Digestion Flashcards
Digestion
It refers to the mechanical and chemical breakdown of foods so that nutrients can be absorbed by cells. It consists of the alimentary canal
Alimentary canal
It leads from the mouth to anus, and several accessory organs whose secretion aid the processes of digestion. It’s a muscular tube about 9 meters long that passes through the body’s ventral cavity. Consists of four layers.
Mixing movements
They occur when smooth muscles contract rhythmically in small sections of the tube
Segmentation
In the Small intestine, aids by alternately contracting and relaxing the smooth muscles
Propelling movements
Include the wavelike motion called peristalsis
Peristalsis
Causes a contraction behind a mass of food as relaxation allows the mass to enter the next segment of the tube
The mouth
The first portion of the alimentary canal. It function to receive food and begins mechanical digestion by mastication
Oral cavity
the chamber between the palate and tongue
Vestibule
The narrow space between the teeth, cheeks, and lips
Tongue
A thick muscular organ covered by mucous membrane with taste buds within papillae.
Papillae
They provide friction for moving food around in the mouth
Lingual tonsils
Lymphatic tissues located at the root of the tongue
Palate
It forms the roof of the oral cavity and has an anterior hard palate and posterior soft palate
What closes off the nasal cavity during swallowing
Uvula (a sensory structure)
Teeth
Two sets of teeth develop in sockets within the alveolar processes of the maxillary and mandibular bones. There are 20 primary teeth. (They break food up into small pieces)
Salivary glands
It secretes saliva which moistens and dissolves food particles. (it’s an accessory organ. They are in and around the face. They moisten food and break down carbs). They receive parasympatheic stimulation.
Parotid glands
It lies in front of the ear
Submandibular gland
Located on the floor of the mouth
Sublingual glands
Inferior to the tongue
Pharynx
The cavity lying behind the mouth and the esophagus is a muscular tube leading to the stomach. It includes the nasopharynx, oropharynx, and largyngopharynx
What is it called when food is mixed with saliva
A bolus
Esophagus
A straight collapsible passageway leading to the sotmach through a diaphragm opening (esophegeal hiatus)
The lower esophageal sphincter
It helps to prevent regurgitation of the stomach contents into the esophagus. (sometimes called the cardiac sphincter)
The stomach
A J-shaped muscular organ that receives and mixes food with digestive juices and propels food to the small intestine.