This photograph shows two women eating apples.
Figure 23.0 – Eating Apples: Eating may be one of the simple pleasures in life, but digesting even one apple requires the coordinated work of many organs. (credit: “Aimanness Photography”/Flickr)

Learning Objectives

After studying this chapter, you will be able to:

23.1     Describe the functional histology of the alimentary canal

23.2     Describe the processes and control of ingestion, propulsion, mechanical digestion, chemical digestion, absorption, and defecation

23.3     Describe the functional anatomy and digestive processes of the mouth, pharynx, and esophagus

23.4     Describe the functional anatomy and digestive processes of the stomach

23.5     Describe the functional anatomy and digestive processes of the liver, pancreas, and gall bladder

23.6     Describe the functional anatomy and digestive processes of the small and large intestines

23.7     Describe digestion and absorption of carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, minerals, vitamins, and water

The digestive system is continually at work, yet people seldom appreciate the complex tasks it performs in a choreographed biologic symphony. Consider what happens when you eat an apple. Of course, you enjoy the apple’s taste as you chew it, but in the hours that follow, unless something goes amiss and you get a stomachache, you don’t notice that your digestive system is working. You may be taking a walk or studying or sleeping, having forgotten all about the apple, but your stomach and intestines are busy digesting it and absorbing its vitamins and other nutrients. By the time any waste material is excreted, the body has appropriated all it can use from the apple. In short, whether you pay attention or not, the organs of the digestive system perform their specific functions, allowing you to use the food you eat to keep you going. This chapter examines the structure and functions of these organs, and explores the mechanics and chemistry of the digestive processes.


This work, Anatomy & Physiology, is adapted from Anatomy & Physiology by OpenStax, licensed under CC BY. This edition, with revised content and artwork, is licensed under CC BY-SA except where otherwise noted.

Images, from Anatomy & Physiology by OpenStax, are licensed under CC BY except where otherwise noted.

Access the original for free at https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology/pages/1-introduction.

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Mohawk - PN Structure & Function of the Human Body Copyright © 2019 by Lindsay M. Biga, Staci Bronson, Sierra Dawson, Amy Harwell, Robin Hopkins, Joel Kaufmann, Mike LeMaster, Philip Matern, Katie Morrison-Graham, Kristen Oja, Devon Quick, Jon Runyeon, OSU OERU, and OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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