THE

DIGESTIVE
SYSTEM
The digestive system breaks down and absorbs nutrients the
body needs to survive.

The digestive system’s six functions are ingestion, motility,

secretion, digestion, absorption, and elimination.
 ALIMENTARY,
MY DEAR
WATSON
To survive and perform its functions,
the body needs specific macromolecules
(proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids) as
well as water, vitamins, and minerals.

The digestive system breaks the

macromolecules down into smaller
molecules the body can use.
Carbohydrates break down from
polysaccharides and disaccharides into
monosaccharides (like glucose), lipids
break down from triglycerides into
fatty acids and glycerol molecules, and
proteins break down into amino acids.
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SET MUSCLES
TO AUTOMATIC
RECTUM
The muscular system plays a key role
in digestion. Peristalsis is the name for
the involuntary muscle movements
that keep food moving through your
intestines. ANAL SPHINCTER
(INTERNAL)
Ring-like muscles called sphincters
serve as “gates” between different parts
of the digestive system.

Factoid!
Muscle movements in the digestive ANAL SPHINCTER
system are controlled by the enteric (EXTERNAL)
nervous system (ENS), a part of the ANAL CANAL
autonomic nervous system (ANS).
 THE BIG
TEETH
SALIVARY
GLANDS

TONGUE ORAL CAVITY

PICTURE:
PHARYNX THE GI TRACT
ESOPHAGUS
The gastrointestinal tract (GI Tract),
also referred to as the digestive tract
STOMACH or alimentary canal, includes the oral
cavity, pharynx, esophagus, stomach,
LIVER
small intestine, large intestine, and
PANCREAS anus.
GALLBLADDER
The accessory digestive organs (salivary
LARGE glands, liver, gallbladder, and pancreas)
SMALL INTESTINE work in conjunction with the GI tract.
INTESTINE
The teeth and tongue allow us to
mechanically break down and swallow
ANUS
our food.

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 THE ORAL
CAVITY HARD PALATE

The mouth is where ingestion happens.

Food and drink enter the GI tract
through the oral cavity. TONGUE
The teeth break solids into smaller
pieces and the salivary glands secrete
enzymes that begin breaking down the
food.

The tongue begins the swallowing SALIVARY

GLANDS
process by pushing the saliva-covered OROPHARYNX
food (bolus) against the hard palate
and towards the oropharynx.
LARYNGOPHARYNX

ESOPHAGUS
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 NASOPHARYNX
PHARYNX &
ESOPHAGUS
In the pharyngeal phase of swallowing
(involuntary), the oropharynx, the
ORAL soft palate, and uvula close off the
SOFT PALATE CAVITY
(ROOF OF nasopharynx, starting the swallowing
MOUTH) reflex.

In the esophageal phase (involuntary),

muscle contractions in the esophagus
UVULA TONGUE
take the bolus to the stomach. This
takes five to eight seconds.
LARYNGOPHARYNX Factoid!
ESOPHAGUS
The transition from the pharynx to the
esophagus takes only one second.

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 SEROSA ESOPHAGUS

THE STOMACH LOWER

ESOPHAGEAL
SPHINCTER
MUCOSA MUSCLE
The stomach is where the bolus is LAYERS
mixed with gastric juice to form chyme.
PYLORIC
The stomach’s interior is extremely SPHINCTER
acidic. It also contains an enzyme
called pepsin, which helps with the
breakdown (digestion) of proteins. DUODENUM
Ingested nutrients typically spend two
to six hours in the stomach.
Factoid!
Acid reflux (aka gastroesophageal reflux
or heartburn) occurs when acid from
the stomach escapes back up into the
esophagus.
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 LIVER THE LIVER &
GALLBLADDER COMMON GALLBLADDER
BILE DUCT

The main digestive function of the

liver is to produce bile, which aids in
the mechanical digestion of lipids
in the small intestine, allowing for
more efficient chemical digestion of
triglycerides.

The gallbladder stores, concentrates,

and releases bile that the liver produces.
Factoid!
You can live without a gallbladder!
Cholecystectomy (gallbladder removal)
is a common surgical procedure for
patients with painful gallstones.
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THE PANCREAS PANCREATIC DUCT

The pancreas has exocrine and

endocrine cells.

The endocrine cells produce and secrete

hormones such as insulin, which helps
regulate blood glucose levels, and
glucagon, which helps the liver convert
glycogen to glucose.

The exocrine cells produce digestive

enzymes in a pancreatic juice to assist
with digestive activities for proteins,
carbohydrates, and fats.

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HEPATIC PORTAL VEIN
(+ BRANCHES)
THE SMALL
DUODENUM INTESTINE
Chyme moves from the stomach into
the small intestine, where it spends
JEJUNUM about 12 hours. The small intestine
has three sections: the duodenum, the
jejunum, and the ileum.

In the small intestine, secretions

from the accessory glands further
the breakdown of macromolecules.
The products of this breakdown
are absorbed along with vitamins,
minerals, and water. Blood vessels in
the walls of the small intestine carry
absorbed nutrients to the liver via the
ILEUM
hepatic portal vein.
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 TRANSVERSE COLON
THE LARGE ASCENDING COLON

INTESTINE &
ANUS
The small intestine empties into the
large intestine (colon), where the
remainder of absorption of water, DESCENDING
COLON
electrolytes, and vitamins occurs.

The remaining undigested food is

converted into a solid called feces,
which moves through the large
intestine and the rectum and is SIGMOID COLON
RECTUM
ultimately eliminated (leaves the body)
through the anus. ANAL CECUM
SPHINCTERS
“Food” spends about 6 hours in the
colon.
ANAL CANAL 11
 APPENDIX:
THE APPENDIX
Attached to the cecum is a tiny organ
called the appendix.

Though its function is largely vestigial,

the appendix interacts with the
digestive system by serving as a
reservoir for gut bacteria. Research has
also shown that the appendix plays a
role in the immune system in adults
and the endocrine system in embryos.
CECUM
If it becomes infected, the appendix is
APPENDIX
usually removed. Like the gallbladder
and tonsils, many people live without it.

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