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Article Topic: digestion
Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breaking down of food into smaller components that can be absorbed into a blood stream, for instance. Digestion is a form of catabolism a break-down of larger food molecules to smaller ones. In mammals, food enters the mouth, being chewed by teeth, with chemical processing beginning with chemicals in the saliva from the salivary glands. Then it travels down the esophagus into the stomach, where hydrochloric acid kills most contaminating microorganisms and begins mechanical break down of some food (e.g., denaturation of protein), and chemical alteration of some. The hydrochloric acid also has a low pH, which is great for enzymes. After some time (typically an hour or two in humans, 4–6 hours in dogs, somewhat shorter duration in house cats, ...), the results go through the small intestine, through the large intestine, and are excreted during defecation.[1] Other organisms use different mechanisms to digest food. Digestive systems take many forms. There is a fundamental distinction between internal and external digestion. External digestion was the first to evolve, and most fungi still rely on it.[2] In this process, enzymes are secreted into the environment surrounding the organism, where they break down an organic material, and some of the products diffuse back to the organism. Later, animals evolved by rolling into a tube and acquiring internal digestion, which is more efficient because more of the breakdown products can be captured, and the chemical environment can be more efficiently controlled.[3]
DIGESTION Related Articles
1. Yoga Exercises that Help to Improve Digestion
by Lovel Rose
Post Date: 04/09/2010
If you often experience digestive problems including constipation, irritable bowel, acidity, heavy stomach, acid refluxes, gas, or stomach pain, yoga may just be the perfect fix for you!
Yoga is one of the most popular alternative medical treatments which are growing rapidly around the world. For people who are looking to get away from over the counter drugs, yoga offers an alternative wit ...more...
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2. Lose Pounds Simply By Eating Slower
by Dawn McMillan
Post Date: 01/25/2010
During the rush of the contemporary world even food consumption is something we speed along in order to move on to the subsequent event. We have even created a complete new-found section of the catering industry to accommodate our rushed lifestyle. Fast food chains have sprung up on each high street and in every shopping centre, we are feeding on the move and it’s simple for it to develop to be a ...more...
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3. Get Natural Relief from Indigestion with Herbal Digestive Candy
by igor roshkovan
Post Date: 11/05/2009
Get Natural Relief from Indigestion with Herbal Digestive Candy
Painful indigestion and embarrassing gas may seem like part of the price you pay for over-indulging yourself during the holidays or at an all-you-can-eat buffet. But enjoying your favorite foods should not come at such a high cost. Herbal Digestive Candy is a tasty tablet that aids digestion, especially after a heavy meal. ...more...
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4. From the bitterness of disease man learns the sweetness of healt...
by Terry A Shackelford
Post Date: 10/01/2009
We have all heard the phrase " Death begins in the colon". Whether you buy in to the whole detoxing theory or not, you know that there are chemicals and additives in our food, water, air, household cleaners, cosmetics, hair dyes, clothing... well, you get the picture. Pretty much everything we come into contact with on a daily basis has something in it that is just ...more...
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5. Discover Why Colon Weight Loss Cleanse is Gaining Popularity
by Bishop Chanakira
Post Date: 07/27/2009
Are you one of those people that has struggled to lose weight for years? Do you find that the weight you lose soon comes back? Well you may be one of many people who is simply fighting an uphill battle - against your own body! Let me explain.
Your colon is part of the large intestine and plays a major role in removing waste matter from the body. When functioning as it should, the colon ...more...
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6. Secret Colon Weight Loss Cleanse Results Revealed
by Bishop Chanakira
Post Date: 07/27/2009
Are you one of those people that has struggled to lose weight for years? Do you find that the weight you lose soon comes back? Well you may be one of many people who is simply fighting an uphill battle - against your own body! Let me explain.
Your colon is part of the large intestine and plays a major role in removing waste matter from the body. When functioning as it should, the colon ...more...
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7. Who Else Wants to Lose Weight Without Starving?
by Emily Morris
Post Date: 05/19/2009
Any dieter knows that hunger is a main enemy of trying to lose weight. When you’re hungry, you’re probably thinking about food. When you’re hungry, you’re more likely to have cravings for certain foods, and also more likely to give in to them. When you’re hungry, you’re more likely to over eat at meal time. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to stop hunger at will, whenever it happened? What if you c ...more...
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8. Habit #4 "Eat Foods That Are Right For You"
by Linda Miner
Post Date: 04/06/2009
As a Registered Nutritionist, I have clients who come to me with a variety of ailments seeking to restore balance in their body. In this series of Lens "Habits for Vitality", I'm going to give you some basic habits to incorporate into your life to help you make the changes necessary to live an Optimal Life.
“What should I eat to be healthy?” I really wish there was one simple answer, but ...more...
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9. Fine Tune your Digestion
by Sandra Prior
Post Date: 08/13/2008
You are not what you eat. You are what you can digest and absorb. The fundamental design of the human body is a tube – a doughnut with a hole in the middle. And we, like other animals, spend our physical lives processing organic matter through this tube for waste. How good you are at this determines your energy level, longevity and state of body and mind, as well as your digestion.
Over a ...more...
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10. Acid Reflux and the "Type A" Personality
by Charles Stewart Richey
Post Date: 06/02/2008
Stress is one of the most common contributors to acid reflux. Of all the personality types, the type A personality is the most plagued by stress.
Contrary to common opinion these people are not always men. Many women have this type of personality, as well. The A type is extremely competitive, work obsessed, impatient, picky and even sometimes hostile. They simply do not know how to rel ...more...
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11. FREE Business with Amazing Healthy Product...
by Max Woody
Post Date: 05/20/2008
My name is Max Woody and I’d like to share some information on the benefits of operating an online business.
I’ve operated a Vending Machine Business in my home town area for over 13 years. My company, Best Choice Vending, Inc., is located out of Durham, NC.
My business provides vending services to several larger companies located in the Durham area. These include many of the Nursi ...more...
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12. All natural weight loss, "Guaranteed Results"...
by Max Woody
Post Date: 05/05/2008
Many of the weight loss products today either don’t work or there dangerous to your health. Just look at the ingredients list.
Weight loss pills and potions can be found just about everywhere. But do they really work and are these products safe to take?
Many of the pharmaceutical companies offer prescription drugs just for weight loss. Doctors prescribe these to their patients. Can ...more...
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13. Constipation: How Often You Should Go, Could Constipation Be The...
by Christine Kaczmar
Post Date: 04/28/2008
When it comes to moving your bowels, common questions I hear from my patients include:
“Doc, is twice a day too much?”
“I go once a day, but my husband goes three times a day. Am I normal?”
“How often is my 4-year old supposed to go?”
You may be surprised, but the biggest problem I see is not that people are having painful bowel movements- it’s that pe ...more...
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14. Natural Treatment for Acid Reflux
by Brian Balster
Post Date: 12/21/2007
Acid Reflux affects many Americans. But has anyone actually discovered the cause of acid reflux? Many people will take drugs to artificially stop the body from causing heartburn, but these drugs usually have worse side effects than the disease they are covering up. By addressing the cause of acid reflux, you can naturally heal yourself.
Acid reflux is caused by impro ...more...
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15. Acid Reflux Symptoms - The Miraculous Chia Seed Remedy!
by Charles Stewart Richey
Post Date: 12/17/2007
We’ve all seen those funny little clay animals that sprout hair when watered. They are covered in chia seed. They have been around for years and have become an American tradition. Who would have thought that those same tiny seeds would now be considered an important source of nutrition?
Chia comes from the Aztec word, “chian”, which means oily. It is high in omega-3 fatty acid; in fa ...more...
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16. Is Amino Acid A Good Alternative For Heartburn ?
by Mike Selvon
Post Date: 12/10/2007
You may recall amino acids from elementary science as "the building blocks of life." In fact, they make up 75% of the body and are required for every chemical reaction and every bodily function. So where do they come from? Ten amino acids come from our bodies naturally (alanine, asparagines, aspartic acid, cysteine glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, praline, serine and tyrosine). The other ten are ...more...
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17. Feeding your Dog A Raw Food Diet
by cyril scheer
Post Date: 12/06/2007
There are many reasons, counting all the pet food recalls last year, many animal lovers are looking for other options to commercial dog food. One of the options is raw a food diet for dogs.
The raw food diet for dogs would consist of what your dog would eat if he was a wild animal: raw meat, bones and vegetables. People who believe in this natural diet for dogs report showing tremendous im ...more...
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18. Lactobacillus Acidophilus
by Brian Balster
Post Date: 11/30/2007
Bacteria comes in two forms: the good and the bad. The good bacteria helps us digest our food. The bad bacteria infects our cells. When we get infected with this bad bacteria, most of us run to the doctor to get pills to kill this bad bacteria. Unfortunately, as we're killing the bad, we're also killing the good bacteria. Thus, anyone who's ever taken antibacterial medication can likely be ...more...
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19. What's The Contrast Between Good Fats and Bad Fats?
by Hamza Davis
Post Date: 11/26/2007
All of us have probably heard that too much fat in our diets is bad for our health. However, not all fats are bad. In fact, some fat is actually acceptable for us and is required by our body for competent function. Some of the uses that fat has in our body include:
1) Helps our body in the production of hormones
2) Insulates and cushions our body and internal organs
3) Keep ...more...
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20. Autism, Probiotics And The Lowly Sandwich
by Jean Shaw
Post Date: 05/18/2007
My son has autism and like many autistic individuals his diet had been a major issue. It is getting better though. Until he developed autism after his MMR vaccine my son would eat anything. He was a delight to feed. However, things changed and for years he literally lived on Hoola Hoops. They are small round potato rings with very little nutritional value what so ever. The ...more...
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21. Gastric Bypass Surgery And The Digestive System
by Donald Saunders
Post Date: 04/18/2007
We tend to use the term gastric bypass surgery somewhat loosely these days and include both true bypass operations such as the Roux-En-Y and popular and less radical forms of weight loss surgery such as gastric banding. While both have a role to play in curing the problem of obesity, bypass surgery takes full advantage of the body to affect weight loss and, in order to understand just how gastric ...more...
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22. Combating Constipation by Rulin Xiu, PhD
by Rulin Xiu, PhD
Post Date: 12/15/2006
“Death begins in the colon” quote from Dr. Bernard Jensen
Constipation is more then a just an agonizing condition. It’s downright hazardous to your health. Especially when occasional bouts of constipation become chronic. Left untreated, constipation can eventually lead to appendicitis, bad breath, body odor, depression, diverticulitis, fatigue, gas, headaches, hemorrhoids (piles), indige ...more...
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23. 24 Strong Reasons Why You May Need Vitamin and Mineral Supplemen...
by Marc David
Post Date: 11/27/2006
24 Strong Reasons Why You May Need Vitamin and Mineral Supplements
Have you ever wondered why taking a multi-vitamin is said to be an "insurance policy?" Or maybe you've heard that you don't need a multi-vitamin IF your nutrition is very good.
You know what I'm talking about right?
"You can get all the vitamins and minerals you need from good, whole foods. You don't ne ...more...
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24. The Importance of Enzymes for Health
by Mizpah Matus
Post Date: 11/08/2006
Enzymes are involved in the function and regulation of every organ system in the body and as such they are absolutely essential for life.
Enzymes play a vital role in the digestive system to promote the breakdown of food to prepare it for absorption by the body. Digestive enzymes must be maintained at their optimum level so that the digestive processes occur efficiently. If enzyme levels ...more...
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25. What is your Digestion like?
by Scott Cansdell
Post Date: 11/04/2006
Most people believe they have a great Diet BUT is it really that good????
Picture this! A cast iron pot hanging from a tepee of three sticks. Underneath the pot is a bunch of twigs to make a fire. In the pot is water, vegetables, and a small leg of pork….but we have a problem.
Nobody came to the party with matches to light the fire. T ...more...
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26. The Truth about Acid Reflux Disease
by Charles Stewart Richey
Post Date: 06/23/2006
First of all, acid reflux is not a disease. It is an acquired condition which can be completely healed by eating properly. I wonder if people had acid reflux, gerd and heartburn a thousand years ago. I sincerely doubt it. I believe it is a symptom of the quality of the food we eat today, our eating habits and the stressful times in which we live.
People who eat convenience food on the ...more...
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27. Acid Reflux Disease And Cancer
by Charles Stewart Richey
Post Date: 06/23/2006
Could A Supplement called MSM Be The Answer? Acid reflux or gerd (gastroesophageal reflux disease) is a condition in which fluid splashes up from the stomach into the esophagus. This fluid contains mostly acid with some pepsin and bile. All three of these fluids are potentially dangerous to the sensitive esophageal tissue, with acid being the most harmful. This refluxed fluid can inflam ...more...
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28. The Value Of High Water Content Food
by Dr Edward Steiner
Post Date: 03/08/2006
Do you want to know how to feel good? Do you want to be vibrant for a long time? Take care of your body and it will take care of you.
Digestion takes probably more energy than anything else. The average meal takes 3 hours and 30 minutes to digest if combined properly. Incorrectly combined food can sometimes take up to 14 hours to digest. This is a very powerful way to conserve ener ...more...
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29. Gas? Bloating? Indigestion? Not Anymore!
by "Dr. Williams' Mountain Home Nutritionals Team"
Post Date: 01/06/2006
Dear Reader,
For years, Dr. Williams has written about the many benefits of probiotics -- dietary supplements that contain the healthy or "life- giving" bacteria your digestive system needs. Although he's been singing their praises for more than 10 years, there have been several big drawbacks.
First, probiotics contain live microorganisms, which are very fragile and wil ...more...
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30. Vitamin and Mineral Digestion Taken For Granted
by Kristy Haugen
Post Date: 11/28/2005
Copyright 2005 Kristy Haugen
The body is a complex web of systems. Most are not fully aware of the complexity of the digestive system. However, most know of its opposite, indigestion. Most do not realize how amazing the body can be, especially the digestive tract. When the process of digestion is described as fascinating, passing gas isn?t going to be the major focus (flatulence), but mo ...more...
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