Autonomic nervous system

There are three parts to your autonomic nervous system: 1 The sympathetic system is responsible for your body's 'fight or flight' reaction. 2 The parasympathetic system looks after the workings of your body during rest and recuperation. It also controls your heart rate and body temperature under normal conditions. 3 The enteric system controls the workings of your gut.

The parasympathetic nervous system looks after your body when it is resting. Corbis