Food is broken down during digestion through two methods:
Mechanical Digestion: Physically breaking down food into smaller pieces through chewing and muscular contractions.
Chemical Digestion: Using enzymes and chemicals to break down complex food molecules into simpler nutrients.
We need to digest our food to extract essential nutrients, provide energy and eliminate waste.
Physical digestion occurs mainly in the mouth and stomach.
Saliva has two main functions.
• It helps moisten and lubricate food to aid in swallowing.
• It contains amylase to initiate the digestion of carbohydrtes.
The organ that produces bile to break down fats is the liver.
Fiber (cellulose) is important in our diet because it aids in digestion, prevents constipation, and contributes to overall gut and heart health.
