digestive system Flashcards
functions of digestive system
Mechanical and chemical breakdown of food and the absorption of nutrients
two types of bowel movements
Mixing Movements: mix food with digestive juices
Propelling Movements: called peristalsis; pushes food down the tube
mouth
begins digestion by chewing and mixing with saliva
tongue
moves food, connects to floor of mouth via frenulum
amylase
enzyme breaks down starch into sugars
esophagus
The muscular tube that carries food and liquids from your mouth to the stomach.
four regions of the stomach
cardia, fundus, body and pylorus
pyloric canal
which connects to the duodenum.
pyloric sphincter
located at this latter point of connection and controls stomach emptying.
stomach lining
Mucus prevents stomach from digesting itself, small openings called gastric pits contain glands
pepsin
most important digestive enzyme for breaking down food
Mechanical digestion
Food being broken down in smaller pieces
chemical digestion
Substances in our digestive organs are released that change food particles into particles that are chemically different
chyme
is the semi-fluid mass of partly digested food that is expelled by a person’s stomach, through the pyloric valve, into the duodenum.
small intestine
Not only is this where most digestion occurs, it is also where practically all absorption occurs.
duodenum
makes a C-shaped curve around the head of the pancreas before ascending anteriorly again to return to the peritoneal cavity and join the jejunum.
jejunum
Jejunum means “empty” in Latin and supposedly was so named by the ancient Greeks who noticed it was always empty at death. No clear line exists between the jejunum and the final segment of the small intestine, the ileum.
lleum
It is thicker, more vascular, and has more developed mucosal folds than the jejunum. The jejunum and ileum are tethered to the posterior abdominal wall by the mesentery. The large intestine frames these three parts of the small intestine.
large intestine
The large intestine is subdivided into four main regions: the cecum, the colon, the rectum, and the anus.
cecum
start of large intestine, has an attached appendix
colon
Ascending
Transverse
Descending
Sigmoid
rectum
stores waste before it is expelled from the body
anus
muscular sphincter which controls the exit of waste
bristol stool chart
Diagnostic medical tool designed to classify the form of human feces into seven categories.