Mechanical Digestion

Our digestive system performs an important biological process in our body and it is a complex process. Food that we eat, has to be digested so that the nutrients can be absorbed by the body. The digestive system digests the food, absorbs nutrients and eliminates the waste material out of the body. So, what is digestion and how does it take place? Digestion is of two types; mechanical digestion and chemical digestion. The mechanical digestion is the first step of the digestion process and it begins once you start ingesting food. It is a less complex method than chemical digestion and it basically takes place inside your mouth.

What is Mechanical Digestion?

You must be wondering, how does the digestive system work. The food that we eat comes in many forms and this food has to be broken down into tiny pieces before you can possibly swallow it. Mechanical digestion is this process of breakdown of solid food into tiny pieces which takes place inside the mouth that can be swallowed and then get ready for further processing through chemicals and enzymes in the stomach. This digestion process begins in the mouth and is aided by the teeth, tongue and saliva.

Once the food has been ingested by us, the brain signals the salivary gland to produce saliva in the mouth that will soften up the food and help it to pass smoothly down the throat. The saliva that is produced by the salivary glands is mostly made up of water and it also contains a special substance called pytalin which is an enzyme that helps to break down food. The teeth also helps to speed up the process of digestion by breaking down solid food into smaller pieces so that the saliva is able to soften the pieces. The tongue also aids the digestion process by shifting the food around the mouth enabling the teeth to grind the food. It also assists in the act of swallowing the food and the tongue also dislocated food particles that get inside the teeth cavities.

Now comes the most important part of the mechanical digestion process; the act of swallowing. As the top of the tongue presses against the roof of the mouth, the masticated food gets pushed to the back of the mouth. The soft palate on the roof of your mouth and the uvula which is present at the end of the mouth keeps the food from being misguided towards the nose cavity. Once the food is past the soft palate, the masticated food is in the pharynx that is located in between the esophagus and the mouth. The epiglottis, which is a small elastic cartilage tissue covered with mucous membrane and is attached to the root of the tongue, helps to admit air as it is swallowed and it also restricts air from entering the esophagus. It applies an upward force to the esophagus so that the masticated food enters the esophagus and not the windpipe.

Once the food is down the windpipe, the gastrointestinal tract that is supplied with many muscular valves, direct the broken down food particles through the digestive tract and blocks the back movement of partially digested food. After the food enters the stomach it is further broken down with the help of digestive enzymes called gastric juices.

If we look into mechanical digestion vs chemical digestion, we will find that chemical digestion breaks down the food particles into a form, whereby the nutrients can be absorbed by the body. Mechanical as well as chemical digestion are important part of the digestion process and one cannot do without the other.