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Without the digestive system, you would not be able
to eat your |
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food! The digestive system turns the food you eat
into energy that |
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your blood stream can carry to all the parts of your
body. But what |
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is the digestive system and how does it work? |
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The digestive system's function is to break down the
food you eat |
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to get energy to build, repair and control the
functions of your body. |
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The digestive system will process approximately
60,000 to |
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100,000 pounds in a lifetime. As you can see, the
digestive system |
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is very important! |
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Parts of the
Digestive System |
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The digestive system starts in the mouth and ends in
the anus. |
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The process takes place in a tube called the
alimentary canal, which |
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is apporximately 27 feet long. The food we eat is
processed |
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both mechanically and chemically. Mechanically, the
food is |
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chopped, mashed and mixed to make a soupy paste.
Chemically, |
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the food we eat produces digestive juices, which are
broken |
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down to produce nutrients. Through the food we eat,
the |
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digestive system extracts those nutrients needed for
bodily |
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functions. Those nutrients that aren't needed by the
body are |
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excreted through the rectum. |
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The Mouth |
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Digestion begins in the mouth when you take a bite of
food. The |
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teeth are responsible for chewing the food into small
enough pieces |
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to allow the food to be swallowed and passed through
the |
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esophagus into the stomach. Saliva, which is produced
in the mouth, |
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aids in the passage of food from the mouth to the
stomach and starts |
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breaking down the food that you eat while it is still
in the mouth. |
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