's amazing talent is
0:01:18 > 0:01:22and we take a look at one of our basic bodily functions.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25- That's awful.- It does smell bad.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28But first...in the emergency department in Manchester,
0:01:28 > 0:01:32doctors and nurses are ready for their first patient.
0:01:36 > 0:01:41Six-year-old Rachel has a deep cut to her hand and a big bandage.
0:01:41 > 0:01:43I cut my hand on glass.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47After cutting her hand on glass, she may look calm, but don't be fooled.
0:01:47 > 0:01:48It hurt a lot.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51I bet it did. So how did this happen?
0:01:51 > 0:01:55Rachel was playing football with her sister in the garden.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58There they are - caught on satellite.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02Rachel had possession, her sister went in for the tackle,
0:02:02 > 0:02:08the crowd popped up from behind a fence and went wild - nice stadium.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11Ooh, nasty shard of glass lurking in the grass.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14What a superb break for goal and what dribbling skills.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17Rachel was gaining ground but then...disaster!
0:02:17 > 0:02:21Suddenly, Rachel slipped and landed right on that shard of glass.
0:02:21 > 0:02:25Ooh, referee - ouch!
0:02:25 > 0:02:29It looks deep inside and it's a big cut there.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31We'd better get that big cut looked at.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34Time to bring Dr Thomas Clarke off the substitutes' bench.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37We look after any injury to the hands.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41What we're really looking for is the extent of the injury
0:02:41 > 0:02:44and has she damaged any of the structures in the hand?
0:02:44 > 0:02:46And, based on that, does she need an operation?
0:02:46 > 0:02:50Dr Thomas takes the dressing off. If you're squeamish, look away now.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54Even Rachel doesn't want to look and she's already seen it.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57First, Dr Thomas checks to see if the glass has cut any arteries.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59Arteries supply blood to the hand
0:02:59 > 0:03:02and if they're damaged, Rachel could lose her fingers.
0:03:02 > 0:03:06To see if the hand has got blood going to it, press on the fingers.
0:03:06 > 0:03:11They go white and then the colour comes back. This is looking good.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14That's good news. Now Dr Thomas checks for nerve damage.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18Nerves carry messages from the brain to parts of your body and back.
0:03:18 > 0:03:21They're like a telephone line between your body and your brain.
0:03:21 > 0:03:22PHONE RINGS: Hello.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25And it's really dangerous if they get damaged
0:03:25 > 0:03:28because your brain would never know if part of your body was hurt.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31Er, hello, is anybody there?
0:03:31 > 0:03:37Can you do me a couple of things? Straighten your fingers. OK.
0:03:37 > 0:03:42- She's saying she can't do this one. - Is that painful?- Is it sore?
0:03:42 > 0:03:44On examining Rachel's hand,
0:03:44 > 0:03:50I can see that some of the movements are weaker than the other hand.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52The only way to find out why is to operate,
0:03:52 > 0:03:54so surgeons can have a proper look.
0:03:54 > 0:03:58Unless she has an operation for us to look at these structures,
0:03:58 > 0:04:02she may well be left with a hand that doesn't function properly.
0:04:02 > 0:04:07We'll catch up with Dr Thomas and Rachel later.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15This is our lab where we're going to put our bodies to the test
0:04:15 > 0:04:18to show you how your body works.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20Ow, that really hurts.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23Just don't try doing today's experiment at home,
0:04:23 > 0:04:26but it is something you do do all the time.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28Poo. We all do it
0:04:28 > 0:04:31and it comes in all different shapes, sizes and smells.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34You can tell a lot about your health from looking at your poo.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38What you eat and drink can affect what it looks like and that's why,
0:04:38 > 0:04:42for several days, Xand and I have been on very different diets.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44Xand has been on a very healthy diet.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48He's been eating lots of fruit, vegetables and fibre
0:04:48 > 0:04:50and drinking lots of water.
0:04:50 > 0:04:54Chris has been on a very unhealthy diet of sweet and deep-fried foods.
0:04:54 > 0:04:56And I've been collecting my poo.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59- Have you?- Yes.
0:04:59 > 0:05:01Today's lab might be a bit smelly.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04If you don't like squeamish stuff, this isn't for you.
0:05:04 > 0:05:08But we think poo is fascinating and we're going to tell you why.
0:05:08 > 0:05:10Let's take a look at the first poo.
0:05:10 > 0:05:13Remember, I've been on the healthy diet. Ready?
0:05:18 > 0:05:21- Now it does look like poo. - It certainly smells like poo.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Poo smells because of all the bacteria in your digestive system.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29As everything gets broken down, they release gas and smelly chemicals.
0:05:29 > 0:05:34There are a couple of interesting things about this. First, it's big,
0:05:34 > 0:05:36it's also wet and it's soft like porridge.
0:05:36 > 0:05:40That's because the fibre in my diet is holding the water in the poo
0:05:40 > 0:05:42and that's very important
0:05:42 > 0:05:45because that means this poo is very quick and easy to do.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49Fibre makes your poo solid and drinking lots of water
0:05:49 > 0:05:52helps your poo glide through your large intestine better too.
0:05:52 > 0:05:57- Where's your poo?- I didn't do a poo cos I had no fibre in my diet.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00I can't poo because the junk food I've eaten
0:06:00 > 0:06:03is full of fat and sugars but very little fibre,
0:06:03 > 0:06:07so my guts find it harder to push through and it sits there for ages.
0:06:07 > 0:06:09So it's 1-0 to me. Yes!
0:06:09 > 0:06:11It's not a competition.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15Day 2. Let's have a look.
0:06:18 > 0:06:21So it's less porridgy than it was on day 1,
0:06:21 > 0:06:24but that's cos I didn't drink enough water.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27There is something else interesting to see. Your body can't break down
0:06:27 > 0:06:31the fibre in food like the shell on a piece of sweetcorn.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34I've been eating a lot of sweetcorn recently so I can show you.
0:06:34 > 0:06:39If you have a look here...that is an undigested piece of sweetcorn.
0:06:39 > 0:06:45Xand can't digest the sweetcorn cos he doesn't have the right enzyme.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48None of us do and that why it's good to eat sweetcorn
0:06:48 > 0:06:50because of its indigestible fibrous outer shell.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53I'm starting to get worried about Chris' poo.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56- Where's yours?- Day 2 - still no poo.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59- So it's 2-0 to me.- Do you realise, if you win this competition,
0:06:59 > 0:07:04- all you're going to get is more poo? - And I'll be healthier.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06Day 3 for Xand.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08Uh-uh! I have a poo.
0:07:08 > 0:07:10# Hallelujah! #
0:07:10 > 0:07:12Let's forget about mine, then.
0:07:12 > 0:07:14Let's have a look.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18Euughhh! Oh, Chris, that's awful!
0:07:18 > 0:07:19It does smell bad.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Ohhh, that is a terrible poo.
0:07:22 > 0:07:26It's small, it's dry, it's hard and it took me ages to do this.
0:07:26 > 0:07:27Because I wasn't eating fibre,
0:07:27 > 0:07:30there wasn't anything to absorb the water and help me push it through.
0:07:30 > 0:07:35And this footage is taken with a special camera. It's a live shot
0:07:35 > 0:07:39of the inside of my intestine and it shows how it's clogged up with poo.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42The lack of fibre in the junk food
0:07:42 > 0:07:46means my gut is taking longer to squeeze it through.
0:07:46 > 0:07:50It's just so much work for such a bad result, so put the lid on.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53You don't want a poo like this.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56- So it's lots of fibre and plenty of water from now on.- Absolutely.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09Emergency rescue teams need to get to the scene of an accident quickly.
0:08:09 > 0:08:12There are lots of different ways they can get there to help you.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16We're checking in with the UK's emergency services
0:08:16 > 0:08:20who head into the thick of the action to help save lives every day.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24Today, we're sending the cameras on a special mission.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27I'm in awe of a very special group of people
0:08:27 > 0:08:30and I want you to see exactly what they do, so meet the A Team
0:08:30 > 0:08:33who fly by the seat of their pants in an awesome helicopter.
0:08:33 > 0:08:35This is the Midlands Air Ambulance.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42This airborne medical service has three helicopters
0:08:42 > 0:08:45always ready for emergency action.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49With a highly skilled team made up of paramedics, doctors
0:08:49 > 0:08:51and, of course, pilots,
0:08:51 > 0:08:55they look after six counties, serve five and a half million people
0:08:55 > 0:09:00and can get a patient to hospital in just 15 minutes. Always on standby,
0:09:00 > 0:09:02they're ready for every call.
0:09:04 > 0:09:07Flying high on today's special assignment are Dr Jon Bingham
0:09:07 > 0:09:10and Paramedic Stef Cormack.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14When the phone rings, they have to be ready to go within seconds.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17It's five o'clock and a call's come in.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20The team write information down on special pads on their knees
0:09:20 > 0:09:23for speed and to keep their hands free.
0:09:23 > 0:09:27With the helicopter fuelled and ready to go,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30it's not long before they're airborne. Helicopters are small,
0:09:30 > 0:09:34so I wait at base while the team are called to the scene of an accident
0:09:34 > 0:09:36where a car is on fire.
0:09:36 > 0:09:40We've got reports of an adult who's been involved in a car fire.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43See the car fire out the window now.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46It was like a huge bonfire. Lots and lots of smoke.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49What kind of things are going through your head?
0:09:49 > 0:09:51The first thing is always safety - where can we land
0:09:51 > 0:09:54where we can get to the patient quickly,
0:09:54 > 0:09:57but we're far enough away or in a place where we're not going to be
0:09:57 > 0:10:01involved in the smoke or the fire in the way of the fire crew?
0:10:01 > 0:10:07Fire's obviously still going, so we're staying a safe distance back.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09As the fire service tackled the burning car,
0:10:09 > 0:10:12Dr Jon assessed the driver.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14Didn't have any burns injuries.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17That's one thing that can cause a huge problem and, fortunately,
0:10:17 > 0:10:21he could tell us he's not been burned, nothing from the flames.
0:10:21 > 0:10:25From the breathing-in-the-smoke point of view, people often develop
0:10:25 > 0:10:28respiratory distress - difficulty breathing.
0:10:28 > 0:10:34- So your throat feels a little bit sore?- No, not sore just...- A cough?
0:10:34 > 0:10:35But your breathing feels OK?
0:10:35 > 0:10:39- No other problems with dizziness, no pain, anything else at all?- No.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42As well as being able to get to a scene quickly,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45an air ambulance crew have another huge benefit -
0:10:45 > 0:10:49with a doctor on board, casualties can be assessed and treated on site.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53So we're just going to get a full set of observations
0:10:53 > 0:10:56to make sure he's breathing normally, his oxygen levels are good
0:10:56 > 0:11:00and blood pressure's OK and if, following that, he's still good,
0:11:00 > 0:11:04then there's no reason why he can't be discharged from the scene.
0:11:04 > 0:11:08It was a large, dangerous fire, but now the flames are under control.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10Is there anything left of the car?
0:11:10 > 0:11:13It's basically just a shell. The tyres have melted off,
0:11:13 > 0:11:17stuck to the road, there's nothing inside. Even the engine,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20it doesn't even look like an engine - bits of wires hanging out.
0:11:20 > 0:11:24It was a lucky escape and with the patient discharged from the scene,
0:11:24 > 0:11:27the team were able to head back to the helicopter.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30We need to get things packed up quickly and move on to the next job.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33You never know what the next call is going to be.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36It's just the nature of the job.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39With such fast helicopters and great expertise on board,
0:11:39 > 0:11:43the air ambulance are a vital addition to our emergency services.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47They're definitely the team I'd want to help me.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49Still to come.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52We'll show you an amazing trick to impress your friends.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54I donate blood...
0:11:54 > 0:11:57While I have mine sucked out of me by one of these.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09It's thinner than a thread of cotton.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11Amazing. And so's this.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14An ordinary paperboy on an ordinary bike
0:12:14 > 0:12:17with a bag full of ordinary newspapers.
0:12:20 > 0:12:24Oh, look, a daffodil. Yeah, that's not very interesting.
0:12:24 > 0:12:28So this guy likes to cycle, there's nothing amazing about that.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30Oh, yeah? Take a look at this.
0:12:38 > 0:12:43A not very ordinary road and a not very ordinary bike.
0:12:43 > 0:12:48This is Dan Pullen - a junior BMX champion, the national number one.
0:12:48 > 0:12:53To get to be BMX champion, Dan uses the whole of his amazing body.
0:12:53 > 0:12:56His brain prepares for the speed and stunts
0:12:56 > 0:13:00by releasing adrenaline to the muscles so they work for longer.
0:13:00 > 0:13:05And when you ride a bike like this, you need balance, control and power.
0:13:05 > 0:13:10Nice wheelie. He has powerful muscles on the front of his thighs
0:13:10 > 0:13:13that power those accelerations
0:13:13 > 0:13:16and flex his legs for takeoff and landings.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19On the back of his thighs, his hamstrings are working hard
0:13:19 > 0:13:23to co-ordinate his knees and hips, keeping him balanced and flexible.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27And his calf muscles provide power for uphill scrambles.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29These muscles support his upper leg
0:13:29 > 0:13:32and flex his feet so he can balance on the pedals.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35This sport involves a lot of training and a lot of commitment.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38A lot of gym work with the weights and stuff like that.
0:13:38 > 0:13:40Wow. Dan has skills.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43His whole body works together to co-ordinate control of the bike
0:13:43 > 0:13:47and power into the jumps and absorb the landings.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50This week's hero - BMX boy. Now that's amazing.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58That's not amazing, Xand. Let's go to accident and emergency
0:13:58 > 0:14:00to see how our patient's getting along.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04We're back in Manchester
0:14:04 > 0:14:07with six-year-old Rachel and her cut hand.
0:14:07 > 0:14:12Rachel was playing football in the garden. The crowd were going wild -
0:14:12 > 0:14:17there they are. Then she slipped and cut her hand on a piece of glass.
0:14:17 > 0:14:19Her cut was very deep so she needs an operation
0:14:19 > 0:14:22to check if the movement in her hand is affected.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25Dad explains how serious this could be.
0:14:25 > 0:14:29When you're playing on the Xbox, you won't be able to move round.
0:14:29 > 0:14:33So if you have the operation, you'll be able to game again.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37- Shall we get this operation done, then, Rachel?- Ready to go.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Once Rachel's asleep, the operating team examine the injury
0:14:40 > 0:14:43and find that the glass has cut through the muscle and the nerve
0:14:43 > 0:14:46that gives sensation to two of her fingers.
0:14:46 > 0:14:50She's had a very lucky escape cos the glass had narrowly missed
0:14:50 > 0:14:53another important nerve by just one millimetre.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57The doctors repair the damage and, soon, Rachel will be as good as new.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00After Rachel wakes up from the operation, she comes to a decision.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03I'm not playing football for a while.
0:15:03 > 0:15:06I think that's a thumbs up. Yep, there's the thumb.
0:15:06 > 0:15:11The doctors give her the all-clear to go home. After the surgery,
0:15:11 > 0:15:15Rachel made a great recovery and has full use of her hand again.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17- Bye.- Mind that hand!
0:15:20 > 0:15:23We've got loads of amazing tricks for you.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26Here's one to show off how strong you are to your friends.
0:15:26 > 0:15:30- Xand, I want you to try and pull my fists apart.- This is a great trick.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35- No, I can't do it. - OK, now you do the same thing,
0:15:35 > 0:15:39but I'm going to separate Xand's fists using just my fingers.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41Your friend'll be feeling pretty confident.
0:15:41 > 0:15:44You won't be able to pull my fists apart
0:15:44 > 0:15:48because I have the strength of 20 men and not even a team of...
0:15:48 > 0:15:52If Xand's pressing his fists together so tightly like this,
0:15:52 > 0:15:57there's nothing to stop them being separated like that.
0:15:57 > 0:15:58So when you try this trick,
0:15:58 > 0:16:02just push your fists upwards and downwards against each other
0:16:02 > 0:16:04so your friend can't separate them.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07When you do it to your friend, they'll copy what you did,
0:16:07 > 0:16:09so use your fingers to push and pull
0:16:09 > 0:16:13their fists towards and away from you. And it works.
0:16:15 > 0:16:19Blood. If you're sick and you need it, nothing else will do.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22The tricky bit is there's only one way of getting hold of blood -
0:16:22 > 0:16:25taking it out of people. People like me.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29About 4,000 litres of blood are used in hospitals all over England daily.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32It's vital for life-saving treatments
0:16:32 > 0:16:35and that's why donations are so important.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39I'm just about to insert a needle into your arm, Xand.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42So that's in and it really didn't hurt at all.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46You feel a bit of a scratch and it's not a very nice idea,
0:16:46 > 0:16:51- but Linda's an expert so it's fine. - You're doing really well there.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53There it is, filling up.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56Your body is actually a blood factory.
0:16:56 > 0:17:00It's constantly making new blood, but it makes it in a place
0:17:00 > 0:17:03you might not expect - in the middle of your bones.
0:17:03 > 0:17:09Our bodies can produce two million red blood cells every second!
0:17:09 > 0:17:10That's incredible.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12I'm donating about half a litre of blood -
0:17:12 > 0:17:15the equivalent of almost two cans of fizzy drink,
0:17:15 > 0:17:19that's around 13% of the blood circulating around my body.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22You can't give blood until you're 17,
0:17:22 > 0:17:25but you can receive it and it could save your life.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28That's me done and it only took five minutes.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30It's going to come out now.
0:17:30 > 0:17:35And just keep pressure on there for us, OK, that's lovely.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38- Thank you very much. - It's been a pleasure.
0:17:38 > 0:17:42This is a bag of my blood and some time in the next 35 days,
0:17:42 > 0:17:46it's going to be put inside someone else - possibly saving their life.
0:17:46 > 0:17:48But it can't go straight into them.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50First it's got to go to the blood factory.
0:17:50 > 0:17:55This is the largest blood factory in the world and we're going in.
0:17:59 > 0:18:01I've never seen anything like this.
0:18:01 > 0:18:06Behind me are 800 bags of live human blood! Waaahhh!
0:18:07 > 0:18:11And John Kirkwood is here to tell me what's going to happen to my blood.
0:18:11 > 0:18:16Your blood will be one of 3,000 donations from donors.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20- So about a small swimming pool full of blood every day?- Yes.
0:18:20 > 0:18:25All the blood first gets put onto a giant rack where it's filtered
0:18:25 > 0:18:28to remove some of the cells which can't be used by every patient.
0:18:28 > 0:18:33- What happens next?- The pack goes to what we call a manufacturing pod
0:18:33 > 0:18:37and then we will take out the plasma and the platelets and the red cells.
0:18:37 > 0:18:42The factory's job is to process and sort blood into three main products
0:18:42 > 0:18:46which treat patients with different medical needs.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48The first product is red blood cells
0:18:48 > 0:18:51which are often used for operations and transfusions.
0:18:51 > 0:18:54Then there are plasma and platelets.
0:18:54 > 0:18:55The darker liquid - plasma -
0:18:55 > 0:18:59contains proteins and cells to help patients fight diseases.
0:18:59 > 0:19:03Finally, platelets are tiny but important. They help blood clot
0:19:03 > 0:19:07and can be used for specialist bone marrow and cancer treatments.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10To split up the red blood cells from the plasma and platelets,
0:19:10 > 0:19:14the blood is put into here. It acts just like a big washing machine
0:19:14 > 0:19:15and spins round really fast
0:19:15 > 0:19:18causing different cells to separate into three layers.
0:19:18 > 0:19:22Then a big press squeezes out the plasma and platelets
0:19:22 > 0:19:24so you end up with them in bags up here
0:19:24 > 0:19:26and the red blood cells at the bottom.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29In a different part of the factory,
0:19:29 > 0:19:32a vital step is taking place - testing.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35Every unit of blood that's donated has to be tested for two reasons.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37First, blood can carry diseases.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41You really don't want to catch a disease from a blood transfusion.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43Blood also needs to be tested because,
0:19:43 > 0:19:47just like people have different colour eyes or hair,
0:19:47 > 0:19:51people have different kinds of blood. This is called blood groups.
0:19:51 > 0:19:54There's A, there's B, there's AB, there's O.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58Now, if you get given the wrong kind of blood, this could be fatal.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02But don't worry, these guys are very good at what they do.
0:20:02 > 0:20:07These are the final products of this massive blood factory.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11Thousands of bags of living human blood, including mine,
0:20:11 > 0:20:13all going out to save lives.
0:20:13 > 0:20:18Because thousands of litres of blood are being used every day in the UK,
0:20:18 > 0:20:22it's vital that blood donations keep coming into the factory
0:20:22 > 0:20:25to be processed ready to use in our hospitals.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50That's around 23,000 litres of blood!
0:20:53 > 0:20:56Our next patient was just having a normal day.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00But now they're in Accident and Emergency - let's meet them.
0:21:02 > 0:21:07Five-year-old Maxton turns up feeling a bit patchy.
0:21:07 > 0:21:09I hurt my eye and it really hurts.
0:21:09 > 0:21:13Well, you seem cheery enough about it. What's it like under there?
0:21:13 > 0:21:14Disgusting.
0:21:14 > 0:21:18Disgusting? Oh, dear. How did this happen?
0:21:18 > 0:21:20Maxton was at school.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23It was break time and he was balancing on some tree stumps.
0:21:23 > 0:21:25Nice headband, Maxton.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29He was jumping across to the other side of a dangerous swamp,
0:21:29 > 0:21:35the red monkeys were cheering him on and there it was - the treasure.
0:21:35 > 0:21:40With a burst of speed, he hopped across when...
0:21:40 > 0:21:45Oh, no! He lost his balance and he crashed his face into a tree stump.
0:21:45 > 0:21:48Ouch! Off to hospital for Maxton.
0:21:49 > 0:21:51Good walk, Maxton.
0:21:51 > 0:21:55Watch where you're going, you'll do the other eye in! Phew.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58Here's Dr Gemma McLeod to have a look at Maxton.
0:21:58 > 0:22:03- What happened to you today?- I banged my eye and it was all bleeding.
0:22:03 > 0:22:05Can we have a little look at this head?
0:22:05 > 0:22:07Yeah, come on, time to reveal all.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10Oh, dear, where's the end of your eyebrow gone?
0:22:10 > 0:22:13- Is it painful across here? - Erm, no, it's only this side.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17- Just this side. This side's all OK, yeah?- Yeah, it's OK.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20All my body is OK, except for the eye.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22That's it, look on the bright side.
0:22:22 > 0:22:24So how are we going to fix him up, Dr Gemma?
0:22:24 > 0:22:28I think we might need to glue that head injury that you've got there.
0:22:28 > 0:22:29We need to bring it back together.
0:22:29 > 0:22:31He doesn't look impressed.
0:22:31 > 0:22:33They're all going to laugh at me at school!
0:22:33 > 0:22:36They won't laugh at you at school.
0:22:36 > 0:22:38Imagine my head was cracked together,
0:22:38 > 0:22:41you'd have to glue my whole head like that, round my face too.
0:22:41 > 0:22:47- Ending up...- On my nose.- Right, I don't think that's going to happen.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50Although it looks quite nasty at the moment,
0:22:50 > 0:22:53it should come together quite nicely with our special glue.
0:22:53 > 0:22:55Dr Gemma's right. It is quite nasty,
0:22:55 > 0:22:58but imagine if his whole head WAS cracked open
0:22:58 > 0:23:02- and we had to glue his whole head... - Don't YOU start.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06You're so brave, Maxton. I wish they were all like you.
0:23:06 > 0:23:10That's it, you've done it! Well done, you were brilliant. Yeah.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13With the gluing over, the nurse applies some small plasters
0:23:13 > 0:23:17called steri-strips to make sure the cut stays closed.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20And that's it - let's give Maxton a big hand.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23Er, not quite what I had in mind.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26- Yeah!- Bye.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28Bye. I've got a glove on, bye.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33BUZZING
0:23:33 > 0:23:37- Uhh! Look at that!- Man up, there are much worse things that can bite you.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40It's time for Investigation Ouch!
0:23:42 > 0:23:44As a doctor, my specialty is tropical medicine
0:23:44 > 0:23:46and it takes me all over the world,
0:23:46 > 0:23:50but one of the best places to study it is right here in the UK
0:23:50 > 0:23:52at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
0:23:52 > 0:23:55and I'm going to show you what they keep in the basement.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58Some countries have tropical warm temperatures -
0:23:58 > 0:24:02just the right conditions for disease-spreading animals
0:24:02 > 0:24:04to thrive and multiply.
0:24:04 > 0:24:10In this room are 8,000 of one of the deadliest animals in the world
0:24:10 > 0:24:14and, no, this is not a tank full of great white sharks.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17These are tsetse flies. Aaarrrgghhhh!
0:24:17 > 0:24:21Tsetse flies live in 35 countries across Africa.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24When they bite a human, they cause a fatal disease
0:24:24 > 0:24:27called sleeping sickness by injecting a nasty parasite.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29This laboratory in Liverpool
0:24:29 > 0:24:32is trying to find a cure to help millions of people.
0:24:32 > 0:24:37This is Dr Alvaro Acosta-Serrano. He's the chief scientist
0:24:37 > 0:24:40who looks after the flies, and they're hungry.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43He's just served up some blood for them to feed on
0:24:43 > 0:24:45so he can research their habits.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47This is a special sheet that's heated
0:24:47 > 0:24:50so the flies think it's real skin.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53Underneath the skin is animal blood, so the flies bite through the skin
0:24:53 > 0:24:56and drink the blood as they would in real life.
0:24:56 > 0:25:02Look at those bellies - they're red because they're full of blood.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05- How often do you have to feed the flies?- Every other day.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08So you've basically got 8,000 pet flies in the basement
0:25:08 > 0:25:11that need feeding every two days. That is a lot of work.
0:25:11 > 0:25:16So I thought I would help Dr Alvaro out and feed one of the flies
0:25:16 > 0:25:20by letting it bite me right now. But don't worry, these flies are sterile
0:25:20 > 0:25:23which means they don't carry any disease.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28So this fly is sucking up my blood through its proboscis -
0:25:28 > 0:25:32that long straw-like thing at the front.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34How much blood is he going to drink?
0:25:34 > 0:25:39- It's going to take at least twice its own weight.- Twice its own weight.
0:25:39 > 0:25:44That's the equivalent of me drinking 300 pints of milk for breakfast.
0:25:44 > 0:25:48While he's eating, he's leaving a sort of substance on my arm -
0:25:48 > 0:25:52- what is that?- He's just getting rid of the waste from blood.
0:25:52 > 0:25:54So I'm not just being eaten,
0:25:54 > 0:25:56this fly's also having a poo on me.
0:25:56 > 0:26:02Nice. And look at how much its body has grown in just five minutes.
0:26:02 > 0:26:03It's full of my blood.
0:26:03 > 0:26:07If this was a wild fly and it was carrying the parasite,
0:26:07 > 0:26:10it could make me very sick indeed.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14This green and yellow stuff is blood under a special microscope,
0:26:14 > 0:26:16but see those wriggly worm things?
0:26:16 > 0:26:18They're the parasites that the tsetse fly injects.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21Those parasites multiply in the bloodstream and make the patient
0:26:21 > 0:26:25feel extremely unwell and then they move to the central nervous system,
0:26:25 > 0:26:28to the brain where they multiply further.
0:26:28 > 0:26:31The patient feels drowsy, increasingly sleepy
0:26:31 > 0:26:34and over the course of weeks to a month, they die.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37That's why it's so important that the team study the flies
0:26:37 > 0:26:39and find out more about the parasite
0:26:39 > 0:26:41to stop them from causing people harm.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45At the moment, there's no vaccine to prevent sleeping sickness
0:26:45 > 0:26:47and the only way they can keep the disease at bay
0:26:47 > 0:26:50is by setting up giant fly traps.
0:26:50 > 0:26:54So the investigation for Dr Alvaro and his team must continue.
0:26:54 > 0:26:59My experience with tsetse flies here in Liverpool has been fascinating.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01Even being bitten was quite fun.
0:27:01 > 0:27:05But in Africa, they spread one of the most fatal diseases known to man
0:27:05 > 0:27:11and that's why the work done by Alvaro and his team is so important.
0:27:11 > 0:27:15Next time - we take a look at breathing. Yep, that's a lung.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19- Believe it or not, this man has an amazing body.- Nice deckchair.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21And we get picky
0:27:21 > 0:27:24as we discover all about the stuff that comes out of your nose.
0:27:24 > 0:27:28- So we'll see you next time on... - Operation Ouch!