is for Salivary Amylase

When you put food into your mouth, your salivary glands (parotid, submandibular, and sublingual) produce a mixture or serous (watery) and mucus type saliva. Enzymes that are found in the saliva are amylase (digests starch) and lipase (digests lipids).

is for Bolus

Once the food is chewed up and mixed with saliva, it becomes defined as a bolus.

is for Chewing

Mastication, or chewing, begins in the mouth/oral cavity. The tongue , cheeks, and lips play their parts. Teeth grind, cut, and tear food so that it can mix with saliva. The lips and cheeks act as boundaries for the oral cavity, and the tongue helps control the movement of food in the mouth.

is for Deglutition

Deglutition, or swallowing, happens in 3 stages: the oral stage, pharyngeal stage, and esophageal stage. In the oral stage, the food bolus is pushed to the middle of the tongue and then to the back of the mouth. This stage is the only voluntary portion of deglutition. In the pharyngeal stage, the bolus is propelled from the pharynx to the esophagus.

is for Esophageal Stage

In the esophageal stage of deglutition, the bolus passes into the esophagus through the upper esophageal sphincter. Contractions and gravity move the bolus into the stomach through the lower esophageal sphincter.

is for Forward movement along GI tract

Peristalsis is a wavelike ripple of the muscle layer of the GI tract and produces a forward movement that propels the bolus. The GI tract is made up of 4 layers: the mucosa (innermost), submucosa (consists fo small glands, blood vessels, and nerves), muscularis (muscle tissue), and serosa (outermost).

is for Gastric juice secretion

Gastric juices are secreted by gastric glands in the stomach. The stomach is divided into 3 sections: the fundus (enlarged top portion), body (central portion), and pylorus (lower portion). When the bolus mixes with the gastric juices, it becomes chyme. The stomach has many functions. Some of these include being a reservoir to store food, breaking food into smaller parts by churning, and destroying bacteria swallowed with food.

is for Hydrochloric acid

Hydrocholoric acid is one of the enzymes found in gastric juice. It decreases the pH of chyme and denatures proteins. Pepsin is another enzyme and helps digest proteins. A third enzyme is gastrin, a peptide hormone that stimulates secretion of gastric motility. Pepsinogen is the fourth enzyme. This is a zymogen secreted by the chief cells of the gastric glands and is converted into pepsin in the presence of gastric acid or pepsin itself.

is for Intestinal phase

Gastric juice secretion happens in 3 stages. The cepaphalic (first) phase activates secretion when you think, smell, or taste food. The gastric (second phase) stimulates gastrin which accelerates secretion when there is food present in the stomach. The intestinal phase (final) inhibits secretions when the chyme passes into the duodenum through the pyloric sphincter.

is for Jejunum

The food or now chyme is now entering the small intestine. The small intestine is named for its small width, not its length. It consists of 3 divisions: the duodenum (first 10 inches), jejunum (next 8 feet), and the ileum (last 12 feet)

is for vitamin K absorption

The small intestine is where the majority of absorption is occurring. It consists of many folds, called plicae, with villi. The villi are tiny projections of intestinal the mucosa lining. Their purpose is to increase surface area to make digestion and absorption more efficient.

is for Liver

The liver is the largest gland in the body and is composed of 2 lobes. the left lobe is only 1/6th of the liver, while the right lobe is the majority. Both are made up of hepatic lobules, or hexagonal units of the liver. bile ducts are formed where the right and left hepatic ducts combine into one. the hepatic duct merges with the cystic duct from the gallbladder and then bile is released into the small intestine.

Functions of the liver include detoxifying various substances, making bile, metabolizing proteins, fats, and carbohydrates and storing iron and vitamins A, B12, and D.

is for Mesentary

The mesentary is a fan-shaped projection of the peritoneum. It allows for free movement fo each coil of the intestine and helps prevent strangulation of the long tube. The peritoneum is the membrane that covers and holds organs loosely in place.

is for Nucleases

Pancreatic juice is secreted by the ducts of the pancreas and helps in the digestion of different substances. There are many different enzymes in it. They include trypsin (aids in protein digestion), chymotrypsin (aids in polypeptide digestion), lipases (aids in fat digestion), nucleases (aids in the digestion of nucleic acids), amylases (aids in the digestion of starches), and sodium bicarbonate (increases pH).

is for Optimal chemical digestion

Everything that we ingested is differently chemically digested. Enzymes are proteins that accelerate chemical reactions and are specific in their action. Carbohydrates are digested by amylases. Polysaccharides are broken down and the final product is glucose. Proteins are broken down into amino acids by protease. The main types are pepsin, trypsin, and peptidases. Fats must be emulsified by bile in the small intestine and the main fat-digesting enzyme is pancreatic lipase. The residue of digestion that is eliminated as feces is cellulose and connective tissues from meat (collagen).

is for Pancreas tissues

The pancreas is composed of endocrine and exocrine tissues. The endocrine tissues are only 2% of the pancreas and secrete insulin and glucagon into the capillaries too regulate our body's blood sugar levels. The exocrine tissues are the majority of the pancreas and secrete digestive enzymes into the duodenum.