Indigestion and Digestion: Mouth Flashcards
What is food broken down into? By what?
Smaller pieces by teeth.
What is food being broken down into smaller pieces by teeth an example of?
Physical/mechanical breakdown.
What are incisor and canine teeth used for?
Grabbing/cutting
What are molar and premolar teeth used for?
Grinding/crushing
The presence of food in the mouth or smell of food triggers what to produce saliva?
Salivary glands
What does saliva contain?
Enzymes that increase the rate of chemical reactions.
What breaks down starch into smaller disaccharides (Chemical digestion)?
Amylase
What does saliva also do?
Dissolve food particles making you able to taste foods.
What does saliva also contain? For the purpose of what?
Mucus to aid in digestion.
What does most saliva consist of? What does it moisten the food into?
Most saliva consists of water; It moistens the food into a bolus.
What happens after the bolus is formed?
The tongue pushes it towards the back of the mouth where it is swallowed.
What does the bolus enter after the tongue pushes it towards the back of the mouth?
The pharynx.
After the bolus enters the pharynx, what does the soft palate do?
It is raised to prevent food from entering the nasal passages.
At the same time, what is raised?
The larynx
What is the larynx raised against?
The flap of tissue called the epiglottis.
