| A | B |
|---|
| digestion | process by which organism breaks down food into small units which can be absorbed |
| ingestion | taking in food |
| chemical digestion | digestion that chemically alters the food so that it can be broken down |
| pytalin | enzyme in saliva that breaks starches down |
| physical digestion | also called mechanical digestion; the breaking up of food into smaller pieces |
| incisors | front teeth used for cutting food |
| canine | pointed teeth used for tearing food |
| molars | back teeth used for chewing and grinding |
| bolus | food that forms a soft lump in your mouth as it is chewed |
| esophagus | tube in your throat which carries food to your stomach |
| peristalsis | smooth muscles create a wave-like motion that pushes food through the digestive system |
| chyme | this term refers to food in its 3rd stage, once it is digested in your stomach |
| duodenum | 1st part of your small intestine where most of the digestion takes place |
| liver | digestive helper that makes bile, stores and transforms macronutrients, removes toxins from the blood, and warms the blood |
| bile | greenish chemical made by the liver that helps break down fat |
| gall bladder | digestive helper that removes water from bile to make it concentrated and then stores the bile until it is needed |
| pancreas | digestive helper that makes digestive juices for use in the small intestine and also produces sodium bicarbonate |
| sodium bicarbonate | baking soda; helps neutralize stomach acid |
| villi | velvety, finger-like projections on the walls of the small intestine which slows down the chyme so that nutrients can be absorbed |
| rectum | organ which stores feces |
| feces | waste material that your body does not absorb for energy |
| anus | organ from which feces exits the body |
| appendix | organ found near the digestive system that has no known function |
