Anatomy Involved in Crohn Disease

Digestive Disease Myths Slideshow

• Overview of the Digestive System
• How the Digestive System is Involved in Crohn Disease
• For More Information
• Web Links
• Synonyms and Keywords
• Authors and Editors

Overview of the Digestive System

The digestive system is made up of the digestive tract, which is a long series of organs, including the esophagus, the stomach, the small intestine, and the large intestine, that runs from the mouth to the anus. The digestive tract in an adult is about 30 feet long.
 
Digestion begins in the mouth where saliva begins to break down food. Food is swallowed from the mouth into the esophagus, which then moves the chewed food to the stomach. The stomach has strong muscular walls that mix and churn the food with acid and enzymes (known as gastric juice), breaking the food into smaller pieces. The processed semiliquid food, called chyme, is slowly released from the stomach into the small intestine.
 
Most digestion and absorption occurs in the small intestine. The small intestine has 3 parts: the duodenum, the jejunum, and the ileum. Enzymes and other substances made by intestinal cells, the pancreas, and the liver are secreted into the small intestine and breakdown starches, sugars, fats, and proteins. Absorption of nutrients occurs through the millions of tiny fingerlike projections called villi and the even tinier projections on the villi called microvilli. Any undigested material moves to the large intestine. The large intestine has 3 parts: the cecum, the colon, and the rectum. The main job of the large intestine is to remove water and salts (electrolytes) from the undigested material and to form solid waste (feces) that can be excreted. The remaining contents of the large intestine move to the rectum, where feces are stored until they leave the body through the anus as a bowel movement. See Anatomy of the Digestive System for more information.