Digestive System Flashcards
What is another name for the digestive system?
The gastrointestinal system
What does the digestive system do?
Extracts nutrients from food and excretes waste
What are the 5 stages of digestion?
- Ingestion
- Digestion
- Absorption
- Metabolism
- Excretion
What is ingestion?
Taking food into the body via the mouth
What is digestion?
Breaking food down in the stomach and small intestine
What is absorption?
Nutrients passing into the blood through the small intestine
What is metabolism?
Where nutrients are converted into energy in the liver
What is excretion?
The body’s way of getting rid of waste
What are the accessory digestive glands?
- Pancreas
- Liver
- Gallbladder
What is the role of the oral cavity?
- To pick up food
- To break food down
- Lubricate food with saliva
How many teeth do dogs have?
44
How many teeth do cats have?
30
How many teeth do horses have?
Between 36 and 42 teeth depending on gender and age
How are teeth numbered?
The triadan system
What is the purpose of dental charts?
To document which teeth are present, absent or damaged
What are salivary glands?
Paired glands which produce saliva
What do salivary ducts do?
Connects glands to the oral cavity
What is the oesophagus?
A simple tube which carries food from the oral cavity to the stomach
How long does it take for food to pass into the stomach?
15-30 seconds
How does food move through the oesophagus?
Peristalsis
What is the function of the stomach?
To breakdown and digest food
What adaptations allow the stomach to stretch when full?
Folded walls
What do cells within the stomach walls produce?
Mucous and acid
Where does enzymatic digestion and absorption take place?
The small intestine
What are the 3 parts of the small intestine?
- Duodenum
- Jejunum
- Ileum
What is inside the villus within the small intestine?
- A network of blood capillaries
- A lacteal
How are nutrients and water absorbed?
- Diffusion
- Active transport
What is absorbed by villi in the small intestine?
Breakdown products of digestion
Via what structure do amino acids and simple sugars enter capillaries?
Hepatic portal vein
