< previous page | page_3 | next page >
Page 3
| The Digestive Process |
| Under normal conditions, digestion is an efficient process that transforms food into energy, nutrients and waste products, all of which are sent to appropriate parts of the body for dispersal and disposal. The food is acted upon by chemicals, such as the stomach's hydrochloric acid, and enzymes. Digestion begins in the mouth with saliva, which, under optimum conditions, is well-blended with food during chewing. Enzymes combine with moisture to transform carbohydrates into maltose, an energy-producing sugar. Well chewed and with its carbohydrates predigested, the food travels down the esophagus to the stomach, where it encounters, among other things, the enzymes rennin, pepsin and lipase, which digest milk, protein and fats. Hydrochloric acid breaks down proteins and the fiber of vegetables, releasing nutrients, destroying bacteria and regulating the body's acid-alkaline balance. Food then travels to the small intestine, where it encounters bile, pancreatic lipase, tripsin, lactase, amylopsin and other enzymes. Altogether, the body uses over 600 enzymes, each of which performs a separate function in the body. Without them, we cannot convert food into energy or extract its nutrients; in fact, without them none of our bodies' processes would function properly. |
| The liver, which lies beside the stomach just below the rib cage, has two important functions. It separates toxins from the blood stream, protecting the body from poisons, and it produces bile, a powerful digestive chemical, which it sends to the gallbladder for injection into the small intestine. We associate the |
< previous page | page_3 | next page >

If you like this book, buy it!