Download Ch 3 Facts you are expected to know

Facts about the Digestive System…as researched and stated by students of Nutrition & the Human Body
Facts you are expected to know…
Most of the digestion and absorption of food and nutrients occurs in the small intestine.
Enzymes in the stomach will chemically breakdown certain foods.
The digestive system breaks food down into absorbable units that enter the blood for distribution the
body cells; indigestible foodstuffs are eliminated as feces.
The digestive tract is a series of tube-like organs through which food passes and nutrients are absorbed
and waste is eliminated.
Thousands of finger-like projections lining the walls of the small intestine are called villi.
The small intestine is at least 20 feet long (possibly up to 30 feet or 9 meters long) and divided into 3
sections: the duodenum, the jejunum, and the ileum.
The liver produces bile that helps break down certain foods.
The large intestine is actually much shorter than the small intestine.
There are two forms of digestion-mechanical and chemical. Mechanical is the chewing , grinding &
churning. Chemical involves enzymes breaking chemical bonds in the food to reorganize and
redistribute molecules.
The organs of the digestive system include the oral cavity (mouth), esophagus, stomach, small and large
intestines (including the rectum), plus a number accessory organs (liver, salivary glands, pancreas and
others)
Facts that would be good to know (potential extra credit???)
The liver is the largest gland of the body. It aids in digestive activity and it’s responsible for metabolism
of nutrients, detoxification of alcohol and some nutrient storage.
The liver is the second largest organ in our body and located at the right side of the abdominal cavity.
Bile produced in the liver helps in the digestion and absorption of fats. It plays an important role in the
process of metabolism.
The liver aids in digestion by helping in the absorption of fat and certain vitamins (A, D, E & K).
The liver takes deadly toxins out of your body.
Any solid substances that flow into the large intestine through the ileocecal sphincter are indigestible.
We eat about 500 kg of food per year. We produce about 1.7 liters of saliva per day.
The stomach holds up about 1-1.5 liters of food (chyme).
Ch 3 – The Basics of Digestion
Facts about the Digestive System…as researched and stated by students of Nutrition & the Human Body
Why might these statements have made into material to know about the
digestive system?
Pancreas helps break down food.
The digestive track breaks down food to absorb nutrients.
We eat about 500 kg per year.
Not all of our food is directly digested.
The small intestines absorb small food particles.
It contains the mouth, esophagus, trachea, which digest food.
Experts advise adult consumers to consume adequate amounts of calcium, that is 100 mg or 100% DV in
a daily 2000 calorie diet. This advice is often given in milligrams (mg) but the nutrion facts label only lists
a DV for calcium.
Ch 3 – The Basics of Digestion