The digestive system includes the organs of the alimentary canal and accessory structures. The alimentary canal forms a continuous tube that is open to the outside environment at both ends. The organs of the alimentary canal are the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and large intestine.
Digestive system function
Your digestive system breaks down and absorbs nutrients from the food and liquids you consume to use for important things like energy, growth and repairing cells.
The MOUTH
the opening and cavity in the lower part of the human face, surrounded by the lips, through which food is taken in and vocal sounds are emitted.
The digestive process starts in your mouth when you chew. Your salivary glands make saliva, a digestive juice, which moistens food so it moves more easily through your esophagus into your stomach. Saliva also has an enzyme that begins to break down starches in your food.
pharynx
Also called the throat, the pharynx is the portion of the digestive tract that receives the food from your mouth. Branching off the pharynx is the esophagus, which carries food to the stomach, and the trachea or windpipe, which carries air to the lungs.
Salivary Glands
The salivary glands produce saliva, which keeps the mouth and other parts of the digestive system moist. It also helps break down carbohydrates (with salivary amylase, formerly known as ptyalin) and lubricates the passage of food down from the oro-pharynx to the esophagus to the stomach.
Salivary glands play an important role in digestion because they make saliva. Saliva helps moisten food so we can swallow it more easily. It also has an enzyme called amylase that makes it easier for the stomach to break down starches in food. Saliva also has an important role in our oral health.
The esophagus is the muscular tube that carries food and liquids from your mouth to the stomach.
Function of esophagus
.The esophagus receives food from your mouth when you swallow. The epiglottis is a small flap that folds over your windpipe as you swallow to prevent you from choking (when food goes into your windpipe).
Liver
The liver is located in the upper right-hand portion of the abdominal cavity, beneath the diaphragm, and on top of the stomach, right kidney, and intestines. Shaped like a cone, the liver is a dark reddish-brown organ that weighs about 3 pounds.
The liver has many functions, but its main job within the digestive system is to process the nutrients absorbed from the small intestine. Bile from the liver secreted into the small intestine also plays an important role in digesting fat and some vitamins.
The gallbladder
a pear-shaped sac located under the liver. It stores and concentrates bile produced in the liver. Bile support in the digestion of fat and is released from the gallbladder into the upper small intestine in response to food (especially fats).
The gallbladder is an organ that’s found in your abdomen. Its function is to store bile until it’s needed for digestion. When we eat, the gallbladder contracts, or squeezes, to send bile into your digestive tract.
The stomach
The stomach is a muscular, J-shaped organ in the upper part of the abdomen.. The stomach receives food from the esophagus. As food reaches the end of the esophagus, it enters the stomach through a muscular valve called the lower esophageal sphincter. The stomach secretes acid and enzymes that digest food. It is part of the digestive system, which extends from the mouth to the anus.
Function of the stomach
The stomach holds food while it is being mixed with stomach enzymes. These enzymes continue the process of breaking down food into a usable form. Cells in the lining of your stomach secrete strong acid and powerful enzymes that are responsible for the breakdown process…
Pancreas
The pancreas is located behind the stomach in the upper left abdomen. It is surrounded by other organs including the small intestine, liver, and spleen. It is spongy, about six to ten inches long, and is shaped like a flat pear or a fish extended horizontally across the abdomen.
The pancreas is part of the digestive system and produces insulin and other important enzymes and hormones that help break down foods. During digestion, your pancreas makes pancreatic juices called enzymes. These enzymes break down sugars, fats, and starches. Your pancreas also helps your digestive system by making hormones. These are chemical messengers that travel through your blood.
Small intestine
Small intestine, a long, narrow, folded or coiled tube extending from the stomach to the large intestine; it is the region where most digestion and absorption of food takes place
Function of small intestine
The small intestine has three parts: the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum. It helps to further digest food coming from the stomach. It absorbs nutrients (vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fats, proteins) and water from food so they can be used by the body. The small intestine is part of the digestive system.
Large intestine
The large intestine is the portion of the digestive system most responsible for absorption of water from the indigestible residue of food.
Function of large intestine
The purpose of the large intestine is to absorb water and salts from the material that has not been digested as food, and get rid of any waste products left over. By the time food mixed with digestive juices reaches your large intestine, most digestion and absorption has already taken place.
Apendix
The appendix is a small tube-shaped organ attached to the large intestine.
The appendix protects good bacteria in the gut. That way, when the gut is affected by diarrhea or other illness that cleans out the intestines, the good bacteria in the appendix can repopulate the digestive system and keep you healthy
Rectum
The rectum is the last several inches of the large intestine. It starts at the end of the final segment of your colon and ends when it reaches the short, narrow passage leading to the anus.
Function of the rectum
The rectum is a straight, 8-inch chamber that connects the colon to the anus. The rectum’s role is to receive stool from the colon before the faeces is excreted out of the human body through the anal canal
Anus
The anus is the last part of the digestive tract. It is a 2-inch long canal consisting of the pelvic floor muscles and the two anal sphincters (internal and external). The lining of the upper anus is able to detect rectal contents. It lets you know whether the contents are liquid, gas or solid
The anus is the opening where the gastrointestinal tract ends and exits the body. The anus starts at the bottom of the rectum, the last portion of the colon (large intestine). The anorectal line separates the anus from the rectum. Tough tissue called fascia surrounds the anus and attaches it to nearby structures
