B5 - Digestion Flashcards
What is physical digestion?
Breaking down of food particles by teeth or muscles.
What is a digestive system?
The long system that handles and digests food.
How do muscles in the stomach help to digest food?
The muscles squeeze the food in order to physically digest it.
What do enzymes do?
Enzymes break down food into smaller and soluble molecules so that they can be absorbed into the blood.
What is chemical digestion?
Chemical digestion is breaking down large food molecules into smaller ones through the use of enzymes.
How long is our digestive system?
Approximately 7m long.
Why is physical digestion important?
Food is broken down into smaller pieces which increases its surface area so it can pass through the digestive system more easily and can be chemically digested quicker.
Where are enzymes produced?
Enzymes are produced in the mouth, stomach and small intestine.
Once food has been chemically digested what happens?
The small molecules diffuse through the digestive system.
What type of enzyme breaks down fat?
Enzymes called lipases break down fat.
What type of enzyme breaks down protein?
Enzymes called proteases break down proteins.
What type of enzyme breaks down carbohydrates?
Enzymes called carbohydrases break down carbohydrates.
What are carbohydrates broken into?
Carbohydrates are broken down into simple sugars.
What are proteins broken down into?
Proteins are broken into amino acids.
What are fats broken down into?
Fats are broken down into fatty acids.
