maot. • Food plays a central role in the survival of species. Food gives organisms energy that enables them to carry out the many activities they do each day. #FoodIsLife
• DIGESTION OF FOOD is carried out by the organs
and substance of the Digestive System.
• During digestion, food is broken down to smaller
parts – a fraction of which is made up of nutrients, and are circulated to the different parts of the body through the bloodstream and assimilated by cells FOUR STAGES OF DIGESTION • Ingestion - Ingestion is the consumption of a substance by an organism. In animals, it normally is accomplished by taking in the substance through the mouth into the gastrointestinal tract, such as through eating or drinking. • Digestion - the process by which ingested (food) material is broken down in the earlier stages of the alimentary canal into a form that can then be absorbed and assimilated into the tissues of the body. • Absorption / Assimilation – the process of pulling in digested molecules into the cells of the digestive tract, then into the blood. • Elimination - Undigested material are excreted off the body. • Digestion begins in the mouth. Chewing is very important to good digestion. When chewed food is ground into fine particles, digestive juices which contain enzymes can react more easily. As the food is chewed, it is moistened and mixed with saliva, which contains the enzyme Ptyalin which converts some of the starches to sugar. • After the food is swallowed, muscles of the pharynx push the food into the esophagus. Then from the esophagus, the food will move down into the stomach. In the stomach, food is thoroughly mixed with digestive juices by a vigorous chuming motion. • The digestive juice in the stomach is called gastric juice which contains hydrochloric acid and enzyme pepsin. Digestion of protein begins in the stomach. Food that is partly digested and changed to thick liquid in the stomach is called chyme. Chyme passes from the stomach into the small intestine. • Digestion is completed in the small intestine. Juices from the pancreas, liver and intestine help complete the digestive process. Pancreatic juice is produced by the pancreatic duct. Pancreatic juice contains the enzymes trypsin, amylase, and lipase.
• Trypsin breaks down protein into amino acids,
Amylase converts the starch into sugars, and Lipase changes fats into fatty acids and glycerol.
• Intestinal juice is produced by the walls of the
small intestine. Human Digestive System • The intestinal juice contains the enzymes sucrase, lactase, and maltase. Bile is produced in the liver, stored in the gall bladder and flows into small into the small intestine through the bile duct. • The small intestine is lined with the mucous membrane made up of tiny finger-like projections called villi. Villi increases the area through which absorption can take place. When the food is completely digested, it is absorbed by tiny blood vessels in the walls of the small intestine and then carried to all parts of the body. The Small Intestine • Almost no digestion takes place in the large intestine. It stores waste food products and absorbs small amounts of water and minerals. The wastes that accumulate in the large intestine are roughage that cannot be digested in the body.
• Bacterial action produces the final waste products
called feces. Feces then passes out of the body through the rectum, and finally anus. The Large Intestine