Download Digestion

Why Do We Need to Digest?
Nutrients from food provides us with the energy and
materials we need for work, growth and repair
The problem is that most of the nutrients we need
cannot be used in the form they are eaten
Nutrients need to be broken up into their smallest
components in order to diffuse into our blood stream
What needs to be broken up?
 Carbohydrates  simple sugars
 Proteins  amino acids
 Fats  Glycerol and fatty acids
Enzymes
 Type of protein that breaks food molecules into
smaller units.
The Process of Digestion
Divided into 3 stages:
1. Physical Digestion
• Taking food in – Cutting and chewing food
2. Chemical Digestion
• Enzymes break down food even further
3. Absorption
• Wastes are excreted
Mouth
Physical digestion starts starch digestion
Esophagus
Rapid passage of food to stomach
Stomach
 Digestion of proteins
Liver
 Digestion of proteins
Pancreas
Production of many enzymes which digest all types of
food
Small Intestine
Production of more enzymes and absorption of most
end products
Large Intestine
Reabsorption of water
Rectum
Temporary storage of undigested waste
Elimination
Removal of undigested wastes
• On your plate with a fork and knife
• Your saliva initiates chemical digestion with an enzyme that
breaks carbohydrates down into simple sugars
• Your teeth and tongue break up food into smaller pieces and
grind it up
Stage 1
Physical Digestion - Teeth
Adult humans have 4 different kinds of teeth (32 total)
1. Incisors at the very front (4 on top, 4 on bottom)
2. Canines (cuspids) beside the incisors and are pointed
(4 total)
•
Used for tearing or shredding
3. Premolars (8 total)
4. Molars (12 total incl. wisdom teeth)
Premolars + molars – flattened on upper surface, used
for grinding and chewing tough food
Children have deciduous or primary teeth (20 total)
8 Incisors
4 Canines
8 molars
Parts of the Teeth
Crown - visible part above the gum
Root – Part below the gum line, holds tooth in place
Enamel – protective coating – hardest substance in the
body, cannot be replaced.
Parts of the Teeth
Dentine – hard bone that gives teeth shape and strength.
It is sensitive to temperature, sugar, touch, acids, etc.
Pulp Chamber – message center for sensation in the
dentine
Gum line – help hold and protect teeth
Parts of the Teeth
Root Canal – carries blood and nerve endings
Cementum – connect tooth to the jaw bone
Carnivores – Sharp teeth for grabbing food and ripping it apart
Herbivores – Flat teeth for grinding food
Omnivores – Flat and sharp teeth
What causes tooth decay?
 Bacteria called plaque live in your mouth
 Plaque eats any food that stays on your teeth
 Produce acid that eats away the enamel, creating pits
called cavities
 Build up of a hard crust called tartar
NOTE: Sugar does not cause tooth decay, it feeds the
bacteria that do
Brushing and flossing removes plaque and keeps gums
healthy
Wear mouth guards in sports
Regular dental checkups (clean away tartar)
Diet: calcium, phosphorus, vitamins A, C & D all help
maintain teeth and gums
Some Dental Problems
 Sensitivity due to the removal of enamel by cavities
and exposing dentine
 Abscesses – bacteria get into the root and infect it
 Peridontal Disease – Affect the tissue around the
teeth. Includes retreating gum line, sore gums or
bleeding. Usually caused by poor diet or hygiene.
 Halitosis – bad breath caused by smoking, infections,
tooth decay, sinus infections, etc.
Stage 2
Begins In the Mouth
Amylase
 1st enzyme to act.
 Produced by saliva
 Helps break down starch into
sugar molecules.
Saliva
 Produced by 3 pairs of
glands inside the mouth
 Is slightly acidic
 Approx 1000 mL
produced per day!
 99% is water
Function of Saliva
 Moistens dry food
 Binds the loose crumbs together so bits do not get into
the respiratory system
 Softens food so rough edges will not scratch the walls
 Enzyme amylase begins chemical digestion
Hard Palate
Soft Palate
Uvula
The Tongue
• Attached to the floor of the mouth
• Helps to move food to the molars
• Mixes food with saliva
The Tongue
Once the food is moist and soft, the tongue rolls it
into a ball called a bolus.
This prepares the food to pass into the pharynx to be
swallowed.
Swallowing
The tongue moves the bolus of swallowed food to the
back of the mouth
The soft palate moves upward to partially seal off the
nasal passage
At the same time, the epiglottis closes the opening into
the respiratory passage
• Place cracker in mouth
• Chew WITHOUT SWALLOWING!
• Note the taste
• Leave on tongue until you notice a taste change (can take up to 5 min)
• What do you taste?
The Sense of Taste
Humans detect taste with taste receptor cells
These are clustered into taste buds
Taste buds are clustered into bumps called papillae
There are 5 primary taste sensations
 salty
 sour
 sweet
 bitter
 Umami (Savory)
The movement of food from the tongue down into the
pharynx is under voluntary control
The second stage, involving the epiglottis and the
movement of the food into the esophagus, is involuntary
The Esophagus
 Flexible tube – approx. 25 cm long
 Leads from the pharynx to the stomach
 Walls have 2 layers of muscle
 The inner lining covered with mucus – helps food pass
through easily
Peristalsis
Bolus is moved through peristaltic action
Peristalsis - the rhythmic contractions of muscles – like
squeezing a tube of tooth paste
Cardiac sphincter:
 Ring of muscle that controls the passage of bolus into
stomach
– like pulling a drawstring
The Stomach
 Large muscular bag that stretches as it fills with food
 Can hold 1.5 L
 Made up of many layers, including 3 layers of muscle
 Gastric glands produce gastric juice.
 Pepsin (an enzyme) – Breaks down protein
 Hydrochloric Acid
 The muscular walls of the stomach contract to mix
food with gastric juice, producing a mixture called
chyme.
Hydrochloric Acid (HCL)
 Lowers the pH of the stomach to allow enzymes to work
efficiently
 Helps kill bacteria
 Mucus secretions protect the stomach walls from HCl
 BUT sometime mucus is not enough and HCL and
digestive enzymes eat away at the lining, resulting in a
peptic ulcer.
Heart Burn
Presence of stomach acid in the esophagus
Cardiac sphincter is not working properly – opens
allowing acidic stomach contents into the esophagus
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/hsw/17648-food-intofuel-the-process-of-digestion-video.htm
The pyloric sphincter is located at the lower end of the
stomach
 Controls the flow of partially digested food (Chyme) out
of the stomach
The Small Intestine
 2.5 cm in diameter, and is about 7m in length
Esophagus
Small Intestine
Stomach
Small Intestine
 A long coiled and looped tube
 Fills most of the abdomen
 Held in place by a membrane called mesentery
4 functions of the Small
Intestine
Keeps the food moving by peristalsis
2. Secretes enzymes which continue the digestive
process
3. The site where digestion by chemicals from the
pancreas and liver take place
4. Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream
1.
Digestive processes…
3 basic food substances in the small intestine:
• Carbohydrates
• Fats
• Proteins
They are broken down into molecules that are small
enough to pass through the wall and enter the
circulatory system
The Pancreas
 Produce pancreatic juice – which contain about 28
enzymes and sodium bicarbonate
 Lipase – breaks down fat
 Amylase – completes carbohydrate digestion
 Trypsin and peptidase – complete protein digestion
 Sodium bicarbonate neutralizes the acidic chyme as it
comes out of the stomach
How are our bodies built to handle the acid in our
stomach?
The Liver
• Produces bile that is stored in the gall bladder
• Bile emulsifies fat – which means that it helps fat
dissolve in water so it can be digested and absorbed
Absorption Stage 3
Absorption of Nutrients
o Surface of the small intestine is folded
o Covering the surface are projections called villi
Villi:
 Increase surface area for
absorption
 Collect the nutrients and
transport them to where
they are needed in the
body
Reabsorption and Elimination: The Large
Intestine
The Large Intestine consists of:
 Cecum
 Appendix
 Colon
 Rectum
The Large Intestine
 Approx. 1.5 m in length
 7.6 cm in diameter
 Functions mainly to
reabsorb water
Cecum – Where the small intestine empties into the
large intestine
 Appendix
 Believed to have no
function
 Can become infected
–called appendicitis
Large Intestine function
 Reabsorbs water and maintains the fluid balance of
the body
 Absorbs certain vitamins
 Undigested food is dried into suitable consistency for
defecation
 Stores waste before it is eliminated
The Rectum
 Last section of the digestive tract
 Ends with the anal sphincter (like a drawstring)
 When full there is a mild feeling of discomfort, which
tells us that the feces is ready to be eliminated
What Your Feces Can tell you…
 Feces are 75% water and 25% solids
 Diet lacking fiber = drier, compacted feces which can
result in constipation
 Sufficient fiber = Holds more water and is much softer
which allows it to pass through easily
Quick Recap…
Small Intestine:
 Breaks down food and absorbs nutrients
 Villi increase’s surface area = more absorption
 Moves the rest to the large intestine (through peristalsis)
Quick Recap
Large Intestine:
 Removes water
 Moves undigested food (peristalsis) to be released as
waste
 http://videos.howstuffworks.com/hsw/26494-
managing-your-health-the-digestive-systemvideo.htm