| Term | Definition |
|---|
| mouth | digestion begins in this structure |
| tongue | mashes food into a soft ball called a bolus |
| salivary glands | secrete saliva into the mouth |
| esophagus | peristalsis occurs here, but no digestion |
| stomach | muscular organ that contracts and relaxes to churn food like a blender |
| liver | structure that makes bile |
| gallbladder | structure that stores bile |
| pancreas | makes digestive enzymes like insulin and secretes them into the small intestine |
| teeth | structures that crush and grind food mechanically into smaller bits |
| small intestine | responsible for most chemical digestion and absorption of nutrients |
| villi | increase surface area and absorption |
| large intestine | absorbs water; bacteria here digest fiber and make vitamins B and K |
| mucus | secreted into the mouth, lines esophagus and stomach |
| enzymes | proteins that speed chemical reactions and break down nutrients into molecules |
| bile | breaks down fats into smaller peices so that enzymes can digest the fat |
| mouth | starches are chemically and mechanically digested here |
| stomach | proteins are the only nutrient digested here |
| saliva | contains mucus, enzymes and water; moistens food |
| fiber | digested by bacteria, which cause gas as a waste product |
| diffusion | the movement of molecules from an area of higher to concentration to lower |
| chemical digestion | the breakdown of food into molecules small enough to pass through cell membranes |
| mechanical digestion | the breakdown of food into smaller particles |
| chyme | the name of food, now a liquid, as it leaves the stomach and enters the small intestine |
| absorption | The process by which nutrient molecules pass through the wall of the digestive system into the blood. |
| epiglottis | The flap of tissue that seals off the windpipe and prevents food from entering. |
| rectum | A short section at the end of the large intestine where waste material is compressed into a solid form before being eliminated. |
| feces | solid waste |
| anus | The opening at the end of the digestive system through which wastes are eliminated. |
| vomiting | body's response to the internal stimulus of something harmful in the stomach |
| hydrochloric acid | produced by the stomach, kills bacteria, causes proteins to clump |
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