The Digestive System

The digestive system is a continuous tube that begins at the ______ and ends at the anus.

Measuring about 30 feet long in the average adult, it is known as the ______ canal or gastrointestinal tract.

Three pairs of glands open into the oral cavity, producing ______ such as saliva.

The ______ is a muscle covered with a mucous membrane.

The taste buds taste ______, sour, salt, bitter, and umami or savory.

The food is moved down the ______ toward the stomach by wavelike muscular contractions called peristalsis.

Hydrochloric acid and other gastric juices convert the food to a ______ state called chyme.

The liver’s primary contribution to digestion is the production of ______ or gall which drains into the duodenum.

The ______ is the foot-long section just beyond the stomach in the small intestine.

The ______ is the remaining 12 feet of the small intestine.

The liver also stores ______ and the fatsoluble vitamins A, D, E, and K.

The pancreas secretes ______ juice into the duodenum via the pancreatic duct.

This pancreatic juice contains digestive ______ and bicarbonate ions.

The jejunum and ilium are lined with hair-like protrusions called ______.

Villus capillaries collect ______ acids and glucose.

The large intestine is only about 4-5 feet in length, and ______ inches in diameter.

The function of the large intestine, or bowel, is to absorb the remaining ______ and nutrients from indigestible food matter.

For defecation or egestion, we consciously relax the external ______ sphincter muscle to expel the waste through the anus.