DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

Digestion phases:

 Ingestion
 Mechanical Digestion
 Chemical Digestion
 Absorption
 Elimination

Main Stages of Food Processing

1. Ingestion – act of feeding, mechanical breakdown of food into smaller pieces

2. Digestion – breaking down of food into particles, involves chemical digestion
3. Absorption – passage of nutrients across tube wall
4. Elimination/Defecation – removal of undigested materials

Food Processing Terminologies:

 Metabolism – production of cellular energy (ATP) and Constructive and

Degradative cellular activities
 Segmentation – moving materials back and forth into mixing.
 Propulsion – moving food from one region of digestive system to another
 Deglutition – swallowing

Types of Digestion:

Mechanical (physical)

- Chewing
- Tearing
- Grinding
- Mashing
- Mixing

Chemical (enzymatic reactions to improve digestion of:)

- Carbohydrates
- Proteins
 - Lipids

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM ORGANIZATION

GASTROINTESTINAL/DIGESTIVE TRACT

- Direct path between organs

- Structures include: Mouth, Pharynx, Esophagus, Stomach, Small Intestine,
Large Intestine and Rectum.

MOUTH

- Teeth mechanically breakdown

food into small pieces.
- Tongue mixes food with saliva to
start chemical digestion (contains
amylase, which helps breakdown
starch)
- Epiglottis is a flap-like structure
at the back of the throat that
closes over trachea preventing
food from entering it when
swallowing.

PHARYNX

- The pharynx, commonly called the throat, is a passageway that extends

from the base of the skull to the level of the sixth cervical vertebra.
- It serves both the respiratory and digestive systems by receiving air
from the nasal cavity and air, food, and water from the oral cavity.
- Branching off the pharynx is the esophagus, which carries food to the
stomach, and the trachea or windpipe, which carries air to the lungs.
 ESOPHAGUS

- Approximately 18-25 cm long/10 inches long for

adults
- Functions include:
 Secretion of mucus
 Move food from the throat to the stomach using wave-
like muscle movement called peristalsis.
- Peristalsis is the series of involuntary wave-like
muscle contractions which move food along the
digestive tract.
- If acid from the stomach gets in the esophagus, it
causes what we call heartburn.

STOMACH

- J-shaped muscular bag that stores food

you eat and break it down into smaller
pieces.
- It mixes food with digestive secretions
that contain the enzyme pepsin to
breakdown proteins and the lipids.
- Hydrochloric Acid in the stomach
attempts to kill incoming bacteria,
parasites, viruses and fungi, and is
indirectly responsible for some
chemical digestion. Its main function is
to lower the pH of the stomach so that
pepsin can function efficiently.
- Food found in the stomach mixed with
these secretions is called chyme.
SMALL INTESTINE

- Small intestine is approximately 20 feet long in

an adult and is divided into three (3)
segments: duodenum, jejunum, ileum
- The linings of intestine walls have finger-
like projections called villi and are then covered
in microvilli, which further increases surface
area for absorption.
- Nutrients from the digested food pass into the
bloodstream by diffusing across the walls of
the small intestine.
- It also absorbs:
 80% ingested water
 Vitamins
 Minerals
 Carbohydrates
 Proteins
 Lipids
- Secretes digestive enzyme called lipase.

LARGE INTESTINE

- Approximately 5 feet in length, divided into three (3) segments:

ascending colon, transverse colon, and descending colon.
- Includes the rectum, which is the last segment of the large intestine and
serves as short term storage by holding the fecal matter until it can be
expelled. It also absorbs remaining water for reuse by the body.
- Its functions include:
 Digestion further aided by bacteria
 Ferment remaining carbohydrates
 Additional protein breakdown

Rectum
 - The rectum is the last several inches of the large intestine. It starts at the
end of the final segment of your colon and ends when it reaches the
short, narrow passage leading to the anus.
- The rectum's job is to receive stool from the colon, let you know that
there is stool to be evacuated (pooped out) and to hold the stool until
evacuation happens.

ACCESSORY ORGANS

- Not part of the path that food follows, but still plays a critical role. It
includes: liver, gallbladder, and pancreas.

Liver

- Stores extra blood (about 10% of body’s blood volume or 1.4 liters of
blood per minute) and essential vitamins and minerals
- Produces bile which helps digest fat
 - Responsible for metabolism of fats for energy, filtration of toxins,
breaking down of “old” RBCs, regulation of blood sugar, production of
clotting proteins, and necessary cholesterols and modification of steroid
hormones
- Maintain electrolyte balance and blood pH
- Has been shown to regenerate up to 75% of its original structure

Gall Bladder

- Stores bile from the liver, releases it into the small intestine.

Pancreas

- Produces digestive
enzymes to aid in the
digestion of fats,
carbohydrates and
proteins
- Regulates high blood
sugar by producing
insulin (beta cells)
- Regulates low blood
sugar by producing
glucagon (alpha cells)
DISEASES OF THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM:

 Jaundice - cause by high bilirubin levels which makes the skin,

sclera, and mucous membrane yellow.
 Botulism – a rare and potentially fatal illness caused by a toxin
produced by the bacterium Clostridium Botulinum.
 Lactose Intolerance – a digestive disorder caused by the inability
to digest lactose, the main carbohydrate in dairy products.
 Peptic Ulcers – caused by Helicobacter Pylori, these are the
sores on the GI lining.
 Fatty Liver – or hepatic steatosis, is a condition in which fats
build up on liver. Excess fats impose more harm.

Information na wala namang nag-tanong:

- A full-grown horse’s intestines are 89 feet long.

- Food passing through the large intestine can take anywhere from 18
hours to 2 days.
- In your lifetime, your digestive system handles about 50 tons.
- The type of skin on your lips is called mucosa, the same skin you can
find on your anus. The lips and the anus are two ends of the pipe called
the alimentary canal.