Organs of the Digestive System

The organs of the human digestive system execute the basic function of digesting or breaking down the foods into appropriate substances and nutrition, that can be easily assimilated by the human body. Throughout the process of digestion, there are several organs which contribute to the breaking-down process of food. Mentioned below are the organs of the digestive system along with their functions.

Organs of the Digestive System and their Functions

The human digestive system can be classified into two basic sections, namely the upper gastrointestinal tract and the lower gastrointestinal tract. These two tracts are made up of different organs of the digestive system. In addition to the organs of the digestive system in the upper and lower gastrointestinal tracts, there are several other different organs that act as auxiliaries to the process of digestion. The auxiliary organs also help the human body to maintain good digestive health.

Upper Gastrointestinal Tract
The function of the upper gastrointestinal tract, is simplification of food into nutrients that can be assimilated by the lower gastrointestinal tract into the human body. The funny fact about the human digestive system is that the process of digestion actually starts, before the food has entered the digestive tract. The four primary organs ear, nose, eyes and tongue, sense the presence of food and thereby alert other organs of the digestive system that begin the production of different digestive juices. Following are the organs of the digestive system that are involved in the breaking down of food.

Mouth: The first organ that directly contributes to the digestion process is the mouth. The mouth, is further divided into three basics organs, namely the salivary glands, tongue and teeth. The salivary glands produce saliva that exits into the mouth. The saliva acts as a lubrication for the food products, when they are being chewed. Some of the micro-organisms, like fungi and bacteria, are killed by the saliva in the mouth itself, due to its disinfecting properties. Apart from producing saliva, the salivary glands also produces amylase, which is an enzyme that plays a very important role in breaking down starch into glucose.

The next important part of the mouth is the tongue. The tongue is not just used for tasting delicious food. It also helps in chewing and swallowing, which is also known as deglutition. This process is basically, the physical simplification of food.

Just like the tongue, the teeth are also responsible for physical breakage of food. The action of chewing breaks the food into smaller pieces and helps the rest of the digestive system to break down the food. Though, the teeth do not play an active role in the chemical simplification of food, chewing makes digestion easier for the other organs of the digestive system to break down the food and its nutrients.

Pharynx and Esophagus: The next digestive organ is the pharynx, which lies behind the mouth or the buccal cavity. The pharynx prevents the food from entering the voice box or larynx. Instead, the pharynx diverts the food to the esophagus, a muscular tube that connects the mouth to the stomach. Though, the pharynx and esophagus are not directly related to the actual simplification of food, their function of conveyance of food is extremely important among the organs of the digestive system in the order of the gastrointestinal tract.

Stomach: The organ of the human body that conducts the mammoth task of breaking food is the stomach. The stomach is divided into four parts. The cardia is the receiver of food from the esophagus. This food is handed over to the curvature of the organ that is known as the fundus. The food is later transported to the corpus body, the central part of the stomach which contributes to the breakage of food. After the food has been simplified, it is transferred to the antrum which conveys it to the smaller intestine. Within the stomach, the food is broken down into simpler nutrients, like vitamins, carbohydrates, proteins etc.

Lower Gastrointestinal Tract
The lower gastrointestinal tract compromises two primary organs, namely, the intestines or the bowels and the anus. Among the digestive system organs and functions, the organs of the lower gastrointestinal tract help the body to assimilate the nutrients, which have been simplified by the upper gastrointestinal tract.

Small Intestine: There are two primary intestines, namely the small intestine and the large intestine. The small intestine is further divided into three parts. The duodenum is the receiver of simplified food and is connected to the lower section of the stomach. Though, the duodenum is the shortest part of the intestines, a lot of chemical digestion takes place in it. The duodenum is also the place where the digestive juices that are generated by the pancreas and liver mix for further digestion. The second part of the small intestine is the jejunum. One of the most important functions of this organ is abrogation of nutrients. The jejunum is the mid-section of the smaller intestine and coveys the remainder of the food to the ileum. The ileum absorbs the nutrients that have been missed by the jejunum. Most of the vitamins are absorbed by the ileum.

Large Intestine: Like the small intestine, the large intestine is divided into three parts. The first organ of the large intestine is the cecum. The cecum is attached to the appendix and is also the connecting pouch between the small and the large intestines. The colon comes after the cecum and is responsible for the abrogation of water and salts from the digested foods. This is considered to be the last stage of digestion. The third part of the large intestine is the rectum, which acts as the connection between the intestines and anus.

Anus: The anus is among the organs of the digestive system that does the job of ejecting the waste matter from the body.


Auxiliary Organs
The human body has some very important organs in the digestive system which can be classified as the auxiliary organs. Without these auxiliary organs, the process of digestion would become almost impossible.

Gallbladder: The gallbladder is a very important organ that is responsible for the storage of bile that has been produced by the liver. Though, in spite of being an important part of the digestive process, the gallbladder is a non-vital organ, meaning that it is removed in case it gets infected. To know more about gallbladder, you may also read more on gallbladder diseases.

Liver: The liver is one of the most important organs of the human body, as it is also necessary for survival. The liver basically performs the task of producing digestive juices, biochemicals and also helps in protein synthesis. The liver is also responsible for detoxification of the food that comes in. To know more about liver and its functions, you may read more on liver function.

To get a good idea of the organs of the digestive system, you can also have a look at the diagram of the digestive system. The whole process of digestion requires about 24 to 72 hours and an average person's digestive tract, along with all the organs of the digestive system measures about 9 meters long. Read more on: facts about the digestive system.