Digestive System Basics

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Questions and Answers

What are the 4 phases of processing food in your body?

  • Ingestion, digestion, absorption and filtration
  • Ingestion, digestion, absorption and elimination (correct)
  • Ingestion, secretion, absorption and excretion
  • Digestion, absorption, metabolism and excretion

What is digestion?

The process that breaks down food into small molecules so they can move into the bloodstream.

What does food pass through?

Digestive tract

What are the major organs of the digestive tract?

<p>Mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, rectum and anus</p> Signup and view all the answers

What are the three organs that food does not pass through, but store enzymes & chemicals that help break down food?

<p>Liver, pancreas and gallbladder</p> Signup and view all the answers

What are enzymes?

<p>Molecules that speed up the rate of chemical reactions in your body.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Where does mechanical digestion take place?

<p>In the mouth and stomach</p> Signup and view all the answers

Where does chemical digestion take place?

<p>Mouth, stomach and small intestine</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the watery substance in your mouth called?

<p>Saliva</p> Signup and view all the answers

What does saliva contain?

<p>Mucus and salivary amylase</p> Signup and view all the answers

What does salivary amylase do?

<p>It starts the breakdown of food from a starch to a sugar.</p> Signup and view all the answers

How much saliva is produced by your body each day?

<p>1.5 liters</p> Signup and view all the answers

How long does it take for food to pass through the esophagus?

<p>Four to ten seconds</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the process called when muscles push food through the esophagus?

<p>Peristalsis</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the stomach?

<p>A powerful muscular bag that expands when food enters it.</p> Signup and view all the answers

How many ways does the stomach digest food?

<p>Two - mechanically and chemically</p> Signup and view all the answers

What happens in mechanical digestion?

<p>Food is mixed by the muscular walls of the stomach.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What happens in chemical digestion?

<p>Food is mixed with strong digestive juices, including hydrochloric acid and enzymes.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What are the two reasons the stomach produces mucus?

<p>It lubricates the food and protects the stomach from strong digestive juices.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What would happen if the stomach did not have mucus?

<p>The digestive juices would burn our stomach.</p> Signup and view all the answers

How long does it take for food to move through the stomach?

<p>Four hours</p> Signup and view all the answers

What does food look like after moving through the stomach?

<p>It becomes a thin, watery liquid called chyme.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Where do the digestive juices added to the small intestine come from?

<p>The liver and pancreas</p> Signup and view all the answers

What does the liver produce?

<p>A greenish fluid called bile.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What does the pancreas do?

<p>It helps make insulin.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is insulin?

<p>A hormone that allows glucose to pass from the bloodstream into your body's cells.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What are the tiny, fingerlike projections in the small intestine called?

<p>Villi</p> Signup and view all the answers

How is food absorbed in the small intestine?

<p>Molecules of nutrients pass by diffusion, osmosis or active transport into the blood vessels in the villi.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the main job of the large intestine?

<p>To absorb water from the undigested mass of chyme.</p> Signup and view all the answers

How long does chyme stay in the large intestine and what happens to it?

<p>It becomes more solid and can stay for as long as three days.</p> Signup and view all the answers

We have bacteria that feed on our undigested waste. Is this a good thing?

<p>True (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the gist of digestion?

<p>We digest food so we don't starve.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Flashcards

Food Processing Phases

The four main stages of food processing are ingestion, digestion, absorption, and elimination.

Digestion Overview

Breaking down food into small molecules for the body to absorb.

Digestive Tract

The pathway food takes through the body, including the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, rectum, and anus.

Accessory Organs

Organs like the liver, pancreas, and gallbladder that assist digestion by producing enzymes and chemicals, but don't directly process food from mouth to anus.

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Enzymes

Molecules that speed up chemical reactions in the body, essential for digestion.

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Mechanical Digestion

Breaking down food physically, through processes like chewing and churning.

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Chemical Digestion

Breaking down food with chemicals like acids and enzymes.

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Saliva

A watery substance in the mouth that contains mucus and the enzyme salivary amylase.

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Salivary Amylase

An enzyme that starts breaking down starches into sugars.

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Peristalsis

The wave-like muscle contractions that move food through the esophagus.

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Stomach Function

A muscular organ that expands and mixes food both mechanically and chemically.

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Chyme

The semi-liquid mixture of partially digested food and digestive juices leaving the stomach.

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Villi

Tiny finger-like projections that line the small intestine, increasing its surface area for absorption.

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Nutrient Absorption

The process of taking up digested nutrients into the bloodstream.

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Large Intestine's Job

Absorbing water from undigested food and forming stool.

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Beneficial Bacteria

Bacteria in the large intestine that aid digestion and produce vitamins.

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Importance of Digestion

Essential for providing cells with nutrients and energy for bodily functions.

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Study Notes

Phases of Food Processing

  • Four phases: ingestion, digestion, absorption, and elimination.

Digestion Overview

  • Defined as the breakdown of food into smaller molecules for absorption into the bloodstream.

Digestive Tract

  • Comprises the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, rectum, and anus.

Accessory Organs

  • Liver, pancreas, and gallbladder store enzymes and chemicals aiding digestion but do not directly process food.

Enzymes

  • Molecules that accelerate chemical reactions within the body.

Mechanical Digestion

  • Occurs through chewing in the mouth and churning in the stomach.

Chemical Digestion

  • Involves acids and enzymes breaking down food in the mouth, stomach, and small intestine.

Saliva

  • A watery substance in the mouth containing mucus and salivary amylase.

Salivary Amylase

  • Begins starch breakdown into sugars.

Saliva Production

  • The body produces approximately 1.5 liters of saliva daily.

Esophagus Passage Time

  • Food typically moves through the esophagus in about four to ten seconds.

Peristalsis

  • The contraction and relaxation of muscles behind and in front of the food, respectively, that moves food forward.

Stomach Function

  • A muscular organ that expands upon food entry, digesting food both mechanically and chemically.

Mechanical Digestion in the Stomach

  • Achieved by mixing food via muscular walls.

Chemical Digestion in the Stomach

  • Involves strong digestive juices like hydrochloric acid and enzymes mixing with food.

Mucous Production

  • Protects the stomach lining and lubricates food.

Mucous and Acid Balance

  • Insufficient mucous production can lead to stomach damage from digestive acids.

Stomach Passage Duration

  • Food remains in the stomach for about four hours, transforming into chyme.

Chyme

  • Chyme is a thin, watery liquid that progresses to the small intestine post-digestion.

Digestive Juices in Small Intestine

  • Added from the liver and pancreas.

Liver's Role

  • Produces bile to emulsify fats and aids in fat digestion.

Pancreas Function

  • Produces insulin, facilitating glucose absorption into body cells.

Villi

  • The small intestine walls feature ridges and folds covered with villi, enhancing nutrient absorption.

Nutrient Absorption

  • Chyme's nutrients are absorbed into blood vessels in the villi via diffusion and active transport.

Large Intestine Function

  • Absorbs water from undigested chyme, returning significant water to the body.

Chyme in the Large Intestine

  • Can remain for up to three days, becoming more solid.

Beneficial Bacteria

  • Bacteria in the large intestine aid digestion by producing essential vitamins.

Importance of Digestion

  • Essential for nourishing cells and providing energy, thus preventing starvation.

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