What is Digestive System?

Digestive system is a body system responsible for extracting nutrients and other useful substances from food.
This system is composed of the digestive tract, also called alimentary canal, and the accessory organs that
play important roles in the digestion process.

Types of Digestion
Digestion has two types:
1. Mechanical digestion
 In this digestion, there is physical breakdown of food into smaller parts. This happens in the mouth
through the action of the teeth, gums and tongue.
 It also happens to some extent during churning in the stomach caused by peristalsis.
2. Chemical digestion
 Chemical digestion starts in the mouth through the action of the enzyme present in the saliva.
 It also occurs in the stomach and small intestine through the acids and enzymes.
 Accessory organs aid in the chemical digestion. In this digestive process, the big food particles are
broken down to simpler substance that can be more readily absorbed by the body cells.

Parts and Functions of the Digestive System

MOUTH
 Digestion begins in the mouth where the food is
mechanically digested by the process of chewing or
mastication. The teeth tear, cut, and grind the food into
smaller pieces.
 There are 4 types of teeth:
1. Incisor- which have thin edges, are for cutting foods
2. Canines- which are pointed, are for tearing meat
3. Premolars and
4. Molars- are for crushing and grinding foods

 As the food is being chewed, saliva is released by the salivary glands, moistening the food for easy
swallowing.
 The saliva contains salivary amylase, an enzyme that breaks down starches into smaller sugars.

ESOPHAGUS
 The chewed food, referred to as bolus, passes
through the pharynx, then to the esophagus.
 It is a long tube that connects the mouth to the
stomach.
 The rhythmic and wavelike contraction of the
esophagus, called peristalsis, force and push the
bolus down to the stomach.

STOMACH
 From the esophagus, the food enters the stomach. The upper and lower ends of the stomach have
sphincter muscles that contract and relax to allow food in and out of the stomach.
 They contract to keep the food in.
 The stomach is a large and pear-shaped sac that churns and bathes the food with acidic juices. The
churning action of the stomach physically breaks down the bolus into smaller parts,
 Chemical digestion takes place through the action of the gastric juice and enzymes produced by the
stomach,
 The bolus now has different consistency, and is referred to as chime.
 The stomach slowly releases the chime into small intestine for further digestion.

SMALL INTESTINE
 It is a coiled tube that measures approximately 7 meters long.
Being the largest part of the digestive system, it forms loops,
as it can fit in the small space in the abdomen.
 It is in the small intestine where most of the digestion takes
place.
 Another task of the small intestine is to absorb the nutrients
from the food, and bring the nutrients to the blood ready for
circulation and distribution.
 Villi (singular villus) are tiny fingerlike structures, Each
villus is covered with even smaller similar structures called
microvilli.
 The arrangement greatly increases the surface area for
absorption of nutrients into the blood for circulation. The undigested food is passed on to the large
intestine.

ACCESSORY DIGESTIVE ORGANS

 The accessory digestive organs
are the following:
1. Liver
It is the largest organ in the body and is located near the
stomach. It produces bile which is needed in breaking down
fats. The liver also stores nutrients like iron and copper and
release them once the body needs them.
2. Gallbladder
It is a small sac under the liver where bile is stored.
During digestion, the gallbladder releases bile into the small
intestine.
3. Pancreas
It is an elongated organ
behind the stomach. It secretes
pancreatic juice which neutralizes
the acidity of the chime before it
enters the small intestine.
It also has enzymes that help break down proteins and fats in the
small intestine.
LARGE INTESTINE
In the large intestine, water from the undigested food
is absorbed. The intestinal flora, or bacteria living in the
intestines, help break down the food remains until only
waste remain. These waste will be expelled from the body in
the form of feces.

RECTUM and ANUS

The last section of the digestive tract are the rectum
and the anus. The rectum provides temporary storage for The feces
before they are expelled from the body. As the rectum expands due
to the accumulating feces, receptors in the rectal walls stimulate the
urge to defecate. Peristaltic waves then push the feces out of the
body through the anus.
GROUP 1
1. What is digestive system?
2. What are the types of digestion? How do each type work in the digestion of foods?
3. What are the parts of digestive system? Explain each.

GROUP 2
1. Where does digestion begins?
2. Show the correct order how food travels in the digestive system?

mouth

anus

3. What part of the digestive system where all nutrients are absorb and will bring these to the
blood ready for circulation and distribution?

GROUP 3
1. What are the accessory organs? Describe each.
2. What is absorbed in large intestine?
3. What are the last section of digestive tract? What happened to the foods in these parts?

GROUP 4
1. What are the ailments of the digestive system? Explain each.
2. How are we going to take care of the digestive system?