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The Digestive System

The digestive tract, one of the largest of all body systems, extends approximately 30 feet long and extends as a long continuous tube, from mouth to anus! This system is unique in that it is strictly speaking "outside the body". That is, it's long continuous tube communicates with the outside world. The digestive system is 2nd in importance in terms of function to the master controlling system, the nervous system. Find out why.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 6/19/2003

The digestive system is divided into regions that specialize in the process of digestion. The tract is primarily composed of a layer of cells, that secrete digestive juices and mucous as well as absorb nutrients, surrounded by muscle. It includes the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and large intestine. We'll describe the digestive process in detail.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 11/9/2012

We take you through the entire digestive tract and cover every organ. It would be good to understand the factory that runs this energy processing center we call the digestive system.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 7/22/2003

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by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 7/22/2003

The health survey finds out about the state of your health. You may discover things about your health you didn't know before. This increased awareness of your health can help you take the appropriate action to improve the state of your body's function.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 1/7/2013

The liver is one of the most important organs in the human body. Our largest organ, the liver is located in a central position of the abdomen, and is intimately involved in almost every aspect of the body's processes. Because of its central role, liver disease strikes at the very heart of the body's functions and processes - and can be extremely life-threatening. You cannot live without a liver. We cover in detail the functions of the liver.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 3/7/2009

Pancreatic Elastase (PE) is a simple, noninvasive fecal marker for assessing exocrine pancreatic function, allowing the clinician to establish a prompt and reliable diagnosis with high degrees of sensitivity (90%-100%) and specificity (93%-98%) in suspected cases of pancreatic insufficiency.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 10/23/2012

I often tell my patients that the gastrointestinal tract is much like a carburetor in a car. Your digestive tract tract must take gasoline (your food), and then mix it with air (enzymes and other digestive juices). If this mixing process goes well, your car runs and doesn't cough or sputter. How efficiently your fuel burns determines to a large extent how many years you're going to get out of your car. Although a rather crude analogy, this principle does hold true for the human digestive tract. There are many points along the digestive where some "burning" process can go awry and cause seemingly unrelated problems elsewhere in the body. This article will discuss those various places and give you a very good detail of what can go wrong.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 6/19/2003

The esophagus is a muscular tube about nine and a half inches long, that is lined with soft moist tissue, called mucosa. This mucosa is pink and moist and appears very much like the inside of our cheek. The mucosa, which lines the esophagus and most of the digestive tract, allows for easy movement of food through the tract. It also helps to protect the digestive tract from the acids and enzymes that are produced to convert food into small molecules.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 6/19/2003

The gall bladder is a hollow organ that lies directly under and abutting the liver. It is connected to the liver and upper portion part of the small intestine via a duct system. The gall bladder's purpose is to collect and store bile from the activities of the liver then release it at the appropriate time into the small intestine. It is a muscular organ, contracting during the first part of digestion. Ingesting especially fatty meals can increase the intensity of the contraction.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 6/19/2003

The large intestine serves as a reservoir for the liquids emptied into it, through the ileocecal valve, from the small intestine. It has a much larger diameter than the small intestine.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 6/20/2003

The liver is the largest gland in the vertebrate body, composed of a spongy mass of wedge-shaped lobes that has many metabolic and secretory functions. It is a reddish-brown in color and is located in the upper right part of the abdominal cavity extending 3-4 inches to the left of the midline. It weighs about three pounds and is approximately 3-5% fat. It performs over 500 functions.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 12/8/2011

In humans the pancreas weighs approximately 80 grams, has roughly the configuration of an inverted smoker's pipe, and is situated in the upper abdomen. The head of the pancreas (equivalent to the bowl of the pipe) is immediately adjacent to the duodenum, while its body and tail extend across the midline nearly to the spleen. The bulk of pancreatic tissue is devoted to its exocrine function, the elaboration of digestive enzymes that are secreted via the pancreatic ducts into the duodenum.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 10/15/2003

Besides the many minute glands that secrete saliva, there are three major pairs of salivary glands: the parotid, the submandibular, and the sublingual glands.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 9/20/2003

The small intestine is the largest part of the gastrointestinal tract and is composed of the duodenum which is about one foot long, the jejunum (5-8 feet long), and the ileum (16-20 feet long).

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 6/23/2003

The stomach is a hollow and muscular organ whose interior surface consists of a series of expandable folds, called rugae. The rugae allow the stomach to expand and contract in relation to the volume of food and fluid. Although rarely necessary, the stomach can expand to a capacity of seven liters! The stomach functions to mix, store, and begin digestion of food.

by Dr. Gary Farr — Last Updated on 8/24/2003

The teeth are hard white structures found in the mouth of humans and many other animals and usually are used for mastication. We discuss the structures that are involved in the first part of digestion.