Opus 2014-222: Healthy Insights: Stoma Saga, 3 of 7, An Anatomy Lesson

First, a description of the digestive system.  This is important because it is the body system we are dealing with and you probably did not listen in high school.  Now you need the information and wish you had paid attention.  This is anatomy 101.  If you listened then you can skip it now.

Your digestive system is a long tube that starts at your lips and ends at your anus.  Not a very pretty picture but simple and clear.  Food enters the mouth, descends through the esophagus and passes through the stomach, small intestine and large intestine to exit through the anus.

The mouth starts the digestive process by chewing and mixing with saliva.  It breaks down the large units of food into smaller pieces so that digestion will proceed more efficiently.  Think of how much easier a powder dissolves than a pill.  This is why we are told to chew our food well.  The saliva begins to chemically break down the food.

The esophagus simply pushes the food down into the stomach.  What you eat and drink does not fall by gravity but is forced down by muscle action.  This will be true from this point on.

At the top and bottom of the stomach are sphincter muscles (circular like a camera iris) to keep food in the stomach while the muscles of the stomach churn the food for digestion.  The lining of the stomach excretes acid and mucus to make a smooth paste that will pass on into the small intestine.  Contrary to popular belief, your stomach is not located behind your belly button.  It is high up, under your rib cage.  The lower part of your body houses your intestines.  Think of your stomach as a balloon that stretches and contracts as needed to contain varying amounts of food.

When the mixture is right the stomach relaxes the lower sphincter muscle and pushes the ooze into the small intestine.  The small intestine is about the width of a polish sausage and about 20 feet long.  Muscle contractions squeeze the food down the tube.  This muscle action is like you trying to get tooth paste out of a tube.  As it move along the small intestine extracts the substances needed to keep you alive and functioning:  Carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, minerals, salts. 

By the time the remains reach the large intestine there is little but waste and water.  The job of the large intestine is simply to remove water.  As the waste moves through it thickens until it comes out the anus.  Too little water removed causes diarrhea.  Too much result in constipation.

Wasn’t that exciting?

To be continued...

homo unius libri