How does the food change in consistency and form?
Chewing facilitates the breakdown of solid food in the mouth with the aid of amylase, a salivary enzyme, which breaks down carbohydrates. This transforms food into a rounded mass known as bolus. Bolus moves to the stomach, where it combines with gastric juices to form chyme, a semifluid mass. The breakdown process continues in the small intestine with the help of pancreatic enzymes, facilitating nutrient absorption. Once residual material reaches the large intestine, water absorption occurs, and indigestible substances form into feces.
How could the body absorb the nutrients from the foods we eat?
The body absorbs nutrients from foods through nutrient absorption in the small intestine. Following the initial breakdown of food in the mouth and stomach, nutrients are further extracted and absorbed in the small intestine. These nutrients are then transported into the bloodstream for distribution throughout the body.