To understand the causes of gastritis, must one first have a small amount of knowledge of the anatomy and physiology

of the stomach.

The esophagus is the organ into which the swallowed food is pushed. It connects the throat above with the stomach below. At the junction of the esophagus and stomach, there is a ringlike valve closing the passage between the two organs. However, as the food approaches the closed ring, the surrounding muscles relax and allow the food to pass.

The food then enters the stomach, which is a muscular, hollow sack which is located in the upper left portion of your abdomen. When empty, the sack folds into itself, much as a folded accordion would look. However, as food empties into the sac, the stomach acts much like a balloon, and will expand.

The stomach has three mechanical tasks to do. First, the stomach must store the swallowed food and liquid. This requires the muscle of the upper part of the stomach to relax and accept large volumes of swallowed material. The second job is to mix up the food, liquid, and digestive juice produced by the stomach. The lower part of the stomach mixes these materials by its muscle action. The third task of the stomach is to empty its contents slowly into the small intestine.

Several factors affect emptying of the stomach, including the nature of the food (mainly its fat and protein content) and the degree of muscle action of the emptying stomach and the next organ to receive the contents (the small intestine). As the food is digested in the small intestine and dissolved into the juices from the pancreas, liver, and intestine, the contents of the intestine are mixed and pushed forward to allow further digestion.

Finally, all of the digested nutrients are absorbed through the intestinal walls. The waste products of this process include undigested parts of the food, known as fiber, and older cells that have been shed from the mucosa. These materials are propelled into the colon, where they remain, usually for a day or two, until the feces are expelled by a bowel movement

Glands responsible for digestion

The glands that act first are in the mouththe salivary glands. Saliva produced by these glands contains an enzyme that begins to digest the starch from food into smaller molecules.

The next set of digestive glands is in the stomach lining. They produce stomach acid and an enzyme that digests protein. One of the unsolved puzzles of the digestive system is why the acid juice of the stomach does not dissolve the tissue of the stomach itself. In most people, the stomach mucosa is able to resist the juice, although food and other tissues of the body cannot.

Mucus: The most abundant epithelial cells are mucous cells, which cover the entire lumenal surface and extend down into the glands as mucous neck cells. These cells secrete a bicarbonate-rich mucus that coats and lubricates the gastric surface, and serves an important role in protecting the epithelium from acid and other chemical insults.

Acid: Hydrochloric acid is the acid which for years we have commonly attributed many problems to within our stomach. This acid is so caustic, that it can dissolve nails. It creates a very acidic environment which allows the activation of many other enzymes needed for digestion. It also inactivates bacteria which may have been swallowed while eating.

Proteases such as pepsinogen are secreted from the stomach lining, and starts the process of protein digestion (carbohydrates and fats are digested in the intestines). Chymosin (rennin) is also a protease which coagulates milk, allowing it to be retained longer within the stomach for digestion.

Gastrin is a hormone in your stomach that causes your stomach to produce acid. The acid is used to dissolve and digest foods. Gastrin is also necessary for the normal growth of the stomach lining.

Ghrelin is a hormone produced in the stomach in the absence of food in the digestive system and stimulates appetite

 Nerve regulators such as acetylcholine which causes acids to be released in the stomach and enhances the force of the stomach contraction, so full is propelled through the stomach to the intestines. Adrenaline, another nerve regulator, relaxes the walls of the stomach.

Intrinsic factors are also secreted. The best known function of these intrinsic factors are the part they play in enabling vitamin B12 to be absorbed from the intestines.

Now that you are fortified with knowledge of how the stomach works, you are in a better place to understand how things can go wrong, and cause disease. Please see other articles within this web-site for further information about abnormal body processes or causes of gastritis. Gastritis: A Brief Description Gastritis is not one disease, but a group of conditions. Inflammation of the stomach line defines gastritis. Usually, the inflammation is caused by a bacteria, h. pylori, that causes stomach ulcers; however, traumatic injury, regular use of medications such as motrin or aspirin, and chronic alcohol misuse may also cause inflammation. The symptoms are common in all the conditions: a burning pain in your upper abdomen and at times, bloating, belching, nausea or vomiting. For some people, chronic inflammation may lead to stomach cancer; however, in most people symptoms abate quickly with treatment.