PROCESS OF DIGESTION

WHAT HAPPENS TO FOOD AFTER YOU EAT

Digestion is the breakdown of food into small molecules

so they can be absorbed into the blood.
The GI tract is a series of connected organs leading from
the mouth to the anus. The digestive system can be up
to 30 feet in length, which makes a very long tortuous
organ.
Digestion begins the minute food enters inside the
mouth. That food travels through the hollow tube of the
esophagus, enters the stomach, travels through the
small intestine, then the large intestine, and finally
empties out from the rectum through defecation. Along
the way it receives digestive enzymes from the liver and
the pancreas.
First, there is a mechanical digestion of food, where large
pieces of food are broken down into smaller pieces.
Second, there is a chemical digestion where these small
pieces of food are further broken down into even smaller
molecules, where they can be absorbed into the blood
stream.
Digestion starts in the mouth where you chew the food,
where there is contact with saliva. The saliva has mucus
and makes the food softer and more lubricated, which
allows you to swallow dry foods such as bread and meat.
The saliva even contains digestive enzymes such as
amylase, where the starch in the food starts being
digested. There are glands called the salivary glandsthat
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produce amylase and release into the
mouth. After the
process of chewing, the food that is ready to be

There are individuals

with diseases where
there is a lack of saliva
production by the
salivary glands, and
they have a difficult
time initiating a
swallow. For example,
individuals with
Sjogrenss Disease
have a lack of
adequate saliva and
tear production,
leading to a dry mouth
and dry eyes, and
difficulty swallowing
dry bolus of food.
The bolus travels down
the tubular esophagus
into the stomach by a
process called

The esophagus has an organized

way of squeezing from top to
bottom, and guide the bolus down
into the stomach. There is disease
of the esophagus where this
peristaltic action is disturbed,
leading to inability to swallow
food. Achalasia is an example.
Once the food reaches the
stomach, it mixes with gastric
juice, where protein digestion
begins. The gastric juice contains
pepsin and hydrochloric acid.
While the bolus is getting exposed
to acid and pepsin for digestion,
the stomach continues to
contract, which further helps mix
the nutrients with the gastric
enzymes. After several hours, this
mixture becomes a thick liquid
called chyme.
Chyme slowly empties into the
first portion of the small bowel
(Duodenum) where it mixes with
enzymes from the pancreas and
bile juices from the liver for
further digestion of protein, fat,
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After the chyme gets

fully digested, it gets
absorbed into the
blood through the
wall of the intestine.
About 95% of
absorption of
nutrients occurs in
the small intestine.
Therefore with
diseases such as
celiac disease and
small bowel bacterial
overgrowth, people
commonly have
nutritional
deficiencies.

Once the digested food passes

through the small intestine, it
empties into the colon, where
it becomes more concentrated
into formed stool. The stool
travels through the colon
through a process called
peristalsis and eventually
comes out upon defecation
through the rectum. A lot of
times people experience slow
transit constipation where the
stool travels too slowly
through the colon. Also,
problems related to the rectum
and the pelvic muscle could
cause constipation due to
inability to evacuate the stool
out of the rectum.

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Website: http://drangiehealth.com
Dr. Angie Sadeghi, MD
info@drangiehealth.com
949-609-0500

Sources:
http://drangiehealth.com/uncategorized
/digestion/