When you put food into your mouth it may seem like a short process to you. It may just seem as simple as into your mouth through your stomach and then it will be secreted sooner or later. However, the digestion process is a whole lot longer and complicated than that.

First when you place food into your mouth, your teeth starts to break it down. An adult is packed with thirty two teeth. Different teeth are for different purposes, for example the molar teeth are flat rounded teeth are used for grinding food particles such as fruits and vegetables.

There are also canine teeth which are more useful for tearing and ripping foods such as meat. In your mouth there is a small organ called the tongue. This organ job is the position food, aid in speech and also aid in swallowing. When you chew food it mixes with saliva. Saliva is a mixture of water and proteins. When you swallow the food is pushed to the pharynx. It is very important to take your time to chew your food in order to minimize the risk of choking. The food is than contracted into the esophagus and than ends up in the stomach.

Stomach

The stomach is a muscular and very elastic organ that is shaped like a sac. It fluctuates in size and shape according to how much food is placed into it. Its capacity is about 1 qt for an adult. The first place that women start to put on weight is usually in the hip area. The place that men put on weight first is the stomach area. That