Nutrition

Food goes through a long process before it is completely digested.   First, the food enters the body through the mouth.   The mouth contains several different components.   The teeth, saliva glands, and tongue aid in the chewing process.   The saliva produced in the saliva glands moistens the food enabling the teeth to chew the food easier.   The tongue also helps push the food toward the teeth.   After the food is chewed it becomes a bolus.   The bolus then enters the pharynx which is a passage way that is responsible for swallowing.   Next, the bolus enters the esophagus which connects to the pharynx and stomach.   Once the bolus enters the stomach it is mixed with acid secretions, and the bolus becomes a chime.   A chyme is a semiliquid food mass.   The food is partially digested in the stomach, and usually vacates the stomach within 2 to 6 hours. The chyme then moves into the small intestine where further secretions from the live, gallbladder, and pancreas help in the digestive process.   The small intestine is where most of the digestive process occurs.   It is where most of the nutrients are absorbed.   The small intestine consists of three parts called duodenum, jejunum, and ilium. The materials that are not absorbed in the small intestine then travel to the large intestine through the sphincter.   The sphincter ensures that the materials do not travel back into the small intestine.   The colon and the rectum are both included in the large intestine. The colon absorbs water, vitamins, and minerals.   Materials that are not absorbed in the colon exit the body as waste products known as feces.   The end of the colon is attached to the anus.   The anus is the external opening of the digestive tract that allows the feces to exit the body.   Therefore, the food has a long road to travel before it is absorbed and exits the body.