What types of muscles are included in the muscular system?

The muscular system consists of three primary types of muscles: skeletal, cardiac, and smooth.

Skeletal muscles are responsible for voluntary movements and are attached to bones, enabling a wide range of movements throughout the body. These muscles are characterized by their striated appearance and are under conscious control, meaning we can choose to move them at will.

Cardiac muscle is unique to the heart and is responsible for pumping blood throughout the body. This type of muscle is also striated, but unlike skeletal muscle, it operates involuntarily. Cardiac muscle is capable of spontaneous contraction due to specialized cells that generate electrical impulses.

Smooth muscle is found in the walls of hollow organs, such as the intestines and blood vessels. This type of muscle is non-striated and operates involuntarily, playing a crucial role in peristalsis (the movement of food through the digestive tract) and regulating the diameter of blood vessels.

The other options listed (textured, layered, elastic, muscular, flat) do not accurately represent the primary types of muscles in the muscular system and thus are not part of the accepted classification.