What happens after you swallow your food?

The gastrointestinal tract is the connection of the mouth to the anus through a muscular tube. The space in between the muscular tube is called the lumen. The connection of the GI tract includes the mouth, stomach, small intestine, large intestine and anus. Each part plays an important role in the digestive system to help break down enzymes with hydrolysis. Hydrolysis is the process of using water to break down the enzymes into smaller pieces.
The mouth is where the digestion process starts. Your teeth are used to break down the food into smaller pieces so it?s easier to swallow. As your chewing your food, saliva is mixing in with the food. You also use your tongue to move food around to assist with mixing your food and saliva. The hydrolysis process has now begun. The food than begins to move to the back of the mouth to the upper esophageal sphincters. Esophageal sphincters are like gates to allow passage of the food into the esophagus. Food travels down the esophagus, to the stomach. To assist the food traveling, the esophagus performs muscle contractions called Peristalsis.

When the food arrives at the opening of the stomach it passes through the lower esophageal sphincter allowing it to go directing into the stomach. Once in the stomach, the food begins to mix with acids, enzymes, and fluid. The result of this process turns the food into chyme. The chyme then slowly passes the pyloric sphincter (another gateway to help food pass on to the small intestine and prevents backfire) and into the small intestine.
The small intestine is where the chyme is digested and the nutrients are absorbed. The nutrients are absorbed into the walls of the intestines and turned into energy. To assist with the digestion, the pancreas and gallbladder give off juices to help neutralize acids in the chyme. The small intestine is divided up into three sections, duodenum, jejunum, and the ileum.
After the small intestine the food than passes onto the large intestine also known as the colon. The large intestine receives the liquid residue after digestion and absorption are complete. The liquid mainly consists of water and minerals. The minerals consist of fiber and unabsorbed nutrients. This liquid then turns into waste and flows through to the rectum. The rectum stores the waste until the anus opens for removal.
The digestive system is what determines the health of your body. Having a working knowledge of how it the system works influences how I eat. A few weeks ago, I had my gal bladder removed. Because of this, my diet is somewhat restricted. Having a better knowledge of the system helps me understand what I need to eat to maintain a healthy system.