What goes on in our digestive system?
We all know that what goes into the mouth will go through the stomach and comes out from the bottom (rectum) as poop. Do you know what really happened when the food enters our mouth and why it comes out differently?
Our body system wor together to enable our body to function properly. Let’s focus on our digestive system which is responsible for:
– taking the food into our body
– extract the nutrients and minerals for our body to function and
– removing the indigestible food.
Misconception:
Digestion occurs in the stomach.
Fact:
Digestion starts from the mouth. When you bite or chew the food, it will be broken down into smaller pieces and then swallowed and pushed through the throat.
Misconception:
Food goes straight to the stomach.
Fact:
Food goes through gullet that connects the mouth to the stomach. It uses the muscle to push the food down to the stomach. There will be NO digestion occurs here.
Misconception:
The small intestine is short and small.
Fact:
The small intestine is 6.7 – 7.6 meters long and is the longest part of the digestive system. Digestion is completed here and nutrients are released and entered into the blood to be carried to all parts of the body.
Misconception:
The digestion ends in the large intestine.
Fact:
The large intestine is shorter and wider than the small intestine. By the time the food reaches the large intestine, the digestion process is almost done. Water and minerals from the undigested food will be absorbed in the large intestine. It changes the waste from liquid to solid which will later be passed out as poop.
Girl having lunch on table illustration by brgfx / Freepik
As you may have noted, once the food enters our mouth, the digestion will start and it will take a few hours to process in our body. It is amazing to know and understand how our body works and learning to take good care of it so that it functions properly all the time.
Need more assistance/support on learning about our body system? Feel free to email me at contactus@lupwaiparentwhisperer.com for more details.