Introduction to Digestive System and Digestion

Processes of Digestion
Digestion in Mouth and Functions of Saliva
Digestion in the Stomach and Functions of HCL
Digestion in Small Intestine and Intestinal Juices
Metabolism and Functions of the Liver
Introduction to
Digestive System and
Digestion
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM IS A COMPLEX NETWORK OF ORGANS AND GLANDS
THAT WORK TOGETHER TO BREAK DOWN FOOD INTO NUTRIENTS THAT
CAN BE ABSORBED BY THE BODY. THE PROCESS OF DIGESTION BEGINS IN
THE MOUTH AND CONTINUES THROUGH THE ESOPHAGUS, STOMACH,
SMALL INTESTINE, LARGE INTESTINE, RECTUM, AND ANUS.
THE PRIMARY FUNCTION OF THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM IS TO EXTRACT
NUTRIENTS FROM FOOD AND CONVERT THEM INTO ENERGY THAT THE
BODY CAN USE. THIS ENERGY IS USED FOR VARIOUS ACTIVITIES SUCH AS
GROWTH, REPAIR, AND MOVEMENT.
 Processes of Digestion

DIGESTION IS THE PROCESS BY WHICH FOOD IS BROKEN DOWN INTO SMALLER,

MORE EASILY ABSORBED NUTRIENTS THAT CAN BE USED BY THE BODY. THERE
ARE THREE MAIN PROCESSES OF DIGESTION: MECHANICAL DIGESTION,
CHEMICAL DIGESTION, AND ABSORPTION.
MECHANICAL DIGESTION INVOLVES THE PHYSICAL BREAKDOWN OF FOOD INTO
SMALLER PIECES THROUGH CHEWING AND THE MUSCULAR CONTRACTIONS OF
THE STOMACH AND INTESTINES. CHEMICAL DIGESTION INVOLVES THE USE OF
ENZYMES AND OTHER CHEMICALS TO BREAK DOWN FOOD MOLECULES INTO
THEIR COMPONENT PARTS. ABSORPTION OCCURS WHEN THE NUTRIENTS ARE
TAKEN UP BY THE CELLS LINING THE DIGESTIVE TRACT AND TRANSPORTED TO
THE REST OF THE BODY.
Secretory Process
THE SECRETORY PROCESS REFERS TO THE RELEASE OF DIGESTIVE JUICES
FROM VARIOUS ORGANS IN THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. THESE JUICES CONTAIN
ENZYMES AND OTHER CHEMICALS THAT AID IN THE BREAKDOWN OF FOOD.
THE SALIVARY GLANDS SECRETE SALIVA, WHICH CONTAINS ENZYMES THAT
BEGIN THE PROCESS OF BREAKING DOWN CARBOHYDRATES. THE STOMACH
SECRETES GASTRIC JUICE, WHICH CONTAINS HYDROCHLORIC ACID AND
ENZYMES THAT BREAK DOWN PROTEINS. THE PANCREAS SECRETES
PANCREATIC JUICE, WHICH CONTAINS ENZYMES THAT BREAK DOWN
CARBOHYDRATES, FATS, AND PROTEINS. THE LIVER PRODUCES BILE, WHICH
HELPS TO EMULSIFY FATS AND MAKE THEM EASIER TO DIGEST.
Chemical Process
CHEMICAL DIGESTION IS A COMPLEX PROCESS THAT INVOLVES THE
USE OF ENZYMES AND OTHER CHEMICALS TO BREAK DOWN FOOD
MOLECULES INTO THEIR COMPONENT PARTS. EACH TYPE OF
NUTRIENT REQUIRES A SPECIFIC ENZYME OR CHEMICAL TO BREAK IT
DOWN.
CARBOHYDRATES ARE BROKEN DOWN INTO SIMPLE SUGARS BY
ENZYMES CALLED AMYLASES. PROTEINS ARE BROKEN DOWN INTO
AMINO ACIDS BY ENZYMES CALLED PROTEASES. FATS ARE BROKEN
DOWN INTO FATTY ACIDS AND GLYCEROL BY ENZYMES CALLED
LIPASES. EACH OF THESE REACTIONS REQUIRES SPECIFIC
CONDITIONS, SUCH AS A PARTICULAR PH LEVEL OR TEMPERATURE,
WHICH ARE MAINTAINED BY THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.
Microbiological Process
THE MICROBIOLOGICAL PROCESS REFERS TO THE ROLE OF BACTERIA
AND OTHER MICROORGANISMS IN THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. THESE
MICROORGANISMS HELP TO BREAK DOWN FOOD MOLECULES THAT
CANNOT BE DIGESTED BY HUMAN ENZYMES.
FOR EXAMPLE, CERTAIN TYPES OF BACTERIA IN THE LARGE
INTESTINE BREAK DOWN FIBER INTO SHORT-CHAIN FATTY ACIDS,
WHICH CAN BE USED AS AN ENERGY SOURCE BY THE BODY. OTHER
BACTERIA PRODUCE VITAMIN K, WHICH IS IMPORTANT FOR BLOOD
CLOTTING. THE BALANCE OF BACTERIA IN THE GUT CAN ALSO HAVE
AN IMPACT ON OVERALL HEALTH, WITH IMBALANCES LINKED TO
CONDITIONS SUCH AS IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME AND
INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE.
Chemical Process
CHEMICAL DIGESTION IS A COMPLEX PROCESS THAT INVOLVES THE
USE OF ENZYMES AND OTHER CHEMICALS TO BREAK DOWN FOOD
MOLECULES INTO THEIR COMPONENT PARTS. EACH TYPE OF
NUTRIENT REQUIRES A SPECIFIC ENZYME OR CHEMICAL TO BREAK IT
DOWN.
CARBOHYDRATES ARE BROKEN DOWN INTO SIMPLE SUGARS BY
ENZYMES CALLED AMYLASES. PROTEINS ARE BROKEN DOWN INTO
AMINO ACIDS BY ENZYMES CALLED PROTEASES. FATS ARE BROKEN
DOWN INTO FATTY ACIDS AND GLYCEROL BY ENZYMES CALLED
LIPASES. EACH OF THESE REACTIONS REQUIRES SPECIFIC
CONDITIONS, SUCH AS A PARTICULAR PH LEVEL OR TEMPERATURE,
WHICH ARE MAINTAINED BY THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.
Digestion in Mouth and Functions
of Saliva
DIGESTION IN THE MOUTH BEGINS WITH THE PROCESS OF CHEWING,
WHICH BREAKS DOWN FOOD INTO SMALLER PIECES THAT ARE EASIER
TO SWALLOW AND DIGEST. SALIVA, WHICH IS PRODUCED BY SALIVARY
GLANDS IN THE MOUTH, PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE PROCESS
OF DIGESTION.
SALIVA CONTAINS ENZYMES, SUCH AS AMYLASE, THAT BEGIN
BREAKING DOWN CARBOHYDRATES IN THE MOUTH. IT ALSO
CONTAINS MUCUS, WHICH HELPS TO LUBRICATE FOOD AND MAKE IT
EASIER TO SWALLOW. IN ADDITION, SALIVA HELPS TO NEUTRALIZE
ACIDS IN THE MOUTH THAT CAN CAUSE TOOTH DECAY.
Digestion in the
stomach
AFTER FOOD IS SWALLOWED, IT ENTERS THE STOMACH WHERE IT IS
MIXED WITH GASTRIC JUICES THAT HELP TO BREAK IT DOWN
FURTHER. THE STOMACH IS LINED WITH MUSCLES THAT CHURN AND
MIX THE FOOD WITH THESE JUICES.
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT COMPONENTS OF GASTRIC JUICE IS
HYDROCHLORIC ACID (HCL), WHICH HELPS TO BREAK DOWN
PROTEINS IN THE FOOD. HCL ALSO KILLS BACTERIA AND OTHER
HARMFUL MICROORGANISMS THAT MAY BE PRESENT IN THE FOOD,
HELPING TO PREVENT INFECTIONS AND ILLNESSES.
 Digestion in Small Intestine and
Intestinal Juices

AFTER LEAVING THE STOMACH, FOOD ENTERS THE SMALL INTESTINE

WHERE IT IS FURTHER BROKEN DOWN AND ABSORBED INTO THE
BLOODSTREAM. THE SMALL INTESTINE IS LINED WITH TINY FINGER-
LIKE PROJECTIONS CALLED VILLI, WHICH INCREASE THE SURFACE
AREA AVAILABLE FOR ABSORPTION.
INTESTINAL JUICES, WHICH ARE SECRETED BY THE SMALL INTESTINE,
CONTAIN ENZYMES THAT BREAK DOWN CARBOHYDRATES, PROTEINS,
AND FATS. THESE ENZYMES WORK TOGETHER WITH BILE, WHICH IS
PRODUCED BY THE LIVER AND STORED IN THE GALLBLADDER, TO
BREAK DOWN FATS AND MAKE THEM EASIER TO ABSORB.
Gastric Juice
GASTRIC JUICE IS A DIGESTIVE FLUID PRODUCED BY THE STOMACH. IT
IS COMPOSED OF HYDROCHLORIC ACID, PEPSINOGEN, AND MUCUS.
HYDROCHLORIC ACID HELPS TO CREATE AN ACIDIC ENVIRONMENT IN
THE STOMACH, WHICH IS NECESSARY FOR THE ACTIVATION OF
PEPSINOGEN. PEPSINOGEN IS CONVERTED TO PEPSIN IN THE
PRESENCE OF HYDROCHLORIC ACID, AND THIS ENZYME BEGINS THE
BREAKDOWN OF PROTEINS INTO AMINO ACIDS. MUCUS HELPS TO
PROTECT THE STOMACH LINING FROM THE ACIDIC ENVIRONMENT.
Pancreatic Juice
PANCREATIC JUICE IS A DIGESTIVE FLUID PRODUCED BY THE
PANCREAS. IT IS COMPOSED OF ENZYMES AND OTHER CHEMICALS
THAT AID IN THE BREAKDOWN OF CARBOHYDRATES, FATS, AND
PROTEINS.
AMYLASE BREAKS DOWN CARBOHYDRATES INTO SIMPLE SUGARS,
LIPASE BREAKS DOWN FATS INTO FATTY ACIDS AND GLYCEROL, AND
PROTEASES BREAK DOWN PROTEINS INTO AMINO ACIDS. SODIUM
BICARBONATE IS ALSO PRESENT IN PANCREATIC JUICE, WHICH HELPS
TO NEUTRALIZE THE ACIDIC ENVIRONMENT OF THE STOMACH AS THE
FOOD PASSES INTO THE SMALL INTESTINE.
Metabolism and
Functions of the Liver
ONCE NUTRIENTS ARE ABSORBED INTO THE BLOODSTREAM, THEY ARE
TRANSPORTED TO THE LIVER WHERE THEY ARE PROCESSED AND
DISTRIBUTED TO THE REST OF THE BODY. THE LIVER PLAYS A KEY
ROLE IN METABOLISM, WHICH IS THE PROCESS BY WHICH THE BODY
CONVERTS FOOD INTO ENERGY.
IN ADDITION TO ITS ROLE IN METABOLISM, THE LIVER HAS MANY
OTHER IMPORTANT FUNCTIONS. IT PRODUCES BILE, WHICH IS
NECESSARY FOR THE DIGESTION OF FATS, AND HELPS TO DETOXIFY
HARMFUL SUBSTANCES IN THE BODY. IT ALSO STORES VITAMINS AND
MINERALS, AND HELPS TO REGULATE BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS.
That’s it Thanks