Everything that a person eats is used for energy, but has to be first broken down in the

digestive tract before it can be used. The digestive tract is made up of the alimentary canal and
accessory organs. Within these sections, mechanical and chemical digestion is occurring to break
down the food into energy. Mechanical digestion is when food is physically broken down into
smaller pieces. An example of mechanical digestion is when teeth break down food into smaller
pieces. On the other hand, chemical digestion is when food is changed molecularly by enzymes
and chemical reactions. Both of these functions are important to produce energy for the body.
For instance, food such as toast and butter is digested to create energy for the body. When
broken down, the enzymes break down the carbohydrates in the bread and the lipids in the butter.
When Zola Grey takes a bite of toast and butter, her teeth grind up the food into smaller
pieces which is mechanical digestion. While the food is being chewed up, her tongue is moving
the food around into a ball so the food is easier to swallow. With the teeth and tongue, there is no
chemical digestion occurring. At the same time, the salivary glands are secreting saliva with the
enzyme amylase. This enzyme breaks the starches (carbohydrates) into disaccharides. The food
then moves to the pharynx, a cone shaped passageway. There are three parts that make up the
pharynx; the nasopharynx, the oropharynx and the laryngopharynx. The pharynx works with the
oral cavity and esophagus to initiate swallowing. The pharynx's role in mechanical digestion is to
move chewed food to the esophagus. The role of the esophagus in mechanical digestion is that it
serves as a channel to move the food bolus to the stomach. To help move the food along down
the esophagus, peristalsis occurs. Peristalsis is a wavelike motion of alternating contraction and
relaxation, pushing the food down the esophagus.
After the food bolus goes through the esophagus, it then reaches the stomach. The
stomach churns, mixes and breaks down the food into smaller pieces so it can be used for energy.
There is also hydrochloric acid in the stomach to create the right conditions for enzymes to
chemically break down the toast and butter. Specifically, lipase in the stomach breaks down fats
from the butter into fatty acids. Once the food is done breaking down, it travels into the small
intestine which is located under the stomach. Unlike other organs, the small intestine is made up
of three sections; the duodenum, jejunum and the ileum. The small intestine breaks down food
using enzymes released from the pancreas and bile from the liver but the different parts of the
small intestine have specific roles. The duodenum is responsible for continuous breaking down
of the food which in this case is the toast and butter. The jejunum and ileums role is to absorb
nutrients into the bloodstream. In chemical digestion, the small intestine breaks down food even
further so that the body can use the nutrients from the toast and butter. Amylase is secreted into
the small intestine to break down carbohydrates into disaccharides and lipase is also secreted to
break down lipids even further. Next in the digestive tract is the large intestine but instead of
breaking down food, it has a different role. Like the small intestine, the large intestine is made up
of three sections which are the ascending, transverse and descending colon. The role of the large
intestine is to absorb water from the broken down food and return it to the bloodstream. Unlike
the small intestine, the large intestine does not break down food molecularly.
 While the toast and butter is in the stomach and small intestine, enzymes and bile are
being secreted from different organs to help break down the food. One organ that secretes
enzymes to help break down food is the the pancreas. The pancreas is attached to the duodenum
by a duct that carries enzymes to the small intestine. It secretes pancreatic amylase which helps
breaks down carbohydrates in the toast and butter into disaccharides and it also secretes
pancreatic lipase which helps breaks down the fats or lipids. Another accessory organ that helps
in the process of digestion is the liver. The main function of the liver is to secrete bile to help
metabolize carbohydrates, lipids and proteins. This bile which travels to the small intestine, helps
break down lipids in the toast and butter. Another accessory organ, the gallbladder, stores the
bile which is created by the liver and is released when lipids are present in the duodenum. When
the bile reaches the lipids, emulsification occurs. Emulsification is when the bile breaks fat
droplets into smaller fat droplets (mechanical digestion). This emulsification process also helps
the body absorb fats and vitamins such as A,D,E,K.
The final part to get rid of the undigested food is through the sigmoid colon. The sigmoid
colon connects the descending colon to the rectum. The recum is a storing place feces. These
feces are made up of bacteria, cells and undigested material such as cellulose. Once these feces
are ready to leave the body, the feces go through anal cavity.