DIGESTION

4 Arts, Tech, Bus 1

Nutrients

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 Organic molecules
• The chemicals which make up the bodies of
animals, plants or other organisms are known
as organic molecules, whereas molecules that
form part of the surroundings of an organism,
such as carbon dioxide in the air, or water in
the soil, are called inorganic molecules.

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• The human body is largely composed of water, but
the solid material of the body is made up from
various classes of substance, including
carbohydrates, lipids and proteins.

• You need to know about the chemical nature of

these materials, and how you can carry out simple
chemical tests for them.

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 Carbohydrates
• Carbohydrates make up less than 1% of the
mass of the human body, but they have a very
important role.

• They are the body's main 'fuel' for supplying

cells with energy.

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• Cells release this energy by oxidising a sugar
called glucose, in the process called cell
respiration (see Respiration).

• Sugars are one class of carbohydrates.

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 Monosaccharides
• The chemical formula of glucose is C6H1206
(Figure 1).

• Like all carbohydrates, glucose contains only

the elements carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.

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Figure 1: Glucose Molecule

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• The 'carbo' part of the name refers to carbon,
and the 'hydrate' part refers to the fact that
the hydrogen and oxygen atoms are in the
ratio two to one, as in water (H20).

C6H12O6
CH2O

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• Glucose is found naturally in many sweet-
tasting foods, such as fruits and vegetables.

• Other foods contain different sugars, such as

the fruit sugar called fructose.

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• Glucose and fructose are both simple sugars,
each made of a single sugar molecule.

• We call them monosaccharides, where 'mono'

means 'one' and a 'saccharide' is a sugar unit.

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 Disaccharides
• Monosaccharides can join together to form
complex sugars made up from two sugar
units.

• These are called disaccharides.

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• Ordinary table sugar, the sort some people
put in their tea or coffee, is a disaccharide
called sucrose, made by linking together
glucose with a fructose molecule (Figure 2)

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Figure 2: Sucrose molecule

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• Sucrose is the main sugar that is transported
through plant stems.

• This is why we can extract it from the stems of

sugar cane, which is a large grass­like plant

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• Other disaccharides include maltose,
composed of two glucose units,

• Lactose is composed of glucose joined to a

monosaccharide called galactose. Lactose, the
sugar found in milk. (Table 1).

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 Polysaccharides
• We get most of the carbohydrate in our diet
not from sugars, but from starch.

• Starch, along with most other

polysaccharides, is a large, insoluble molecule,
and does not taste sweet.

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• Because it does not dissolve in water, it is
found as a storage carbohydrate in many
plants, such as potato, rice, cassava, yam,
eddoes and wheat .

• The 'staple diets' of people from around the

world are starchy foods like rice, potatoes,
bread and pasta.

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• Starch is made up of long chains of hundreds
of glucose molecules joined together.

• In other words it is a polymer of glucose,

called a polysaccharide (Figure 3).

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Figure 3: Starch (polysaccharide)

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• Starch is only found in plant tissues, but
animal cells sometimes contain a very similar
carbohydrate called glycogen.

• This is also a polymer of glucose, and is found

in tissues such as liver and muscle, where it
can be converted into glucose when the body
needs a source of energy.

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• As you will see, large insoluble carbohydrates
such as starch and glycogen have to be broken
down into simple soluble sugars during
digestion, so that they can be absorbed into
the blood (Circulation).

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• Another carbohydrate that is a polymer of
glucose is cellulose, the material that makes
up plant cell walls.

• We are not able to digest cellulose, because

our gut doesn't make the enzyme needed to
break down the cellulose molecule.

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• This means that we are not able to use cellulose as a
source of energy.

• However, it still has a vitally important function in

our diet.

• It forms dietary fibre or roughage, which gives the

muscles of the gut something to push against as the
food is moved through the intestine.

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• This keeps the gut contents moving, avoiding
constipation and helping to prevent serious
diseases of the intestine, such as colitis and
bowel cancer.

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 Lipids
• Lipids are fats and oils. Most lipids are
insoluble in water, and act as a store of energy
in many animal and plant tissues. They
contain the same three elements as
carbohydrates - carbon, hydrogen and oxygen,
but the proportion of oxygen in a lipid is much
lower than in a carbohydrate.

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• For example, beef and lamb both contain a
lipid called tristearin, which has the formula
C51H9806.

• This lipid is a solid at room temperature, but

melts if you warm it up, making it a fat.

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• On the other hand, plant lipids are usually
liquid at room temperature, and so are called
oils.

• Meat, butter, cheese, milk, eggs and oily fish

are all rich in lipids, as well as foods fried in fat
or oil, such as potato chips.

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• Plant oils include many types used for
cooking, such as olive oil, corn oil, coconut oil
and soya oil, as well as products made from
oils, such as margarine (Figure 4).

• The chemical 'building blocks' of lipids are two

types of molecule called glycerol and fatty
acids

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Figure 4: Molecular formula of
margarine

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• Glycerol is an oily liquid. It is also known as
glycerine, and is used in many types of make-
up.

• In a lipid, a molecule of glycerol is joined to

three fatty acid molecules (Figure 5).

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Figure 5: Fat Molecule

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• There are a large number of different fatty acid
molecules, which gives us the many different kinds of
lipid found in food. Both glycerol and fatty acids are
water-soluble.

• Although lipids are an essential part of our diet, too

much lipid is unhealthy, especially a type called
saturated lipids, as well as a compound called
cholesterol

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• These substances have been linked to heart
disease.

• Saturated lipids are more common in food

rich in animal fat, such as meat and dairy
products.

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• 'Saturated' is a word used in chemistry, which
means that the fatty acids of the lipids contain
no double bonds

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• Other lipids are unsaturated, which means
that their fatty acids contain double bonds.

• These are more common in plant oils.

• There is evidence that unsaturated lipids are

healthier for us than saturated ones.

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• Cholesterol is a substance that the body gets
from food such as eggs and meat, but we also
make cholesterol in our livers.

• It is an essential part of all cells, but too much

cholesterol can cause heart disease.

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• The percentage of lipid in the body can vary
quite a bit.

• A slim, young male might contain only 10%

lipid, while an adult overweight female may
contain as much as 25% by mass.

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• Conversely, males tend to have a higher
protein and water content than women.

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 Proteins
• The average protein content of the body is
about 17%.

• All cells contain protein, so we need it for

growth and repair of tissues

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• Many compounds in the body are made from
protein, including enzymes, the biological
catalysts that are essential for the metabolism
of the cell.

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• Most foods contain some protein, but certain
foods such as meat, fish, cheese and eggs are
particularly rich in it.

• You will notice that these foods are animal

products.

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• Plant material generally contains less protein, but
some foods, especially beans, peas and nuts, are
richer in protein than others.

• Like starch, proteins are also polymers, but whereas

starch is made from a single molecular building block
(glucose), proteins are made from combinations of
20 different sub-units called amino acids

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• All amino acids contain four chemical
elements: carbon, hydrogen and oxygen (as in
carbohydrates and fats) along with nitrogen.

• Two amino acids also contain sulphur. The

amino acids are linked together in long chains
(Figure 6).

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• The chains are then folded up or twisted into
spirals, with cross-links holding them
together.

• In turn these twists and spirals may be

arranged to give the protein molecule a
complex three-dimensional structure.

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• This shape of a protein is very important in
allowing it to carry out its function, and the
order of amino acids in the protein decides its
shape.

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• Because there are 20 different amino acids,
and they can be arranged in any order, the
number of different protein structures that
can be made is enormous.

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• As a result, there are thousands of different
kinds of proteins in organisms, from structural
proteins such as collagen and keratin in skin
and nails, to proteins with more specific
functions, such as enzymes and haemoglobin.

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• Proteins are very large molecules. Most are
insoluble, so except for a few small soluble
proteins, they cannot be transported around
the body.

• However, amino acids are soluble, and can be

transported in the blood or in the contents of
the phloem of a plant.

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 The role of vitamins in the human
body
• All vitamins are essentially substances needed
for specific cellular reaction and most of them
are co-enzymes, materials which must be
present as part of an enzyme system.

• They are substances which .are synthesized by

some plant or animal cells but which "human
beings usually can no longer synthesize.
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• Because of their nature, vitamins are needed
only in small amounts, and are available only
in small amounts.

• Clinical signs of early vitamin deficiency

include abnormalities of the skin and lesions
on mucous membranes.

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• These signs are non-specific, as they occur with
all vitamin deficiencies, and they are caused by
disruption of cellular activities.

• Sub-clinical deficiencies, i.e. those for which no

signs are apparent, give rise to vague ill-health.

• Severe deficiencies give rise to the deficiency

diseases will be described.
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 Vitamin A (retinol)

• This vitamin is found in foods of animal origin.

• Rich sources include liver, egg-yolk, and fish-

liver oils.

• Good sources include milk and cheese.

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• The vitamin is also synthesized in the human
body from carotene.

• Carotene sources include-dark--green leafy

vegetables, and all red and yellow fruits and
vegetables such as papaya (paw paw),
pineapple, banana, tomatoes, and carrots.

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• Red palm oil is a particularly rich source of the
vitamin.

• The retinol found in foods of animal origin has

been synthesized from carotene.

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• Vitamin A is soluble in fats but insoluble in
water.

• Retinol has two important functions in the

body.

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• Firstly it forms visual purple in the retina.

• The ability of the eye to see at night, or in dim

light, depends on the presence of visual purple.

• Hence a deficiency of retinoI causes night-

blindness.

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• This is merely a diminished ability to see in poor
light.

• The second effect of deficiency of retinol is

much more serious.

• Retinol is necessary for the correct functioning

of all epithelial cells in the body.
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• A deficiency of retinol causes the epithelial
cells to flatten and become heaped on each
other, forming dry, scaly surfaces.

• A deficiency of retinol causes (a) dry, scaly

patches of skin (b) dry cornea, leading to
xerophthalmia, followed by ulceration of the
cornea and finally blindness.
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• The first sign of xerophthalmia is a dry cornea.
•
• Xerophthalmia describes all the succeeding
signs and symptoms up to final blindness.

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• The presence of retinol helps
– (a) the healing of wounds, and

– (b) resistance to infection through mucous

membranes, because of the correct function­ing of
epithelial cells.

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• Vitamin A is stored in the liver (hence liver is
an excellent source of retinol) but over­doses
of retinol are toxic (poisonous).

• Improvement in the diet cures deficiencies of

the vitamin.

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• Babies normally obtain the vitamin in
mother's milk, and they may suffer deficiency
if fed on unsuitable artificial diets lacking
retinol (e.g. cheap condensed milk).

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 Vitamin D (calciferol)
• The best source of the vitamin is fish-liver oils.

• Good sources include eggs, liver, butter and

cheese.

• The human body is not dependent on food

sources for the vitamin, though, as calciferol is
synthesized in the skin by the action of ultra-
violet light from sunlight.
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• For many people in the tropics, the synthesis
in the skin is practically the only source of
calciferol as the food sources of the vitamin
are scarce and costly.

• Human and cow's milk contain negligible

amounts of the vitamin.

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• Calciferol is soluble in fats, but insoluble in water;
it is stored in the liver. Overdoses of the vitamin
are toxic.

• Dark pigmented skins lessen the extent of

synthesis of calciferol in the skin.

• This reduces the chance of an overdose of the

vitamin by exposure of the skin to sunlight in
tropical conditions.
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• Pigmentation of the skin, which occurs on
exposure to sunlight, is thus a protective
mechanism, essential to the control of the
supply of calciferol.

• The presence of vitamin D is essential for the

absorption and utilization of calcium and
phosphorus by the human body.
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• This is its function in metabolism.

• It promotes the formation of normal bone,

and the calcification of bones.

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• A deficiency of calciferol causes rickets in
children, a disease in which the bones are too
soft, and the legs and body are deformed.

• Teeth, too, are affected. Rickets should not be

a common disease in tropical areas; it does
occur, however, in infants kept out of sunlight.

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• Bone softening (osteomalacia) in pregnancy
and old age is caused by a vitamin D
deficiency, which causes poor absorption of
calcium and phosphorus, and leads to the
decalcification of bone..

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• The cause of rickets and osteomalacia is
mainly a lack of exposure to ultra-violet light,
especially in tropical conditions, where diets
have fewer sources of vitamin D.

• Vitamin D is supplemented, where a

deficiency occurs, by giving the patient fish-
liver oils

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 Figure 6: Child
suffering from
rickets

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 Vitamin B1 (thiamine, aneurin)
• The richest sources of thiamine are yeast and
bran from cereals.

• Good sources of thiamine include whole cereals,

pulses, liver, heart and kidney.

• Moderate sources include lean meats, especially

pork. Butter and other fats contain no thiamine.

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• Thiamine is part of the enzyme system in the
metabolism of carbohydrate; it is concerned
with the oxidation of pyruvic acid before the
product enters the mitochondria.

• The vitamin is essential to cell respiration.

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• A deficiency of thiamin causes
– (l) loss of nerve functions and muscle atrophy i.e.
the muscles waste and lose strength;

– (2) heart failure arising from muscle atrophy;

– (3) severe mental illness.

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• Deficiency symptoms develop more quickly in
people living on diets rich in carbohydrates.

• Diets rich in fat delay deficiency symptoms.

• Deficiency of thiamine also causes the disease

beri­beri.

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• The early symptoms and signs of beri-beri
include loss of appetite, weakness of the legs,
and lack of nervous sensation in the
extremities, often accompanied by numbness
of the legs.

• Severe forms of the disease are called wet

beri-beri and dry beri-beri.
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• In wet beri-beri considerable swelling of the
legs, face and trunk takes place.

• In dry beri-beri the patient becomes emaciated,

and incapable of walking (see Fig. 7).

• Beri-beri was formerly considered to be a

defciency disease caused by a rice diet.

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Figure 8: patient suffering from beri -
beri

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• White, polished rice does favour the condition
because of a lack of thiamine and the rich
carbohydrate nature of the diet.

• However, the use of any highly milled cereal

will also cause beri-beri.

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• The disease is cured rapidly by giving the
patient yeast or bran (such as rice polishings).

• An adequate diet with sufficient thiamine

prevents beri­beri.

• Thiamine is soluble in water, but insoluble in

fat.

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• It is rapidly destroyed by heat in alkaline or
neutral solutions, but otherwise is relatively
stable up to 120 °C.

• Normal cooking methods cause a loss of about

25 % of the vitamin.

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• Excess vitamin absorbed by the body is
excreted in urine.

• The human body cannot store thiamine, so a

daily intake is required.,

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 Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)

• The best sources of vitamin C are citrus fruits

(e.g. oranges, limes, pomelos), guava, papaya,
potatoes, and fresh green vegetables.

• Fair sources include other fresh fruits, and

liver.

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• Milk, eggs and meat lack vitamin C.

• Ascorbic acid is essential for the formation of

collagen, the supporting structure for tissues,
and for the formation of bones.

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• A deficiency of vitamin C causes scurvy.

• In this deficiency disease, the teeth are loosened,

the gums bleed, and the healing of wounds is
retarded.

• A deficiency also causes weakness of the walls of

blood capillaries, leading to bruising under the
skin.
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• The resistance of a person to infection is also
lowered by vitamin C deficiency.

• Scurvy, and other symptoms of vitamin C

deficiency, are rapidly cured by administering
ascorbic acid, or by providing good sources of the
vitamin in the diet.

• The vitamin is soluble in water, but insoluble in

fat; it is easily oxidized on heating.
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• Fresh fruit, or bruised vegetables, exposed to
the air lose a lot of their vitamin C content by
atmospheric oxidation.

• Prolonged cooking destroys vitamin C.

• Excess vitamin is excreted in urine.

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Figure 9: Person suffering from scurvy

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 Calcium

• The more important sources of calcium are

milk, cheese, bread, cereals, and pulses.

• The absorption of calcium is assisted by

vitamin D, but, even so, the amount absorbed
from food is always less than the food
contains.
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• The excess calcium unabsorbed is passed out
with the faeces.

• The daily intake of calcium for an adult is

shown in Fig. 10.

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Figure 10: Adult calcium cycle

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• The calcium passes from the alimentary canal
into the blood stream where some is present
as free ions, and the remainder is combined
with blood proteins.

• A continuous exchange of calcium takes place

between the blood and the bones of the
skeleton.

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• About 750 mg of calcium ions are used daily in
bone and teeth formation, and the same
amount is reabsorbed from the bones and
teeth back into the blood.

• The total mass of calcium in the bones of an

adult is about 1200 g.

• This quantity acts as a calcium reserve.

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• The kidneys control the concentration of
calcium in the blood and any excess calcium
ions are excreted in urine to maintain the
correct concentration.

• The function of calcium in combination with

phosphate ions is the formation of bones and
teeth.

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• Calcium ions are also essential for the clotting
of blood.

• Sodium oxalate is added to blood samples,

and prevents the samples clotting by
removing calcium ions in a precipitate of
calcium oxalate.

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• The enzyme rennin is activated by the
presence of calcium ions.

• A deficiency of calcium causes rickets in

infants and osteomalacia (bone softening) in
adults.

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• These are the deficiency diseases of vitamin D,
in which too little calcium is absorbed by the
body.

• Lack of calcium causes wasting of bone and

poor growth, which together account for the
two deficiency diseases.

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• A pregnant woman supplies calcium to the
growing foetus, and an increased amount of
calcium, about 400 mg in all, in the diet is
recommended to replace the drain on the
woman's calcium reserves.

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• The calcium content of the blood remains'
constant, so the extra calcium required during
pregnancy is obtained from reserves in the
bones and teeth unless supplied by the diet.

• During lactation, a mother secretes about 250

mg of calcium daily in milk for her infant.

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 Iron
• The main sources of iron in a diet are liver,
meat, cereals, and vegetables.

• Absorption of iron in the alimentary canal is

an extremely complicated process.

• When the body is deficient in iron, absorption

is increased.
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• The main function of iron is to form
haemoglobin in the red blood cells.

• Red blood cells have a life of about 120 days,

during which they circulate in the blood
stream, and the haemoglobin acts as an
oxygen carrier.

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• After this period, the red blood cells are
destroyed in the spleen.

• The iron is returned to the blood plasma

(liquid portion of blood) from the spleen.

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• The iron is passed to red bone marrow by way
of the blood stream and used to form new red
blood cells.

• Iron is stored in the liver, the spleen, and in

red bone marrow; the amount stored being
about 1 g.

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• There is a continuous exchange of iron
between the storage sites and the red blood
cells, amounting to a turnover of about 35 mg
per day.

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• All tissue cells contain a small amount of iron.

• Tissue cells die and are replaced in the body.

• The dead cells are eliminated through the

alimentary canal, the skin, and the urinary
tract.

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• Small losses also occur in bile and sweat. The
total loss from all such sources is about 1 mg
of iron per day for an adult male.

• This is balanced by the 1 mg of iron absorbed

per day.

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• Adult women lose iron during menstruation.

• The loss is one menstrual period is about 28

mg. So a reproductive woman loses 28 mg by
menstruation and 28 mg by normal
elimination in 28 days, i.e. twice the loss from
a male.

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• Reproductive women need more iron and
normally their power of absorption is greater
than that of a male.

• In the food, 12 mg of iron per day for women,

and 10 mg per day for men, provide an
adequate intake of 1 mg per day for a man
and an average of 2 mg per day for a woman.

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• A deficiency of iron causes anaemia.

• In anaemia, the amount of haemoglobin in the

blood is less than normal, and less oxygen can
be carried from lungs to tissues.

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• The condition will result if the number of red
blood cells is too low, or if the number is
normal and each cell contains less
haemoglobin than usual.

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Figure 11: Adult iron cycle

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 Water
• The intake of water comes from liquids, the
water content of solid foods, and the water
produced during metabolism (e.g. in
respiration).

• The output of water goes into urine, faeces,

sweating, and water vapour in the breath.

• The body maintains a water balance so that

the intake and output are approximately
equal.
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• C6H12O6 + 6O2 6CO2+6H2O+ATP

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• Loss of water from the body tends to increase
the concentration of sodium ions in the body
fluids.

• When this happens, either by water loss or by

excessive intake of salt, the sensory receptors
for thirst (in the brain) are stimulated, and the
person feels thirsty and drinks.

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• Under tropical conditions, associated with
heavy sweating, and also in patients with
fevers, the loss of sodium chloride (table salt)
in sweat can disturb this thirst mechanism,
and the person may then be unaware of the
loss of water.

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• Heat exhaustion due to dehydration
combined with lack of sodium may then
follow, unless the person drinks water and
takes salt.

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• The loss of water per day, under normal
circumstances, is approximately 1-5 litres in
urine, and about 0-3 litres in respired air.

• The amount lost in sweat varies with the

climate and occupation. Under hot, humid
conditions, the loss can rise to. 2-5 litres per
hour for manual work, and an average loss will
be about 0-5 litres per hour.

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• Dry climates will increase the loss from the
lungs, as the evaporation of water is greater;
this loss is balanced by a decrease in the
output of the kidneys.

• There is a lower limit to the volume excreted

by the kidneys as there is a limit to the
concentration of the dissolved solutes in
urine.

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• If less urine than the lower limit is excreted,
the body retains salts and nitrogenous waste
(urea), and this has a toxic effect.

• A deficiency of water causes dehydration of

the body, the signs being sunken features, dry
skin, and " loss of elasticity of the skin.

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• Dehydration is a common and dangerous
feature of many fevers and of diarrhoea,
particularly amongst infants.

• Excess water may be stored in the tissues,

particularly when the concentration of sodium
is too high.

• The water forms excess tissue fluids and is

apparent as oedema.

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• The average requirement of a sedentary
individual is approximately 1-15 litres of water
(taken as liquid) per day.

• If sweating in a hot, humid, tropical climate,

the requirement is increased to about 2-5
litres of fluids per day.

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• The remaining water required by the body is
obtained from foods and metabolic reactions.

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 Malnutrition
• Malnutrition is caused by an inadequate intake of
food, or by lack of the right kind of food, or by both.

• The food intake may be inadequate in protein or

inadequate in energy supply, but both inadequacies
are usually found together.

• The extreme cases are those in which there is either

a protein or a calorie deficiency.

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• The causes of malnutrition in children are as
follows:
– A growing child has a high requirement of food for
growth, which is highest in the first year of life.

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– Breast feeding is only adequate for the first 4 to 6
months. After this period the child tends to
become deficient in nutrients.

– Worms and other parasites may consume the

food instead of the child. An infected child is
feverish, he burns up calories maintaining a high
temperature and uses up protein to fight the
infection.

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• Poverty may limit the supply of food.

• Many traditional diets are too low in protein

for the child's needs and the diet also supplies
inade­quate energy.

• Anxiety shown by a child for reasons such as

loss of its mother, displaced affection by a
new baby, neglect by its family, all cause loss
of appetite.

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• Infrequent and bulky meals may be given to
the child as they quickly satisfy hunger. The
child, however, is unable to eat sufficient food
after being so quickly satisfied.

• The child may not be able to digest or absorb

the food because it is too hard, for example,
pulses and maize are often indigestible.
Sickness can also prevent proper digestion.

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 NUTRITION
• The term "nutrition" covers both the physical
means by which food is taken into the body
and the chemical reactions by which it is
finally made available for use in the cells of
the different tissues.

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• Nutrition in man therefore includes ingestion
of food, digestion of foodstuffs by secreted
juices, the absorption of the products of
digestion and their final assimilation by the
cells in the tissues.

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• This presentation is concerned only with the
alimentary canal.

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INGESTION

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 The Mouth
• Food is chewed in the mouth to make the
food particles smaller, and, at the same time,
to mix the food with saliva which acts as a
lubricant.

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• In the mouth there are three pairs of salivary
glands, as in Figure 12, where the glands on
the left side only are shown; these glands
secrete saliva into the mouth.

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Figure 12: The ingestion of food

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• The teeth tear and grind the food into small
particles and the tongue moves the food
during chewing and forms it into a spherical
mass, called a bolus, ready for swallowing.

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 THE THROAT
• The food bolus is pushed by the tongue from
the mouth into the pharynx.

• The pharynx is a cavity behind the mouth;

connected to it are two nasal passages leading
from oesophagus, and the oesophagus leading
to the stomach.

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• The larynx is covered by a flap-like structure,
the epiglottis, which closes the entrance to
the trachea when food is swallowed.

• The process of swallowing is a reflex. When

the bolus of food touches the back of the
tongue and the pharynx, this stimulates nerve
endings and a message passes to the lower
part of the brain.

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• Another message then passes out to the
muscles of the pharynx, the epiglottis and the
upper part of the oesophagus. These muscles
contract.

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• The epiglottis comes down to cover the
entrance to the larynx and trachea, and by the
contracting muscles of the pharynx and
oesophagus the bolus of food is pushed down
the oesophagus.

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 Oesophagus
• The oesophagus is a muscular tube leading to the
stomach.

• The contraction of the muscles forces the food bolus

down the oesophagus; once the bolus has entered
the tube, a wave of muscular contraction forces the
bolus from the pharynx to the stomach.

• Peristalsis- movement of food along the alimentary

canal due to muscular contraction.

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Figure 14: The oesophagus

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Figure 15: Swallowing food

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STRUCTURE OF
THE
ALIMENTARY
CANAL
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 Stomach
• The stomach (see Figs. 16 and 17) is situated
just below the diaphragm and on the left of
the abdominal cavity; it is shaped like a letter J
when empty; when full it is cone-shaped, with
the narrow end pointing downwards.

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Figure 16: The stomach of a man

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Figure 17: Digestion in the stomach

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• It is about 25 centimetres long by 10
centimetres in diameter when full.

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• The oesophagus enters the upper end of the
stomach, and an opening, called the pyloric
orifice, at the lower end of the stomach, leads
into the duodenum.

• This orifice is closed by a powerful circular

muscle, called a sphincter muscle.

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• The pyloric sphincter (Fig. 18) controls the
intermittant passage of food from the
stomach into the duodenum.

• The outside wall of the stomach is muscular

and keeps the food in constant motion.

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Figure 18: The pyloric Sphincter
muscle

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• The lining of the stomach contains many
glands which secrete gastric juice.

• Food passes through the stomach as shown

in Fig. 17, and when completely mixed with
gastric juice forms a creamy liquid, called
chyme.

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• The pyloric sphincter opens from time to time
and chyme is passed into the duodenum.

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 Gall bladder
• The gall bladder is situated between lobes of
the liver (see excretion); its function is to store
and concentrate bile.

• Bile is carried by the bile duct, which joins the

pancreatic duct just before the latter enters
the duodenum.

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 Pancreas
• The pancreas is a pink leaf-shaped gland
situated just below the stomach in the bend
of the duodenum.

• It secretes pancreatic juice, which is carried

by the pancreatic duct (see Fig. 19) to the
duodenum.

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Figure 19: The duodenum and
pancreas

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 The small intestine
• The three parts of the small intestine are the
duodenum, the jejunum and the ileum.

• The duodenum is a tube about 4 centimetres

in diameter and about 25 centimetres long.

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• It starts at the pyloric orifice, and is curved in
a U-shape round the pancreas.

• The duodenum is the first portion of the small

intestine.

• Ducts lead into it from the pancreas and from

the gall bladder (see Fig. 19).
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• The jejunum is the next part of the small
intestine.

• It joins the duodenum to the ileum.

• The ileum in man is approximately 6 metres

long; it is a narrow muscular tube coiled in the
abdominal cavity.
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• The ileum has a mucous lining, and is much
folded to present a large absorptive surface.

• The inner surface of the ileum throughout its

whole length is covered with many small finger-
like projections, about 1 mm long, called villi.

• The villi can be seen in Fig. 20; they greatly

increase the area of the absorptive surface.

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Figure 20: Cross section of small
intestine

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• The intestine has two layers of muscle, a
thinner outside layer of longitudinal muscle,
and a thicker inner layer of circular muscle
(see Fig. 21).

• Alternating contractions of the circular and

longitudinal muscles produce waves of
contractions which pass down the intestine,
and drive the chyme before them.

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Figure 21: Cross section of small
intestine (diagram)

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• This action is called peristalsis, and the
muscular action is stimulated by the presence
of chyme in the intestine.

• Peristalsis occurs throughout the whole length

of the alimentary canal; it starts in the
oesophagus and continues through to the
rectum.

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tech
• The action of the stomach muscles is also
peristaltic.

• Glands in the mucous lining of the ileum, at

the base of the villi, secrete intestinal juice
(also called succus entericus).

• Peristalsis mixes the chyme with the intestinal

juice.
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• The large intestine is a wide muscular tube
about 1 ½ metres in length.

• Where the ileum joins the large intestine

there is a blind sac, or pouch, about 6
centimetres deep, called the caecum.

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• Attached to the caecum is a small, narrow
tube, the appendix.

• In man, the appendix has no part in digestion.

• A herbivorous animal has a well-developed

caecum and appendix, as both are used in the
digestion of substances which are unsuitable
as food for man (mainly cellulose).

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• The ileum enters the large intestine just above
the caecum (see Fig. 22).

• The large intestine consists of the caecum, the

colon, and the rectum.
•

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Figure 22: The large intestine

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 The rectum
• The last part of the large intestine is a short
tube, about 15 centimetres long, the rectum,
which is directly connected to the descending
colon

• The upper end of the rectum is the widest

part of the large intestine.

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• The lower end of the rectum is closed by the
anus, a short tube about 2 centimetres long,
surround by a powerful circular muscle, the
anal sphincter

• This muscle is under the control of the will.

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• The function of the rectum is to store faeces
until they are voided through the anus.

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 The Teeth
• All mammals have teeth which are specialised
for their particular kind of food.

• Herbivorous animals tear off grass and then

grind it up.

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• Incisor teeth are used for tearing the grass;
they have sharp chisel-like edges.

• Molar teeth are used for grinding the grass;

they are large teeth with flat tops and possess
ridges across the teeth.

• 'Carnivorous animals tear flesh and crush

bones.
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• Canine teeth are used for tearing flesh; they
are sharp and pointed.

• Molar teeth are used for crushing bones; they

have ridge on the top of the teeth with cusps
or outer cutting edges.

• Omnivorous animal and these include man,

possess both combinations of teeth.
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• Mammals grow two sets of teeth, the first set
are called milk (decidious) teeth, and the
second set are called ‘permanent" teeth.

• Milk teeth grow in children between the ages

of 7 months and 24 months.
•

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• After that time, the child has a full set, 20 in
all, of milk teeth.

• Milk teeth are replaced gradually by

permanent teeth between the ages of 7 to 12
years old.

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• More teeth (molar teeth) then appear
between the 12th and 15th year, making 28
teeth in all.

• The last 4 teeth (called wisdom teeth) are

molars right at the back of the mouth; they
may appear at the 17th year, or up to several
years later.

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• This then completes the full set of 32
permanent teeth in an adult.

• Teeth grow from buds in the jaw, and

gradually push through the surface of the gum

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• Developing teeth (in a foetus) are shown in
Fig.23

• Teeth are supplied with blood vessels and

nerves, as they are growing structures; the
pulp cavity contains the blood vessels and
nerves, and it is large in young teeth.

• The outer cells of the teeth form hard

substances, in a manner similar to bone.

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Figure 23: Growth of teeth in embryo

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 Human dentition
• Dentition is the arrangement and growth of
teeth.

• Human dentition includes three types of

teeth: (a) incisors; these are flat chisel-shaped
teeth; (b) canines, which are sharp, pointed
teeth; (c) molars; these are large, flat teeth
with sharp edges for cutting and grinding
food.

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• These teeth are illustrated in Fig. 24.

• Molar teeth are usually classified as pre-

molars and molars; the main difference being
that molars are not found in milk teeth,
whereas pre-molars are found in both milk
teeth and permanent teeth.

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Figure 24: Types of teeth

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• The uses of the teeth are the same as those
described for other animals. Incisors cut and
tear food.

• Canine teeth are used to tear meat; human

canine teeth are not so well developed as in
carnivorous animals.

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• Molars are used to grind food to small
particles.

• The action of the teeth prepares food for. the

digestive juices.

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• The dentition of any animal can be written as
a dental formula, and the dental formula for
human dentition is:

2 1 2 3
i pm m
2 2
c
1 2 3

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 Figure 25:
Permanent teeth

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 Structure of a tooth
• The crown of a tooth is that part projecting
above the gum.

• It is covered on the outside by enamel, the

hardest substance produced in the body.

• The main bulk of the tooth is composed of

dentine, a hard bone like substance; this
surrounds a pulp cavity.
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• Inside the cavity is living tissue, called pulp,
which contains blood vessels and nerves.

• An opening into the pulp cavity allows entry

for the blood vessels and nerves; this opening
becomes very small when the tooth stops
growing, and the root is then said to be
closed.

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• The tooth has a root which is sunk in a socket
in the jaw bone.

• The root is covered in cement, another bone­

like substance, and outside the cement is a
periodontal membrane, which fixes the tooth
in its socket.

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• The neck of the tooth is that part between the
crown and the jawbone.

• Incisors and canines usually have one root,

but molars have two or more roots. Fig. 26.

• The insertion of a tooth in a socket makes

sure of a firm hold, firmer than if the tooth
were fused to the bone.

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Figure 26: Structure of the tooth

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 Digestion
• Digestion of foodstuffs takes place by juices
secreted by glands in different parts of the
alimentary canal.

• The watery juices contain enzymes, each

enzyme being specific for one chemical
reaction.

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• The body temperature is the optimum
temperature for the chemical activity of the
enzymes.

• The action of the enzymes is also controlled

by the acidity or alkalinity of the medium, and
the pH of each digestive juice is appropriate
for its enzymes.

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 The mouth
• Saliva contains the enzyme ptyalin (salivary
amylase), which acts on starch to convert
some of it to maltose, a disaccharide, i.e. a
complex sugar.

• Saliva is alkaline, as ptyalin acts only in an

alkaline medium.

H+ - Acidic
OH- - Alkaline
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• Cooked starch is acted on more readily than
uncooked starch.

• Proteins and fats remain unchanged. Saliva

contains a large amount of water and some
mucus, the latter being used to make the food
bolus stick together.

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 The stomach
• The glands in the lining of the stomach
produce gastric juice, which contains an
enzyme, pepsin, and also hydrochloric acid;
other glands produce mucus.

• The acid neutralizes the alkaline saliva, and

stops the action of ptyalin.

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• Pepsin acts only in a strongly acid medium,
and this is provided by the hydrochloric acid.

• Proteins in meat, fish, and vegetables, are

acted on by pepsin, and broken down to
simpler molecules of Polypeptides; this is the
first stage in the digestion of proteins.

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• In young humans, another enzyme, rennin, is
also secreted.

• Rennin curdles milk by coagulating the soluble

proteins, and thus separating the protein in
milk from the fat.

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• The curds remain in the stomach long enough
for pepsin to act on the protein.

• There is no digestion of carbohydrates or of

fat in the stomach.

• Food takes about five hours to pass through

the stomach.
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• Since the stomach digests meat, it is
reasonable to enquire why it does not digest
itself.

• Different glands produce the two

compounds, pepsin and hydrochloric acid,
needed for protein digestion, and these two
substances do not meet until they are mixed
within the cavity of the stomach.

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• The secretion of mucus glands protects the
stomach lining, due to alkalinity; this is the
first defence.

• If acid production is in excess, then

occasionally the mechanism goes wrong, and
part of the stomach lining is digested; a
stomach ulcer is then formed at that part of
the lining.

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 The duodenum
• When the chyme in the stomach is sufficiently
fluid and sufficiently acid the pyloric sphincter
opens and the chyme enters the duodenum.

• There it is mixed with bile and pancreatic

juice.

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 Bile
• The liver produces bile, which is a green
alkaline liquid containing bile pigments and
bile salts, but no enzymes.

• Bile is stored in the gall bladder and enters the

duodenum when necessary.

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• Bile lowers the surface tension of the chyme,
and thus emulsifies the fats present in the
liquid.

• Emulsification means that the fats are

dispersed in a colloidal solution in the liquid,
each oil globule being very small and thus
presenting a very large surface.

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• The bile pigments eventually produce the
brown colour of faeces.

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 Pancreatic juice
• The pancreas is a large gland which secretes
pancreatic juice.

• The juice is collected in the pancreatic duct

and passed into the duodenum.

• The pancreatic juice is alkaline and neutralises

the acid chyme.
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• There are three enzymes in pancreatic juice,
namely, pancreatic amylase, pancreatic
lipase, and trypsinogen.

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 Pancreatic amylase
• This enzyme acts in an alkaline medium and
breaks down undigested starch to maltose.

• It completes the work of ptyalin.

• Action of the enzyme starts in the duodenum

and continues into the ileum.

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 Pancreatic lipase
• This enzyme acts on emulsified fat and breaks
down the fat to soluble glycerol and insoluble
fatty acids.

• The fatty acids react with alkali to form soluble

salts of the fatty acids.

• These salts are diffusible soaps.

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 Trypsinogen
• This secretion is an inactive form of an
enzyme.

• The intestinal wall secretes an enzyme,

enterokinase, which activates trypsinogen,
forming trypsin.

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• Trypsin acts on polypeptides to produce
peptides.

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 The jejunum and the ileum
• Glands at the base of the villi, in the mucous
lining of the small intestine, secrete intestinal
juice (succus entericus) which contains the
following enzymes: enterokinase, maltase,
sucrase, lactase, lipase and peptidase.

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• Intestinal juice is alkaline, as all the enzymes
require an alkaline medium.

• The action of enterokinase has been described

under trypsinogen.

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 Digestion of carbohydrate
• Maltase acts on maltose, produced by the
action of pancreatic juice, and breaks it down
to glucose, a diffusible monosaccharide.

• Sucrase acts on sucrose (found in sugar cane),

breaking it down to glucose and fructose, both
monosaccharides.

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• Lactase acts on lactose, which is milk sugar,
breaking it down to glucose and its isomer,
galactose.

• All carbohydrates are thus digested to

glucose, or other diffusible monosaccharides.

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 Digestion of protein
• All proteins have been converted to peptones
and polypeptides by the time they are passing
along the small intestine.

• Peptidase converts peptides to amino acids,

completing the digestion of protein.

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 Digestion of fat
• No further action takes place after digestion in
the duodenum.

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 Final products of digestion
• The final products are glucose, amino acids,
glycerol, and salts of fatty acids which are all
small soluble molecules; they are diffusible.

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• A summary of the digestive processes is given
in Fig. 27; the table emphasises the fact that
the three principal foodstuffs, carbohydrate,
protein, and fat, are digested in stages in
different parts of the alimentary canal.

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 Figure 27: Summary of the digestive process
Food Stuff Starch Protein Fat
In mouth Some starch No action No action

Salivary Maltose
amylase
In stomach No action No action
Pepsin Protein
Polypeptides
Duodenum All Starch Trypsin Fat
Amylase, Amylase Lipase
lipase, Maltose Peptides Fatty acids and
trypsinogen glycerol
Maltose Lactose Sucrose
Maltase
Sucrase
Peptidase Maltase lactase Fatty acids and
Lactase Glucose Peptidases glycerol
Sucrase Glucose Glucose
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Amino Acids
 Absorption
• No absorption of foodstuff take place in the stomach
or in the duodenum.

• Absorption starts in the jejunum and continues in the

ileum.

• The whole process of digestion is to convert

insoluble foodstuffs into diffusible products which
will pass the membranes lining the intestinal wall.

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 Small intestine
• Absorption takes place over the whole length
of the small intestine but principally in the
ileum.

• The digested foodstuffs are moved down the

intestine by the muscular movements of
peristalsis, taking two to three hours to pass
from the stomach to the large intestine.

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• The products of digestion are absorbed
through the villi on the intestinal wall.

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 Structure of villi
• The structure of a villus is shown in Fig. 28.

• It is a finger-like projection surrounded by a wall of

epithelial cells which acts as a membrane.

• In the centre is a blind-ended tube, a lacteal, which is

connected to the lymphatic system of the body

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• The lacteal is surrounded by a network of
capillaries.

• An artery supplies blood to the capillaries,

which rejoin to form a vein.

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 Absorption by villi
• Glucose, amino acids, and vitamins diffuse
through the membrane surrounding, a villus
and then diffuse through the thin walls of the
capillaries into the blood.

• These products of digestion dissolve in the

blood, and are carried away, by the blood in
the veins, to other parts of the body.

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• Glycerol and the salts of the fatty acids diffuse
through the membrane surrounding a villus,
and then diffuse through the wall of the
lacteal.

• In the lacteal, the glycerol and fatty acids

recombine to form fats, and when mixed with
lymph in the lymphatic system, form a milky
liquid called chyle.

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• The lymphatic system joins the main blood
circulation, and the fats circulate in the blood
as insoluble fat; they are converted to soluble
fats in the liver (Excretion and Homeostasis).

• Vitamins A and D are absorbed with the fats

into the lacteals.

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• Fig. 30 shows a diagrammatic drawing of the
small intestine.

• The intestine is attached to a mesentery,

which supports it, and also carries the arteries
bringing blood to the intestine, and the veins
taking blood away from the intestine.

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• The mesenteric artery supplies blood to the
villi, and the., hepatic portal vein conducts
away all blood from the villi.

• The liquid mass entering the colon contains

indigestible substances, mainly cellulose.

• Water is absorbed by the colon and the

contents gradually become solid, forming
faeces.

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• Glands in the mucous lining of the colon
secrete mucus to lubricate the passage of the
faeces.

• Inorganic salts are also absorbed through the

membranous lining of the colon.

• Peristalsis is slow in the colon; and it takes

about 12 hours for substances to pass the
whole length of the colon.

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• The contents of the colon are discharged into
the rectum about three or four times in every
twenty four hours.

• When the rectum is full, a feeling of weight

causes a desire for voiding.

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• Peristaltic contraction of the rectum, aided by
a voluntary contraction of the abdominal
muscles, voids the faeces through the anus.

• A summary of ingestion, digestion and

absorption is given in Fig. 31.

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 Figure 31:
Diagrammatic
summary of Digestive
Process

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 QUESTIONS
1. Describe the structure and functions of the stomach.

2. Contrast the functions of the small intestine and the

large intestine. How is the structure of each related
to its functions?

3. Describe the entire process of eliminating faeces

from the alimentary canal.

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4. How is a piece of bread digested?

5. Describe the digestion of a piece of fish.

6. Describe the digestion and absorption of

butter.

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7. Give an account of the structure and functions of a
villus in the small intestine.

8. What are the uses of bile in the nutritional

processes of a man?

9. Describe, with the aid of a labelled diagram, the

structure and function of a molar tooth.

10. Contrast the use of incisors and molars in eating a

hard fruit, such as an apple.
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