If you are like most people, you probably spend more time thinking about where or what to eat than what happens to the food after you eat it. Fortunately, the digestion of food does not require any conscious thought, especially since it involves...
The human digestive system is the organ system responsible for extracting nutrition from consumed food items and absorbing the nutritional molecules into the bloodstream. Doing this requires breaking food into smaller pieces mechanically and...
Motion sickness is that stomach churning, sick feeling some people get when traveling. It's also called seasickness or airsickness or carsickness depending on the form of transportation where the problem occurs. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting,...
Essential oils are used in a variety of home remedies. According to the book "Alternative Cures: More Than 1,000 of the Most Effective Natural Home Remedies," essential oil-based remedies are generally used externally. This is because many...
The digestive system is largely mechanical in nature, and while it has significant chemical functionality, it’s also dependent upon motor, or movement-based functions. The primary purpose of the digestive tract is to extract nutrient...
Triacylglycerols, or triglycerides, are molecules your body uses to transport and store fatty acids. Fatty acids are a valuable source of energy for your cells, and they serve as the precursors for sex hormones, cholesterol, vitamin D and other...
Pregnancy is a time of great change in a woman's body, largely due to skyrocketing hormone levels. These hormones cause different symptoms in different women, but there are certain signs that occur to varying degrees in almost every pregnancy. If...
As tough as the topic is to broach, teen dating violence (TDV) is a reality that must be addressed. Recent studies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that nearly 1.5 million high school students throughout the US have...
When you bite off a piece of bread and chew, the mechanical action of your teeth breaks it down, but you could never absorb nutrients if digestion stopped there. If you continue chewing, something surprising happens. Your mouthful becomes sweet....
Your body relies on the nutrients from the foods you eat for survival. Mechanical and chemical processes break food down into molecules that are absorbed through your intestines, and the resulting waste is eliminated during a bowel movement....
Yoga is synonymous with relaxation and calm. But yoga can be equally empowering and invigorating and can complement an effective weight loss program. This may come as a surprise to those individuals who think of yoga only as sitting in a...
Stress changes blood flow within the body. When the body becomes stressed, it channels more blood to the muscles of the arms and legs, causing less blood to go to the stomach. As a result, food is more slowly digested and instead remains in the...
GERD or gastroesophageal reflux disease is a fancy term for recurrent heartburn and tends to be more prevalent among people who eat high fat and high protein diets. Scientists believe that it is the increased intake in cholesterol which leads to...
Acid in your stomach can creep up your esophagus and cause a great deal of discomfort. Normally, the esophageal sphincter keeps acid in your stomach. This acid breaks down the food you eat. But heartburn can occur when the sphincter allows acid to...
The stomach is one of the most important digestive organs, as it is where foods begin to be broken down. But the stomach can get irritated or develop indigestion due to the foods you eat. If you frequently have stomach problems, knowing what foods...
Acid reflux refers to a phenomenon in which acid secretions from the interior of the stomach pass upward into the esophagus. This irritates and inflames the lining of the esophagus, resulting in the uncomfortable sensation of heartburn. While not...
Smell is an important part of the eating experience. Not only does smell contribute to your sense of a food's flavor -- most of what we call "taste" is actually smell -- it also helps to get your digestive juices flowing before you even take your...
The enzyme pepsin enables the stomach to take filet mignon and break it down into the same amino acids found in the lowly chuck roast. While teeth, saliva, stomach acid and the steady churning of the stomach all contribute to the digestion of meat...
Neuropathy is a microvascular complication of diabetes that is caused by a progressive weakening of blood vessels that supply nerves with oxygen and nutrients. Diabetic neuropathy affects nerves that sense pain, are involved in motor control and...
The digestion process starts in your mouth. Water helps dissolve and break apart the food while you chew, allowing your saliva to start breaking down the food into manageable pieces. Water then helps wash the chewed food down into your esophagus....
Your digestive and respiratory systems, at first glance, seem very separate in their activities. In reality, however, the systems work together intimately in several ways. The results of respiratory activity allow the digestive tract to function,...
Digestion starts in the mouth, processing food into nutrients your body needs, and excretes the rest as waste. In addition to your mouth and throat, your esophagus, stomach, small and large intestines and rectum are part of the digestive system....
When you go to sleep or go into a reclining position, gravity no longer pulls everything in your abdomen straight down. If you have a full stomach, this can cause acid reflux, potentially resulting in long-term damage to your esophagus. If you...
In healthy people, the digestion system has no problem dealing with peanuts. They enter the stomach, where gastric juices mingle with the chewed peanuts as the stomach churns the mixture. The peanuts then enter the small intestine, where enzymes...
Bloating is a condition where your stomach feels tighter or fuller than normal. Swallowing air, eating too much, eating certain foods, having excess bacteria in the small intestine or being constipated can all potentially cause bloating. While...
Your body cannot utilize dietary proteins in their predigested form -- the gastrointestinal system must break down proteins in a multi-stage process that occurs primarily in your stomach and small bowel. Protein digestion yields minute subunits...
Every time you place a piece of food in your mouth you set off a complex process of actions and reactions. As the food makes its way through your digestive system, the body removes the essential components for energy as well as the other nutrients...
Often painful and debilitating, stomach cramps can seriously impact your ability to complete an exercise session. Whether you are running, cycling, swimming, rowing or walking, stomach cramps can occur for a wide variety of reasons. In fact,...
Vitamins are designed to supplement the foods you eat to provide the nutrients that might be missing from your diet. Unfortunately, not all vitamins are created equal, and some do not dissolve easily. If a vitamin does not dissolve, it will pass...
