Human Nutrition

Role of Mechanical Digestion:

Breaks up large insoluble molecules of food into smaller soluble pieces without chemical
change. Teeth (grind) and your stomach muscle (churn) help mechanically digest the food and
make it easier to mix with digestive juices and to increase their surface area for more efficient
enzyme action (which speeds up chemical digestion and also makes it easier to swallow).
Advantage of Emulsification
Emulsification helps increase surface area of large fat globules by breaking them down into
smaller pieces which helps speed up enzyme action (lipase) of breaking down fat which helps
absorbing the fat much easier.

Balanced diet provides:

 Energy (Mainly role of carbs and fats. Protein used for energy only if in excess of requirements
for growth
 Allow growth and repair
 To regulate the body’s metabolism
ENZYMES
Nutrients
Vitamins
P.O.C Vitamin C Vitamin D
Sources Citrus fruits, tomatoes Sun: UV light converts
fats under skin into
vitamin D
Fish, oil, egg yolk, milk
Importance Helps in the formation of Needed for the
collagen (a protein in skin wall absorption of calcium
of blood vessels) which keeps from the intestine and its
blood vessels strong and helps deposition in bones
wounds heal
Deficiency Scurvy disease (bleeding gums) Rickets in children
Osteomalacia in Adults
Symptoms Poor heling of wounds Soft bones
Skin ulcers Bowed legs
Swollen and bleeding gums
Mineral ions
P.O.C Iron Calcium
Sources Red meat, liver, green vegetables Milk, milk products
Importance Needed for making haemoglobin Needed for making bones
which runs up and carries oxygen and teeth
Helps blood to clot
Needed for muscle
contraction
Deficiency Anaemia Rickets + Osteomalacia
Inability of clotting
Symptoms Pale face Soft bones
Easily fatigued Bleeding

Fibres
 Fibres are the cellulose of plant cells; they are not digested by us because we don’t
have cellulase enzyme to break them down
 They stimulate peristalsis because it forces muscles to work harder when moving hard
undigestible food
 They prevent constipation by keeping the colon healthy and reduce risk of getting
colon cancer
Water
 Acts as a solvent so:
1. It helps chemicals to react inside cells
2. It acts as a transport medium for substances in body
 Supports plant cells by keeping them turgid
 Acts as coolant / helps in temperature regulation as in sweating / transpiration
 Raw material for photosynthesis
 Helps seeds to germinate
DCPIP VITAMIN C TEST
 Kwashiorkor:
Causes: Lack of protein which can be due to shortage of any protein foods and
lack of knowledge about right kinds of food.
Symptoms

Marasmus :
Cause: Lack of dietary energy and protein
Symptoms

THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

CHEWING AND SWALLOWING
Teeth grind ingested food and mechanically break it down into smaller pieces to
increase its surface area.
The salivary glands secrete saliva which contains:
 Mucus: Helps chewed food to bind together to form the bolus and
lubricates it so that it slides easily down the oesophagus when it is
swallowed.
 Salivary amylase: Breaks down starch into maltose
 Water: Helps dissolve substances in food, allowing us to taste them.
The oesophagus
Bolus passes down the oesophagus from the mouth to the stomach.
Wave of muscle contraction called peristalsis moves food down the oesophagus.
Longitudinal and circular muscles contract and relax to widen the oesophagus
and allow the bolus of food to move along.

BEHIND BOLUS CIRCULAR CONTRACTS AND

INFRONT LONGITUDENAL RELAXES
The STOMACH
It is a muscular bag that holds food and can stretch to accommodate more.
When food enters, the wall of the stomach secretes gastric juice and mucus.

Features of gastric juice:

 Pepsin
 Hydrochloric acid
Function of pepsin:
This is a protease enzyme that digests proteins by breaking them down into
polypeptides. It works best in acidic conditions and at 37 degrees.

Role of HCL:
 Kills any bacteria in food by denaturing the enzymes in those bacteria
therfore killing it.
 Provides acidic medium for formation of pepsin (Pepsinogen + HCL 
Pepsin)
MECHANICAL DIGESTION:
The muscular walls of the stomach churn up the food making sure the
bolus is mixed with gastric juice.
Once the food exists the stomach through the pyloric sphincter, we call it
chyme.
Liver and its Functions
Bile also enters the duodenum along a tube called the bile duct.
 Bile juice: Secreted by liver and stored in the gall bladder. Made up of Bile salts and
bile pigments and sodium bicarbonate. It is poured through the bile duct to reach the
duodenum
o Bile pigments are made up of broken-down old RBC s made up of haemoglobin.
Bile pigments are also excreted with the indigestible food in the form of faeces
because it is not needed anymore.
o Bile salts are used for emulsification. They are used to break down large fat
globules into small fat globules to increase the surface area for the action of
lipase enzyme to break them down into fatty acids and glycerol.

TRICK QUESTION
A man has a stone in his Liver. Will he be able to eat fats?
Yes, he can but in very little amounts and it will be broken down much more harder and
slower. The stone blocks out the path at which bile juice can be released to the small
intestine (blocks the bile duct) . Therfore the bile salts won’t reach the duodenum and
hence emulsification won’t happen. Lipase can still break down the fat but it will take
longer time for it to digest the fats because lipase can also be secreted from the pancreas.
Pancreas role in digestion
The pancreas is connected to the duodenum by the pancreatic duct. From there
pancreatic juice flows down the duct to meet food arriving from the stomach.

What is in the pancreatic juice:

Pancreatic amylase: Breaks down starch into maltose
Trypsin: Breaks down proteins into polypeptides
Lipase: Breaks down fats to fatty acids and glycerol
Sodium hydrogen carbonate: Provides alkali medium and neutralises the acidic
food which enters the duodenum from the stomach
All of those enzymes work best in alkali conditions and at 37 degrees
 Small Intestine
 Complete digestion
 Absorption of food
Ultrastructure of small intestine
Villi and Villus

Endothelium Lining

Adaptation of the S.I

 Villi: There are many villi which means that it increases the small intestine’s surface area for more
absorption of nutrients.
 Microvilli: There are many more microvilli which increase the small intestine’s surface area even
more for more absorption of nutrients.
 The wall of the Microvilli: 1 cell thick which minimizes the diffusion distance of the nutrients which
makes the rate of diffusion faster and hence makes the process of absorption quicker and more
efficient.
 Microvilli Mitochondria: It is the site of aerobic respiration which releases energy for active transport
of some nutrients such as glucose.
 The wall of the villi is very thin (1 cell thick). It’s thin to minimize the diffusion distance of the
nutrients hence making the rate of diffusion faster and making the process of absorption quicker and
more efficient.
 Blood Capillaries: Helps absorb Glucose, Water, Amino Acids, Mineral ions and water-soluble
molecules like Vitamin C
 Lacteal: Helps absorb fatty acids, glycerol and fat-soluble vitamins : Vitamin, A, D, E and K
S.I Function
1. Complete digestion of food
There are 3 juices in the S.I : Pancreatic Juice, Bile Juice, S.I juice with certain enzymes.
Sucrase
Lipase Bile Peptidases Lactase
Pancreatic Amylase Maltase
Trypsin salt
and
Bile Pigment
Bile salt
ile
pig
2.Reasbrobing most of the water me
nt

3. ABSORBTION
 Blood Route (capillaries) : Amino acids, Glucose, Water, Mineral salts, Water soluble
vitamins like Vitamin C
 Lymphatic Route (lacteal) : Fat soluble vitamins like vitamin, A, D, E and K , Fatty
acids, Glycerol
Nutrients in blood route is transported through hepatic portal vein to filter excess glucose.

NOTE:
 INDIGESTIBLE FOOD GOES THROUGH THE LARGE INTESTINE, RECTUM AND ANUS.
 DIGESTED FOOD DOSE NOT GO THORUGH THE LARGE INTESTINE, RECTUM OR ANUS IT
IS ABSORBED THROUGH SMALL INTESTINE AND THEN TRANSPORTED.

LAST STEP
The solid waste or faeces are stored in rectum after excess water is reabsorbed at the large
intestine. Eventually the faeces are egested thought he anus.
CHOLERA (Paper 4)
Symptoms:

 Diarrhoea: This is water faeces. You lose water and hence you get dehydrated and
also you lose mineral ions.
Reasons why children die: Parents being financially insecure or not living in an area
economically secure and not capable of supplying medical equipment. Lack of good water so
they forced to go to the river which can be full of faeces because of bad sewage treatment.
Treatment:

 Oral rehydration therapy (oral means enters from mouth). It replaces the water
and mineral ion lost.
o Or if you cant afford just drink water with sugar and salt in it
Composition: Sterilized water, Mineral ions, Glucose.
Story of Cholera
Pathogen (source of infection, can be fungi bacteria or virus): Cholera Bacterium.
It can enter your system through drinking contaminated water or food contaminated with
faeces.
1. Cholera bacteria are ingested and begin to multiply
2. The bacteria will attach to the wall of alimentary canal
3. Bacteria will secrete toxins
4. Toxins will stimulate the release of chloride ions.
5. Release of chloride ion causes water to move from the plasma in blood capillary to the
lumen of the small intestine through osmosis. This lowers the water potential in the
blood capillary.
6. This results in more water being in alimentary canal causing watery diarrhoea and
dehydration and mineral ion loss.