When most people think of the digestive system, they think of the stomach. Though the stomach is an important part of the digestive tract, it's not the biggest or most important. There are many parts to the digestive tract, starting in the mouth and leading down through the esophagus, but most digestion takes place in three parts: the stomach, small intestine and large intestine.
Stomach
The stomach is the first of the three sections to start breaking down food. You might be surprised to learn that the stomach doesn't absorb food; it mixes it up with digestive enzymes, makes it into a slush and passes it along to the small intestine, where further absorption takes place. Some anti-inflammatory medications are partially absorbed in the stomach, where they can cause irritation if overused. The stomach also acts as a holding tank, releasing digested food slowly into the small intestine.
Small Intestine
The small intestine is the middle stop of the three areas of food breakdown and absorption. The small intestine is enormous. Normally, the small intestine lies coiled inside the area bordered by the large intestine, but if stretched out, the small intestine would be about 3.5 times our body length. So if you're 6 feet tall, your intestines would stretch out to about 21 feet. This may seem like overkill, but since the small intestines are the site of nearly all nutrient absorption, according to the Colorado State University, every inch counts. Ninety percent of liquid digestion is absorbed in the small intestine, Colorado State University says.
Large Intestine
The large intestine is the last of the three areas responsible for nutrient absorption and food breakdown.The large intestine doesn't have a straight path. It attaches to the small intestine on the lower right side of the body; the ascending colon travels up the right side, the transverse colon goes across the body, and the descending colon goes back down the left side. The sigmoid colon, the last section of the large intestine, attaches to the rectum. The large intestine is full of bacteria that break down any solid material still left in the intestine. Bacteria in the large intestine also produce vitamin K, a factor necessary for blood clotting, the Merck Manual says. Any waste products that can't be absorbed are expelled in the form of feces.
