What happens to food in the stomach?
Food in the stomach is churned up with acid and digestive juices that start to break it down. This is the beginning of digestion. The stomach wall is covered with a layer of mucus that stops it from digesting itself. The acid in the stomach helps digestion, and also kills bacteria that have been swallowed with the food.
What is the appendix for?
The appendix is probably a leftover from our very ancient ancestors, and in humans it has very little use. In animals that eat a lot of plant material, such as rabbits, the appendix is large and contains bacteria that help digestion. The human appendix is a tiny finger-like projection from the lower part of the gut. It sometimes becomes inflamed and has to be removed surgically.
What happens in the small intestine?
Most of the process of digestion takes place in the small intestine. Food is broken down into simple substances that can be absorbed through the gut wall into the blood. Most of these food substances are carried in the blood to the liver, a large organ in your abdomen. The liver stores them until they are needed. The liver has many other useful functions in cleaning the blood and removing old red blood cells. It breaks them down into greenish liquid called bile, which is used to help the body digest fats. The digestive processes in the small intestine and the rest of the digestive system depend upon having the right amount of acid or alkali present.
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