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The Digestive Systems Organs Work

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The digestive systems organs work together to help the body turn food into nutrients and energy. Food passes through the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract). The GI tract is made up of the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestines, and large intestines. There are accessory organs that do not have food pass through them but those organs help with the digestive system. They include the teeth, tongue, salivary glands, liver, gallbladder, and pancreas. The six major functions need to happen in the digestive system and they are ingestion, secretion, mixing and movement, digestion, absorption, and excretion. (Taylor)

The oral cavity is the mouth. The mouth has the tongue, teeth, and salivary glands inside it. Once food has entered the mouth, teeth must chop the food into small pieces. The food must be moistened by saliva before it can be push down the pharynx by the tongue and other muscles. There are about 32 small teeth in the body’s mouth. The teeth are the hardest substance in the body. They are bone like and covered in a layer of enamel. Under the teeth, the pulp, there are blood vessels and nerves. Teeth are made for grinding and cutting food into smaller pieces. The tongue is located right behind the teeth and is made of muscles covered in a bumpy, thin, skin like layer. The tongue uses those muscles to push food to the back of the mouth for swallowing. The mouth has taste buds on it. When food enters the mouth those taste buds send the taste information

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