Benefits of The Digestion System

Digestion is a process in which the body intakes, moves and utilizes material that helps the body live and function. Digestion can be understood by learning the digestive system. The digestive system is composed of several different parts, steps, and functions.

Food is first taken into the mouth. We chew food to break it down into smaller, swallowable portions. Our saliva also breaks down food, but in a more chemical way. Our saliva has an enzyme called ptyalin which can separate simple sugars. The water in our saliva also dillutes and softens food.

Next, Food is pushed by the tongue into the esophagus (the tube running from our mouth to our stomach). The esophagus moves food automatically with a process called peristalsis. This a chain reaction of muslce contractions which pushes food calmly and easily down toward the stomach.

The gateway to the stomach is the sphincter muscle. This is a valve at the end of the esophagus that opens as the last step of peristalsis. Once open, it allows food to drop into the stomach, a bag-like series of muslce and tissue. The stomach helps digestion by churning food (thereby breaking it up more). It also produces, mucus (to protect and line itself), hydrochloric acid (to disolve and break up food), and enzymes (to breakdown materials). Water and salt move straight onto the large intestine to be absorbed after they are released from the stomach.

All other foods move onto the small intestine. The small intestine is a actually 22 feet long (when stretched out). It is composed of several inticate parts and chemicals that won't be gone into deal here. Basically it moves food along and breaks it up to its smallest and simplest form and then absorbs it through the intestinal wall which fuses into the bloodstream.

Waste (uneeded or toxic materials) and some water is sent to the end of the large intestine (the colon). This is a dehydrating organ that stores and condenses waste before it is excreted from the body in the form of a bowel movement.