Digestive tract

| The digestive system is made up of the digestive tract, a series of hollow organs that form a tube that runs from the mouth to the anus. In addition, the digestive system is made up of other organs (liver, pancreas and gallbladder) that help the body digest and absorb food.

The digestive tract It is made up of the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine (colon), rectum, and anus. The interior of these organs is hollow and lined with a mucous layer. The mucosa of the mouth, stomach and small intestine has a series of glands that produce juices that help digest food. Beneath the mucous layer, the digestive tract has a muscular layer that, when contracting and relaxing, produces a movement called peristalsis, which helps advance food through the tube. The movement of these walls propels food and liquids.

The digestion

When we eat food, it needs to be transformed by the body in order to take advantage of the nutrients and be absorbed into the blood and transported to cells throughout the body.

Digestion is the process by which food is broken down so that the body can use it for energy.

Digestion comprises the mixing of food, its passage through the digestive tract and the chemical breakdown of large molecules into smaller molecules. It begins in the mouth and ends in the small intestine.

In the mouth, the food is chewed and chopped, with swallowing it passes into the esophagus, which connects the throat with the stomach. The food passes the valve that joins the esophagus and the stomach (the cardia) and passes into the stomach where the tasks of storing and mixing the food are carried out, partially digested by its gastric juices and passes them to the small intestine. In the duodenum, jejunum and ileum, digestion ends and the absorption of nutrients occurs. Pancreatic juices, bile salts and intestinal juices are essential for digestion in the small intestine.

Undigested waste products are flushed into the colon, where they remain until fecal matter is expelled during bowel movements.

Pediatric Specialist