The Digestive system

What is The Digestive system?

 In this article, you will learn the mechanics of how the digestive system works as it does. Digestion plays an exceedingly crucial role in the function of the human body. We will also be discussing the parts of the digestive system. And most importantly the journey of the Digestive systems. The digestive system comprises a digestive tract which is a drawn-out and hollowed series of organs that begins at the mouth and goes all the way to its final stage which is in the anus.

The digestive system consists of numerous organs such as the mouth, stomach, esophagus, large intestine also known as the colon, small intestine, rectum, and anus.

 These organs are seamed internally by a membrane called the mucosa. The mucosa secretes a fluid that aids in the digestion of food. Food particles are broken down and forced along the tract by way of muscles.

Two additional organs within the human body that play a prominent part in indigestion are the liver and the pancreas. The digestive fluids which these organs release enter the intestine by means of small ducts. 

The digestive fluid developed by the liver is held in the gall bladder before arriving at the intestine. Some organs belonging to the circulatory system, in addition to the nervous system, are associated with the digestive functioning of the body.

Why Is Digestion So Important?

The conventional food that we eat cannot be digested in its original form by the body. The food needs to be broken down into smaller and more complex molecules of necessary nutrients by the various organs within the body. 

It is then absorbed by the blood and carried to the various cells within the body to provide energy. This entire process whereby the food that we eat is converted into energy which can then be utilized by the body is called digestion.

The Whole Process Of Digestion

Digestion is the means by which the food that is consumed gets mixed with digestive fluids released by various organs. It is then broken down into smaller molecules in the course of traveling through the digestive tract.

 Ideally, it could be said that digestion of the food starts in the mouth where you chew the food, and ends in the small intestine.

Peristalsis

The digestive tract comprises hollow organs whose walls are layered with muscles that give them their ability to move. 

These walls, with the aid of the muscles, move the food and fluids that are consumed through to the various organs that constitute the digestive system so that they become effectively mixed with the digestive fluids and then broken down into finer molecules. 

This particular muscular action of the walls is known as peristalsis. One may rightly compare this action on a smaller scale to the ocean waves. Such wave-like action of the muscular walls enables the food specks and fluid to get distributed throughout the digestive system.

The process of digestion starts in the mouth as we swallow food or drink liquids. That in turn is the only voluntary action in the entire process of digestion. After you swallow, the remaining process is completely involuntary as the nerves then take control of the necessary actions.

The Esophagus

The esophagus is then the next point where the swallowed food goes. This is the organ that connects the throat and the stomach. 

The esophageal sphincter is a circular muscle that is positioned at the junction where the esophagus and the stomach meet. Remaining in a closed condition otherwise, it is responsible for allowing food to enter the stomach.

The Stomach

The stomach then takes control as the food enters it by way of the esophagus. The stomach's first duty is to store the food and liquid that is swallowed. 

This is accomplished by the relaxing action of the upper part of the stomach resulting in the storage of a large quantity of food and liquids. Following this stage, the food and liquid are combined with the digestive fluids that are secreted in the stomach by muscular action. 

This occurs in the lower part of the stomach. The third and final task of the stomach is to gradually release the mixture into the small intestine.

There are certain conditions and or variables that must be taken into consideration when discussing the process of food passing from the stomach into the small intestine, namely the type of food that goes in, the entire process of the peristalsis action of the stomach, and small intestine as was discussed earlier. 

The fact is that fats are retained in the stomach for the longest period of time while on the other hand carbohydrates are digested much sooner. 

Proteins also take an extended amount of time to digest. The digestive fluids secreted by the pancreas, liver, and intestine aid the food to dissolve further and they are gradually mixed thoroughly and absorbed further to continue the digestion process.

In the final stage of the process, the walls of the intestine absorb the nutrients which are then transported to other parts of the body. This is also the point where waste material which consists of undigested food matter, fiber, and cells are shed from mucosa which is then transported into the colon. 

These materials get expelled out of the body by way of bowel movements.

The Part That Digestive Juices Play

The initial process of digestion takes place in the mouth where digestive juices are secreted by the salivary glands. Saliva that is secreted contains an enzyme that has the ability to break up the starch contained in food into smaller molecules.

The stomach is the next place that secretes digestive juices. These juices which are acidic in nature secrete an enzyme responsible for the digestion of protein. 

This acidic enzyme does not affect the walls and tissues of the stomach because it is protected by the mucosa which is a layer of tissue that lines the walls of the stomach.

It is when the food mixture is passed through to the small intestine from the stomach that digestive juices from the pancreas and liver take over. 

The Pancreas secretes an enzyme which is powerful enough to break down the proteins, fats and carbohydrates that are found in food. Along with it, the glands that are present in the intestinal walls also secrete necessary enzymes.

The liver is another important organ in this connection that produces bile, another digestive enzyme. Between mealtimes, the bile is accumulated in the gall bladder. 

During meal times, the bile reaches the intestine through the bile ducts which then gets combined with the fat in the food and ultimately dissolves it. Only then does it get digested by the pancreatic and intestinal enzymes.

Absorption And Transportation Of Nutrients

The small intestine is responsible for the absorption of the molecules of food, water, and minerals which are then passed on to other parts of the body. 

This process is quite interesting as well. As mentioned previously, the walls of the small intestine are covered with mucosa which contains lots of folds. 

These folds are covered with small projections called villi, which have minuscule projections called microvilli. These are responsible for the absorption of nutrients.

 The material gets absorbed by special cells into the bloodstream where they are transported to other parts of the body for further action. 

Another unique thing is that the process differs according to specific nutrients.

Fats

One of the main sources of energy that the body requires comes from fats. Fat directly goes into the intestine and gets dissolved into the watery content found there.

 Fats are infiltrated by the bile secretions which break it down into minuscule droplets which consist of fatty acids and cholesterol among other things.

 The fatty acids and cholesterol molecules get combined with the bile acids which shifts them to the mucosa cells. It is in these cells that the molecules join together to become large and then are passed on to the lymphatic vessels adjoining the intestine.

 The lymphatic vessels are responsible for transporting this fat to the veins of the chest. Fat accumulates in different parts of the body through the bloodstream as well.

Fiber

Fiber is something that is indigestible and therefore it passes through the digestive tract without being broken down by enzymes. 

Fiber essentially comes in two forms, soluble and insoluble, both of which can be found in different types of food. 

As the name implies, soluble fiber gets dissolved in water to take on a soft, gel-like consistency in the intestines while insoluble fiber never changes its form and is treated as waste matter.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are a very important source of energy for the body. In fact, it is recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans that out of the total suggested caloric intake for the body, that approximately 45% to 65% should be attained by carbohydrates which can be found abundantly in potatoes, bread, dried peas and beans, rice, pasta, fruits, and vegetables.

Starch and sugar which are found in carbohydrates are broken down by the salivary enzymes, pancreatic juices and intestinal enzymes. 

Starch is first broken down into maltose by the function of the salivary enzymes and pancreatic juices. This maltose is further broken down into glucose molecules by the intestinal enzymes and is directly absorbed into the bloodstream.

 Glucose is carried through the bloodstream to the liver for storage until it is released as energy when needed for the various activities the body performs.

The sugars that are found in carbohydrates are converted in just one simple step. Sucrose is converted into glucose and fructose which are then absorbed directly into the bloodstream through the intestine. 

Lactose, another type of sugar that is found in milk, is converted by the enzymes found in the intestinal lining into an absorbable form.

Protein

Protein is one item that needs to be broken down by enzymes before it can be put to use in building and repairing tissues within the body. Once swallowed, Protein begins its break down process by enzymes within the secretions of the stomach.

 Later the pancreatic juices and the enzymes of the intestinal walls take over the process of further breaking down protein into smaller molecules which are more commonly known as amino acids. 

These amino acids are absorbed into the blood through the intestines and are transported to other parts of the body to aid in the construction and repair of cells. The main sources of proteins are meat, eggs, and beans, just to name a few.

Vitamins

Vitamins are also an important supplement that is provided to the body through the foods that we consume. There are two types of Vitamins - Water Soluble Vitamins (i.e., Vitamin C and all the variety of Vitamin B) and Fat-Soluble Vitamins (i.e., Vitamin A, D, E, and K). 

The storage of water-soluble vitamins is minimal, and as a result, the surplus amount gets eliminated through the urine. But fat-soluble vitamins get amassed in the liver as well as fatty tissues of the human body.

Water And Salt

The food and drink that we consume combined with the juices that are secreted by the various glands result in a significant amount of water being created during the digestion process.

 The accumulated water contains a large amount of dissolved salts which is all absorbed by the intestine.

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