Once again, a client needed information on how to improve digestion so this and the following articles are a result of needing to write about an important topic.
Quick digestion overview:
Digestion begins in the mouth with the mechanical breakdown of food by chewing and the mixing of saliva into the food. Naturally more chewing is better so don’t be in a rush to eat. Saliva is the first introduction of amylase to begin the digestion of sugars / carbohydrates.
Food is then passed to the stomach where more mechanical breakdown occurs and HCl (hydrochloric acid – aka stomach acid) shifts the pH level into an extremely acidic environment. You want this! Do not take products designed to reduce acid (these just address the symptoms of “acid reflux” – yet another separate topic).
The stomach empties into the small intestine where the majority of nutrients are extracted and absorbed.
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The liver supplies bile (which is accumulated and temporarily stored in the gallbladder) which is vital to digestion of fats.
The pancreas supplies digestive enzymes (for digesting proteins, carbohydrates and fats), as well as juice which neutralizes stomach acidity. Enzyme activity depends on these shifts in pH.
As the contents pass into the large intestine (also known as the colon) where water is re-absorbed by the body.
Finally undigested material and toxins are eliminated via defecation.
Transit time is important. Food needs time at each stage to have nutrients extracted, yet must be fast enough to avoid putrefaction and absorption of toxins. If you aren’t defecating at least once a day, your digestion isn’t working properly.
As we age, our digestion tends to weaken (our teeth aren’t in as good of shape, stomach acid decreases, enzyme production decreases and nutrient deficiencies lead to even more nutrient deficiencies in a vicious cycle).
The digestion system is also an important part of our immune system. Very few pathogens survive the properly acidic nature of our stomachs, but as stomach acid decreases we become more vulnerable to ingested pathogens.
Note: this is a simple overview to avoid writing (and reading) a textbook.
In the next article, I’ll go into what you can do to improve digestion.
Interesting , we are given the notion that stomach acid is bad , and help to tone down acid when in fact it’s healthy . What a great recap and some new information provided . Digestion is highly important in understanding especially when talking about nutrition!!