Chapter 3

 The Remarkable Body

 Focus on Nutrients
 Read Chapter
 p. 94 Digestive Fate of a Sandwich
 p. 95 Letter from Your Digestive Tract
 The Body’s Cells
 Cells need energy, oxygen, water and
nutrients to do their work
 Genes determine nature of cells work
 Affect how nutrients handled
 Cells organized into tissues
 Tissues form organs
 Organs can work together as body
system
 Transport of Nutrients
 Body fluids supply tissues
 Blood (carries water-soluble nutrients)
goes from small intestine to liver to heart
Fig. 3-3 Cardiovascular System
 Lymph (carries fat-soluble nutrients)
goes from small intestine via the
lymphatic system to the thoracic duct
where lymph enters the bloodstream
near the heart (“mixing oil with water”)
 Transport of Nutrients
 arteries carry oxygen and nutrients to the
tissues
 blood circulates among cells by
capillaries
 exchange of materials between the cell
fluid and the extracellular fluid (Fig. 3-4)
 delivery of oxygen and nutrients
 picks up carbon dioxide and wastes
 Transport of Nutrients
 Blood returns to the heart via veins and
carbon dioxide is removed by the lungs in
exchange for oxygen (Fig. 3-5)
 Blood circulates to the kidneys where
wastes are removed (filtered by
nephrons) and excreted in the urine
 Regulation
 Communication between organs & cells
 Hormones
–e.g. insulin & glucagon regulate
blood glucose
 Nervous system
–e.g. responds to need for food
(hunger), regulates digestion (gastric
juices)
 Regulation
 Combination of hormones and nervous
system
–e.g. fight or flight reaction:
epinephrine (hormone) and body
responses/movements
 Digestion:
 Breakdown of nutrients into their
smallest subunits for absorption into the
body
CHO-->
Protein-->
Fat-->
 Fig 3.8 The Digestive System
 Mechanical and chemical aspects of
digestion (Table 3-1)
 Digestion

 Mouth
 Taste buds guide food acceptability
 Chew and mix food with saliva (mucus
and enzymes)
 Digestion

 Esophagus
 passes food to the stomach via
peristalsis (wave-like muscular
squeezing along digestive tract, Fig. 3-
9)
 Digestion

 Stomach
 churns and mixes food to a liquid mass
(chyme)
 is 3 layers of muscle (Fig. 3-10)
 movement of food controlled by
–cardiac sphincter (into stomach)
–pyloric valve (into small intestine)
 Digestion

 Stomach
 adds hydrochloric acid, enzymes and
fluid (gastric juice)
–gastric juice is pH 1-2 (Fig. 3-11)
 denatures protein

 kills microorganisms

 mucus protects the stomach wall

 Digestion

 Stomach
 Heartburn: burning sensation in the
chest caused by backflow of stomach
acid into the esophagus
–Antacids for temporary heartburn
relief
 Digestion

 Small Intestine
 major site of digestion
 20 feet long
 pancreas secretes bicarbonate that
neutralizes the acidic contents from the
stomach
 Digestion

 Small Intestine
 enzymes from pancreas and small
intestine digest CHO, protein and fat
(pancreaspancreatic ductsmall
intestine)
 Digestion

 Small Intestine
 bile emulsifies fat to assist digestion
–bile is synthesized in the liver
–bile is stored in the gall bladder
–bile enters small intestine via bile duct
 Absorption
 Movement of nutrients from small intestine
into the blood (water-soluble nutrients) or
lymph (fat-soluble nutrients)
 Large absorptive area created by folds of
villi and smaller projections of microvilli
(Fig. 3-12)
 What is not absorbed e.g. fibre stays in
small intestine and passes into the large
intestine (colon)
 Lower gut

 Large intestine
 reabsorbs water and minerals
 passes wastes (fibre, bacteria, any
unabsorbed nutrients) and some water
to rectum
 Rectum
 stores wastes (feces) prior to elimination
 Lower gut
 Problems in the lower gut:
 Diarrhea
– frequent, watery bowel movements
– if severe and prolongeddehydration
 Constipation
– infrequent difficult bowel movements, often caused by
diet, inactivity, dehydration or medication
– change diet slowly: more fibre and water, more
physical activity
 Intestinal Gas
– Table 3.2
 Storage Systems
 Body’s energy stores of excess energy-
containing nutrients:
 Fat in fat cells/adipose tissue
(large amount)
 CHO as glycogen in liver and muscle
(smaller amount)
 Other nutrient stores in other tissues
e.g. bone: Ca, P, other minerals
 Controversy 3 – Alcohol
What is Alcohol?
 Acts as lipid solvents
 Easily penetrate cell’s outer lipid
membrane
 Denature cell’s protein structure
 Alcohol in alcoholic beverages = ethanol
 What is a serving?
 Alcohol (ethanol):
 provides energy (7 cal/g) but it is not a
nutrient (Fig C3-1)
 12 oz beer = 150 cals, light beer = 100 cals
 3.5 oz wine = 85-105 cals (dessert wine = 140

cals)
 1.5 oz hard liquor = 105 cals

(86 proof = 43% alcohol)

 8 oz soft drink = 100 cals
 Alcohol Enters Body (p. 104)
 Alcohol diffuses through stomach wall into
bloodstream (Fig C3-2)
 food delays diffusion and stomach emptying
 vomiting protects against high dose of toxin
 Alcohol absorbed rapidly in small intestine
(regardless of food or not)
 Physical Effects

 Increases urine output

 Mineral loss
 Slow drinker: alcohol collected by liver
and processed
 Rapid drinker: some alcohol flows
through rest of body and brain
 Alcohol & the Brain (p. 104)
 A depressant (not stimulant)
 Sedates nerve cells (Fig C3-3):
 1st - judgment and reasoning
 2nd - voluntary muscle control
 last - respiration and heart action
 “passing out” helps protect against
consumption of lethal dose
 Table C3-6
 Alcohol & the Liver (p. 106)
 Liver detoxifies (metabolizes); major organ
 80% alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH)
 10% MEOS system (inducible)
 10% excreted through breath and in urine
 blood alcohol is proportional to breath

alcohol, the basis for the

 Some ADH in stomach; females have less
 Alcohol & the Liver
 Alcohol stimulates fat synthesis in the
liver, both acutely and chronically
 Liver deterioration: fatty liverfibrosis
(scar tissue) cirrhosis (loss of
function) [picture in textbook]
 Alcohol & the Body

 About 1.5 h to metabolize 1 drink

 Walking, caffeine, etc. do not detoxify
 Table C3-7: Myths and Truths Concerning Alcohol
 Alcohol is preferentially used for energy,
thus more fat is stored, especially
abdominal region
 Alcohol & the Body
 Hangover:
 toxic effects of congeners (other
substances in alcoholic beverages)
 dehydration & rehydration of the brain
 accumulation of formaldehyde (because
preferentially ethanolacetaldehyde)
 Toxic to cells risk for many diseases (p.
107)
 Longterm Effects of Alcohol
 Liver cells – amino acid metabolism
 Synthesis of blood lipids 
 Toxic to muscle
 Increased BP
 Dementia
  risk cancer
 Younger people:  risk for death from any
cause
 Table C3.3: Who Should not Drink Alcohol?
 Alcohol and Nutrition

 Alcohol abusemalnutrition
 inadequate food intake
 impaired nutrient absorption &
metabolism
 thiamin deficiency (Wernicke-
Korsakoff syndrome)
 Moderate Alcohol Use: Benefits?
 Controversy regarding heart disease:
 moderate alcohol intake (1-2 drinks/day)
may be beneficial for older people at
increased risk
 no benefit in recent study of 6000 men over
20 years
 >22 drinks/wk: death from all causes

 >35 drinks/wk: 2x mortality from stroke in

men
 Health Effects of Wine
 High potassium in both wine and grape juice
may lower high blood pressure
 Antioxidant properties - may protect against
events that are thought to trigger heart
disease
 Alcohol increases oxidations
 Dealcoholized wine, purple grape juice, and
grapes all contain similar phytochemicals
 Without potential dangers of alcohol
 Alcohol and Appetite

 Usually reduces appetite

 In tense and elderly individuals small
doses of wine may improve appetite