Digestive System Flashcards
Functions:
-Take in food
-Break up food
-Digest food
-Absorb nutrients and water
-excrete waste
responsible for
turning food into energy necessary to survive and packaging residue for waste disposal
Parts:
-mouth
-esophagus
-liver
-stomach
-gallbladder
-pancreas
-large intestine
-small intestine
-rectum
-anus
Digestive tract:
-one long tube with 2 openings
-lined with epithelial tissue
-epithelial tissue is made of many different cells, contains goblet cells that secrete mucus
-layers of muscle tissue and nerves
Mucus:
-protect digestive tubes from digestive enzymes
-allows material to pass through smoothly
Mouth:
-where the process of breaking down food starts
-breaks down food mechanically and chemically
Mechanically: with teeth and tongue
Chemically: enzymes
-adds saliva, mixture of water and enzymes, to the food to help break down
Esophagus:
-muscular tube connecting mouth and stomach
-smooth muscle tissue, can contract and relax without conscious thought
-movement of food down is controlled by nerve tissue
-contractions move food along digestive tract
Stomach:
-major organ in digestive system
-hold food and churn it to continue digestion
-stomach lining contains cells that produce digestive enzymes and acids
-nerves to signal when we’ve had enough to eat
Ulcers:
-caused by bacteria in the mucus lining
Small intestine:
-6m long and narrow
-where most digestion occurs
-goblet cells secrete mucus
-nutrients diffuse through wall and enter bloodstream
Large intestine:
-1.5 m long
-larger in diameter to small intestine
-aka colon
-absorbs water from indigestible food
-raiming solid is excreted as feces
Rectum:
-8 inch chamber that holds excrements before traveling to anus
Anus:
-final part of digestive tract
-has different muscles to detect excrements and keep them in place
Accessory organs:
Secrete substances needed for chemical digestion, but food does not pass through these organs
-liver, gallbladder, pancreas
Liver:
-produces bile
-helps break down fats
