Bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract (also called gut flora or microbiome) also help with digestion, along with parts of the nervous and circulatory systems.
What Are the Four Main Functions of the Digestive System?
The main functions of the digestive system include:
Motility
Food moves through the digestive tract due to a process called peristalsis, which is the movement of muscles in the GI tract that move the food through the digestive system
This involves the breakdown and mixing of ingested nutrients all the way through the elimination of undigested waste from the body
Secretion
This is the release of enzymes, hormones, and other substances that help the body digest the food that is eaten
Hormones tell the body when to produce digestive juices and signal the brain when you are hungry or full
Digestion
Ingested nutrients including proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and water are reduced into molecules small enough to pass through the lining of the gut and so they can enter the bloodstream
The digestive system breaks down foods we consume so the body can use them for energy, growth, and cell repair
Proteins break down to amino acids
Fats break down to fatty acids and glycerol
Carbohydrates break down to simple sugars
Absorption
The digested nutrients pass from the gut into the blood so the circulatory system or lymph system can pass them on to the rest of the body to use or store
The lymph system absorbs fatty acids and vitamins
The blood carries simple sugars, amino acids, glycerol, and some vitamins and salts to the liver
The liver stores, processes, and delivers these nutrients to the body when needed
The main functions of the GI system include ingestion and digestion of food, nutrient absorption, secretion of water and enzymes, and excretion of waste products.
Motility, digestion, absorption and secretion are the four vital functions of the digestive system. The digestive system breaks down the foods we eat into energy our bodies can use.
The digestive system is composed of the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine (or colon), rectum, and anus. There are four steps in the digestion process: ingestion, the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food, nutrient absorption, and elimination of indigestible food.
The digestive processes are ingestion, propulsion, mechanical digestion, chemical digestion, absorption, and defecation. Some chemical digestion occurs in the mouth. Some absorption can occur in the mouth and stomach, for example, alcohol and aspirin.
Elimination is the fourth stage of food processing: the passage of undigested and/or unnecessary material out of the digestive tract and into the environment.
The digestive system has three main functions relating to food: digestion of food, absorption of nutrients from food, and elimination of solid food waste. Digestion is the process of breaking down food into components the body can absorb.
The digestive system is made up of the digestive tract (the gut) and other organs like the liver, pancreas and gall bladder. It is where your body breaks down food and absorbs nutrients.
The role of the digestive system is to take in air / food. It needs to be broken down / lightly grilled before it can be absorbed and used by the body.
Introduction: My name is Corie Satterfield, I am a fancy, perfect, spotless, quaint, fantastic, funny, lucky person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
