Healthy Digestion and Absorption of Nutrients
Good nutrition begins with a healthy diet. But healthy digestion and absorption of nutrients into your bloodstream are essential next steps. Here's how healthy digestion and absorption works.
When you eat food, it's not in a form that your body can use as nourishment.
Healthy digestion changes food into small molecules for absorption of nutrients into your blood. Nutrition can then be carried to cells throughout your body by your blood circulation to be used to build and nourish cells and provide energy. These are necessary steps for cellular nutrition.
The Path of Healthy Digestion and Absorption
Your digestive system is made up of a series of hollow organs joined together by a long twisting tube that goes from your mouth to your anus. A mucus membrane lining in your mouth, stomach and small intestines contains tiny glands that produce digestive juices used to break down food.
Food digestion begins in the mouth and is completed in the small intestine with food absorption.
Before basic nutrition from carbohydrates, proteins, fats and liquids can be absorbed into your cells they have to be turned into smaller molecules. Carbohydrate digestion begins in your mouth, protein digestion begins in your stomach and fat digestion begins in your intestines.
Most digested nutrients, such as amino acids and simple sugars, vitamins, minerals and water can pass directly through your intestinal walls into the bloodstream to be carried to your cells.
Your liver, pancreas and nerves also play a role in the healthy digestion and absorption of nutrients. Once food is broken down into simple components, you’re ready for food absorption.
This takes place in the ileum, which is part of your small intestine.
The inner walls of the ileum are covered with thousands of minute finger-like structures called villi. Some of the digested food passes through the thin walls of the villi into tiny blood vessels.
But digested fats (lipids) and fat-soluble nutrients need more work and take a less direct route. Fats are absorbed into special lymphatic system vessels before moving into your bloodstream.
Food Absorption of Nutrients into the Blood
With healthy digestion, muscles in the walls of your esophagus, stomach and intestines work to mix and push food and fluids through your digestive system. This action is called peristalsis. Healthy peristalsis resembles waves of ocean surf moving food through your digestive system.
Once the food, liquids and digestive juices have been mixed, your stomach slowly empties the contents into your small intestine for further food digestion. Finally, all the digested nutrients are absorbed through the intestinal walls to be carried to your cells through your blood circulation.
If you eat a super healthy diet that includes some raw foods, and don't overeat, which also helps in maintaining healthy digestion, you shouldn't have to be absorbed with food absorption.
Be sure to check out my Natural Health Newsletter.
Click here for the Site Map.
Articles you might also enjoy:
Healthy Food List and Healthy Eating Guide
Do you Need Nutritional Supplements
Food Digestion and Digestive System Diagram
Alphabetical List of Vegetables and Their Rankings
© Copyright Moss Greene. All Rights Reserved.
To subscribe to the Natural Health Newsletter, just enter your email address in the subscribe box at the bottom of this page.
© Copyright Moss Greene. All Rights Reserved.
Note: The information contained on this website is not intended to be prescriptive. Any attempt to diagnose or treat an illness should come under the direction of a physician who is familiar with nutritional therapy.
When you eat food, it's not in a form that your body can use as nourishment.
Healthy digestion changes food into small molecules for absorption of nutrients into your blood. Nutrition can then be carried to cells throughout your body by your blood circulation to be used to build and nourish cells and provide energy. These are necessary steps for cellular nutrition.
The Path of Healthy Digestion and Absorption
Your digestive system is made up of a series of hollow organs joined together by a long twisting tube that goes from your mouth to your anus. A mucus membrane lining in your mouth, stomach and small intestines contains tiny glands that produce digestive juices used to break down food.
Food digestion begins in the mouth and is completed in the small intestine with food absorption.
Before basic nutrition from carbohydrates, proteins, fats and liquids can be absorbed into your cells they have to be turned into smaller molecules. Carbohydrate digestion begins in your mouth, protein digestion begins in your stomach and fat digestion begins in your intestines.
Most digested nutrients, such as amino acids and simple sugars, vitamins, minerals and water can pass directly through your intestinal walls into the bloodstream to be carried to your cells.
Your liver, pancreas and nerves also play a role in the healthy digestion and absorption of nutrients. Once food is broken down into simple components, you’re ready for food absorption.
This takes place in the ileum, which is part of your small intestine.
The inner walls of the ileum are covered with thousands of minute finger-like structures called villi. Some of the digested food passes through the thin walls of the villi into tiny blood vessels.
But digested fats (lipids) and fat-soluble nutrients need more work and take a less direct route. Fats are absorbed into special lymphatic system vessels before moving into your bloodstream.
Food Absorption of Nutrients into the Blood
With healthy digestion, muscles in the walls of your esophagus, stomach and intestines work to mix and push food and fluids through your digestive system. This action is called peristalsis. Healthy peristalsis resembles waves of ocean surf moving food through your digestive system.
Once the food, liquids and digestive juices have been mixed, your stomach slowly empties the contents into your small intestine for further food digestion. Finally, all the digested nutrients are absorbed through the intestinal walls to be carried to your cells through your blood circulation.
If you eat a super healthy diet that includes some raw foods, and don't overeat, which also helps in maintaining healthy digestion, you shouldn't have to be absorbed with food absorption.
Be sure to check out my Natural Health Newsletter.
Click here for the Site Map.
Articles you might also enjoy:
Healthy Food List and Healthy Eating Guide
Do you Need Nutritional Supplements
Food Digestion and Digestive System Diagram
Alphabetical List of Vegetables and Their Rankings
© Copyright Moss Greene. All Rights Reserved.
To subscribe to the Natural Health Newsletter, just enter your email address in the subscribe box at the bottom of this page.
© Copyright Moss Greene. All Rights Reserved.
Note: The information contained on this website is not intended to be prescriptive. Any attempt to diagnose or treat an illness should come under the direction of a physician who is familiar with nutritional therapy.
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