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Describe the process of digestion essay
Processes involving digestion
Chapter 10 section 10.1 the process of digestion
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1) Describe the process of food digestion within the gastrointestinal tract. In your answer, make sure to address the following questions: (19 marks total)
a) Where does chemical digestion begin? What is the first enzyme to access food that is ingested? What macromolecule does this enzyme digest? Where is this enzyme produced/secreted? (4 marks)
Both chemical and mechanical digestion begins in the mouth as food materials are broken down into more absorbable units. Food material is transported down the gastrointestinal tract though muscle contractions, a process known as peristalsis. An enzyme known as Amylase, whose main function is to break down carbohydrates, is produced in the salivary glands and pancreas
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The migrating motor complex takes food remnants and bacteria away from the upper gastrointestinal tract and into the large intestines. This begins in between meals when a series of contractions occur in the stomach passing gradually from section to section. The two remaining patterns of motility can occur during and following a meal. Peristalsis involves circular muscles that contract in order to move food materials down the intestinal tract. Peristalsis pushes food to the receiving segment in a progressive wave that allows the bolus to travel. Finally, in segmental contractions segments of the small intestine will contract and relax randomly or at certain intervals. Its purpose is to churn the content of the intestines allowing them to remain in contact with the absorbing …show more content…
The ENS can therefore work independently of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system to sustain digestive motility. However, the ENS will work with parasympathetic nervous system to prepare the digestive system for food, like in the case of hunger. These reflexes are called Long Reflexes, where sensory information is sent to the nervous system and feedback is sent through autonomic neurons. In regards to the role of the central nervous system on gastrointestinal activities, antagonistic control encompasses excitation of the gastrointestinal tract by the parasynthetic division and inhibition by the sympathetic nervous
The digestive system, in organisms like the mink and human, is supposed to break down the food being eaten to transfer into energy. This energy helps other functions of the body that would in turn keep it alive. The digestive system includes organs such as the stomach, intestines, liver, etc. Digestion starts at the mouth, though.
Mouth: The process of digestion starts in the mouth. Where the food is broken down into small pieces and these pieces can be easily absorbed.
In order for this breakdown to happen, the ‘tube’ through which the food travels requires assistance from a number of other digestive organs starting with the salivary glands, and later receiving
When these two muscles layer contracts in an alternate fashion, it propels the food through the pharynx into the esophagus. This mechanism is called peristalsis. (Marieb E. 2006)
Mouth- Digestion begins in the mouth. Physical actions, such as chewing, breaks food into small parts so it can be easily digested. Next, salivary glands secrete an enzyme called saliva to mix with food to start the breaking down of carbohydrates (WebMD (2).) From the mouth, food travels to the pharynx, or throat, by swallowing,
The whole purpose of your digestion system is to break down and absorb the energy and nutrients it needs from the food you eat. The sandwich, strawberries, and orange juice you have just consumed is going through this process right now! The process of digestion begins with ingestion, this is when you take a bite of what you have planned to eat. When you took a bite of your sandwich and strawberry slices you were essentially beginning the process of digestion. Second comes the job of your digestion, which is a much more time-consuming and complex process for your digestive system. It begins once you have began chewing your food. There are two known types of digestion, these include Mechanical digestion, which is when you “physically break down the food into smaller pieces”, for instance chewing a burger and having it result in several chunks, and Chemical Digestion which is when you chemically break down your food, such as eating a slice of br...
Imagine you are eating a sandwich containing wheat bread, ham, lettuce, and Swiss cheese. Do you ever wonder where the nutrients go from all of the previous listed ingredients? Well, when a bite of this sandwich is taken, the mouth produces a saliva enzyme called amylase. This enzyme immediately goes to work by breaking down the carbohydrates that are in the bread. Once, the bite is completely chewed, the contents then are swallowed and go down the esophagus and begin to head towards the upper esophageal sphincter and the is involuntarily pushed towards the stomach. The next passage for the sandwich is to go through the lower esophageal sphincter; which transports the sandwich into the stomach.
It starts with a process called mechanical digestion. It is when food is chewed in the mouth and turned into small pieces, then is swallowed. The tongue is a muscle that helps push back food toward the back of the throat. Salvia aids with the smooth ride the food takes going down to the esophagus, which is like a long tube going down the body, and lands in the stomach. This is when chemical digestion begins.
During digestion, the body breaks down food into smaller molecules that could then be used by the body’s cells and tissues in order to perform functions. This starts off in the mouth with the physical movements of chewing and the chemical breakdown by saliva. Enzymes in the stomach break food down further after traveling from the mouth through the esophagus. The food from here then moves into the small intestine, where pancreatic juices and enzymes dissolve proteins, carbohydrates, and fibers, and bile from the liver breaks down fats into these small molecules. Any portion of the fibers or food that were unable to be broken down are passed from the small intestine to the large intestine, which is where the digestive tract transitions into the excretory tract, then the colon and out of the rectum. Any liquids that have been stripped of their nutrients by the body proceed from the stomach to the kidneys. In the kidneys, sodium ions (Na+), uric acid, and urea are exchanged with water, which moves urinary bladder and is excreted through the
Crunch, Crunch, Crunch. As you munch on those first few Cheetos the digestion process begins in your mouth. Here, mechanical digestion begins to reduce the size of the Cheeto and mixes the food particles with saliva. The tongue helps mix and move the pieces of Cheeto throughout the mouth. The salivary glands in the mouth also contribute to the breakdown of the Cheetos in the mouth. They secrete amylase and mucus. The parotid glands begin chemical digestion on the Cheetos. It secretes a clear, watery fluid that is high in amylase. The enzyme, amylase, begins to breakdown carbohydrates into disaccharides. The other two salivary glands, the submandibular and the sublingual, secrete saliva containing mucus, which binds and lubricates the Cheeto particles for easy swallowing. Now the food has been formed into a bolus with the help of saliva, the tongue, and teeth. Next the bolus travels into the pharynx, where the epiglottis closes off the top of the trachea so no food can enter. Then it moves on to the esophagus, where peristaltic waves push the food toward the stomach. The food enters the stomach through the cardiac sphincter at the end of the esophagus.
As I look at the ham sandwich sitting on the plate before me, I start to feel queasy with disgust. The slab of ham is laced with fat. The white solid stuff is just sitting there, taunting me. Daring me to eat it. The bread is stale, crumbling, falling apart. I know that as soon as I pick up the sandwich, the bread is going to disintegrate in my fingers, leaving me with nothing but the malicious ham. No, I think to myself. I will not eat this sandwich.
Hi there. My name is Albert and this is my adventurous story of my journey through a human. I was a delicious gourmet hamburger with fresh ingredients like salad, mustard and an angus beef pattie. I was dumped into a family feed box labelled with a massive golden arched ‘M’. Now, I’m quite an intelligent burger, unlike my other food companions and I love studying about the fascinating human digestive system when I went to Burgerton College. I’m here to tell you first-hand about my digestive journey into the human body! Here is a map of the human digestive system for your convenience to pinpoint where I am in my journey as I am recounting my story.
The exocrine function of the pancreas is that it produces enzymes that aids in the digestion of food. There are three important enzymes that are crucial in helping with digestion. The first digestive enzyme is amylase. Amylase function is to break down carbohydrates. The amylase enzyme is made in two places: the cells in the digestive tract that produces saliva and the main one specifically found in the pancreas that are called the pancreatic amylase (Marie, Joanne; Media Demand, “What Are the Functions of Amylase, Protease and Lipase Digestive Enzymes”). The amylase in the pancreas passes through the pancreatic duct to the small intestines. This amylase in the pancreas completes the process of digestion of carbohydrates. Consequently, this leads to the production of glucose that gets absorbed into the bloodstream and gets carried throughout the body. The next enzyme that aids in digestion of food is protease. While amylase breaks down carbohydrates, protease breaks down protein. Protease breaks down protein into the building block form of amino acids. The three main proteases that it produces are: pepsin, trypsin and chymotrypsin (Marie, Joanne; Media Demand, “What Are the Functions of Amylase, Protease and Lipase Digestive Enzymes”). Pepsin does not occur in the pancreas but it is the catalysis in starting the digestion of proteins. Trypsin and chymotrypsin are the two proteases that occur in
The human digestion system is very complex. It starts with the mouth, salivary glands, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, small intestine, large intestine, then ends/exits with the anus. Each step is essential to the whole system. For example, the mouth chews food and mixes it with saliva produced by the salivary glands, and then the pharynx swallows chewed food mixed with saliva, this is followed by the food traveling through the esophagus to the stomach where the food gets a bath and mixes with acids and enzymes. After the stomach, the liver, pancreas, and gallbladder produce, stores, and releases bile and bicarbonates. Bile is produced in the liver and aids in digestion and absorption of fat while the gallbladder stores bile and releases it into the small intestine when needed. Following the process into the small intestine, this is where nutrients will be absorbed into the blood or lymph (most digestion occurs here). Next is the large intestine this is where water and some vitamins and minerals are absorbed. Finally, it is the end of the road, the anus. At...
... and nutritious experience by giving people actual experience to see, feel and taste what is nutrition about (Hegler, 2010).