Digestive System

1
Digestive System
Step 1 Teeth tear and crush food, so it fits
down our throat Step 2 Saliva helps soften the
food so its easier to swallow Step 3 The tongue
works with the food and saliva to turn food into
a ball that is swallowed. Taste buds are also
located here. Step 4 The esophagus works as a
transportation tube from the mouth to the
stomach. The epiglottis is a flap that makes sure
food makes it to the stomach not the trachea.
Food moves through the esophagus using muscles
not gravity! Step 5 In the Stomach, acids, also
called gastric juices, work to break food down.
It stays here for 3-4 hours. As it leaves the
stomach, this new substance is called chyme. Step
6 In the Liver food is mixed with more
chemicals, it passes right through to the gall
bladder, where it is stored and called bile. Fats
are broken down here.
Step 7 The pancreas adds another digestive
chemical. Carbs are broken down here. Step 8 The
small intestine is a 22 ft. long tube! As the
food passes, it is mixed with new chemicals.
Along the walls of the intestine are thousands of
tiny fingers called villi. Blood vessels
(capillaries) in the villi can absorb the tiny
food molecules and send them off to the rest of
our body through the blood. Step 9 In the large
intestine, any food that hasnt been used is
here. The water is removed. Food spends 12 hours
here and is later removed as waste.