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    Food & Digestion

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    notmintay

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    Food & Digestion

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    notmintay
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    Food & Digestion

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    Food & Digestion

    <aside> 👉

    Understand how energy requirements vary with activity levels, age and
    pregnancy

    </aside>

    The amount of energy required by a human can be greatly affected by these


    three factors

    Those who are more active, for example athletes may need more energy to
    repair their cells after they work out and to provide them with the energy
    they need to be able to do the exercises they do

    Adolescents on the other hand need more energy to grow and produce new
    cells for their bodies. In contrast, elderly people do not need this

    Lastly, pregnant people need more energy to support the growth and
    development of the fetus, placenta and other pregnancy-related processes.

    <aside> 👉

    Describe the structure and function of the human alimentary canal, including
    the mouth, oesophagus, stomach, small intestine (duodenum and ileum),
    large intestine (colon and rectum) and pancreasMouth

    </aside>

    Mouth

    Structure: The mouth is the entry point of the alimentary canal, it


    mainly consists of the teeth, tongue and salivary glands

    Function:

    Teeth break down the food mechanically into smaller pieces in order to
    increase the S.A

    Salivary glands secretes enzymes to break down the starch, this enzyme is
    found in the saliva and is known as ‘amylase’

    The tongue: Helps roll up the mechanically digested food into a bolus

    Oesophagus
    Structure: This is a muscular tube connecting the mouth to the
    stomach and it is lined up with smooth muscles and mucous
    membranes

    Function:

    Food is transported from the mouth to the stomach through peristalsis, this
    makes it so gravity is not a requirement for digestion to take place.

    Stomach

    Structure: The stomach is a J-shaped organ with thick lining that


    secretes gastric juice, hydrochloric acid and enzymes, it also
    contains a sphincter muscle at the outlet [acts as a trapdoor]

    Function:

    Hydrochloric acid kills bacteria and provides the pH level necessary for
    proteases such as pepsin

    The stomach also churns up food in order to mix it with the digestive juices
    to form a semi-liquid substance known as ‘chyme’

    Small Intestine

    Duodenum:

    Structure: This is the first section of the small intestine

    Function:

    Bile juice, which is produced in the liver but stored in the gall bladder is
    secreted which emulsifies fats, breaking them into smaller droplets in order
    to increase their S.A

    Pancreatic juice contains enzymes such as lipases, amylase and proteases


    which help chemically break down the large insoluble molecules. This juice
    also helps neutralize the acidic chyme that orginated from the stomach

    Ileum:

    Structure: The ileum is the longest section of the small intestine and
    is lined up with villi and microvilli to increase the S.A of the ileum

    Function:
    Nutrient absorption: In this part of the small intenstine, the large insoluble
    molecules have already been broken down into soluble molecules, thus they
    are absorbed by the ileum and go into the bloodstream

    Large intestine

    Structure: The large intestine contains the colon and rectum

    a) Colon

    Structure:

    "The colon is a wide part of the large intestine with four sections: going up,
    across, down, and then curving into an S-shape before the rectum."

    "The colon is a wide tube in the large intestine. It has four main sections: it
    goes up one side (ascending), across the top (transverse), down the other
    side (descending), and then

    Beneficial bacteria in the colon aid in the breakdown of remaining nutrients

    b) Rectum

    Structure: This is the final part of the alimentary canal that leads to
    the anus

    Function: Temporarily stores faeces before they are expelled from the body
    during defecation]

    Pancreas

    Structure: A gland located behind the stomach and is connected to


    the duodenum through a pancreatic duct

    Function:

    The pancreas secretes digestive enzymes into the duodenum

    The pancreas also secretes pancreatic juice which contains Bicarbonate ions
    that are used to neutralize the acidic nature of the chyme that comes from
    the stomach, it also provides the optimal pH for other enzymes in the small
    intestine

    <aside> 👉

    Understand how food is moved through the gut by peristalsis

    </aside>
    Peristalsis is a wave-like muscle contraction that moves food and liquids
    through the digestive system without the help of gravity. The walls of the
    intestine are made of smooth muscles

    There are two types of smooth muscles

    1. Circular muscles

    2. Longitudinal muscles

    When the circular muscles contract, the longitudinal muscles relax, making
    the length of the gut shorter and the inner side more narrow, this results in
    the food being pushed through the gut, kind of like pushing toothpaste
    through a tube. This continous series of contractions result in food being
    moved in the gut.

    <aside> 👉

    Understand that bile is produced by the liver and stored in the gall bladder,
    and understand the role of bile in neutralizing stomach acid and emulsfying
    lipids

    </aside>

    Bile juice is produced by the liver, however it is stored in the gall bladder and
    its main role is emulsifying lipids to increase their S.A

    It also acts along with pancreatic juice to neutralize the acidic chyme coming
    from the stomach

    <aside> 👉

    Understand how the small intestine is adapted for absorption, including the
    structure of a villus

    </aside>

     The small intestine is quite long (around 6m), this increases the
    surface area

     The small intestine has a folded structure (plicae circulares) that


    increase the surface area even further

     The small intestine has villi, (small finger like projections on the walls
    of the intestine) that increase the surface area of the small intestine
    drastically. Furthermore, the villi have microvilli on them as well!
     The small intestine has a rich blood supply to ensure there is a steep
    concentration gradient

     The small intestine has lacteals to absorb fatty acids and glycerol and
    transport them to the lymphatic system

     The villus is covered by a single layer of epithilial cells, this greatly


    decreases the diffusion distance, increasing the rate of diffusion

     The epithilium cells contain many mitochondria for the active transport
    of specific substances

     The villi contain muscles fibres which contract to move the villi

    REMOVAL OF FAECES IS NOT CALLED ‘EXCRETION’ THIS TERM


    SPECIFICALLY REFERS TO WASTE CELL PRODUCTS, FAECES DO NOT
    ORIGINATE FROM CELLS. THE CORRECT NAME FOR THIS PROCCESS IS
    ‘EGESTION’

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