Question

Ch 14 name two regions of the digestive tract where mechanical food breakdown occurs and explain

Answer 1

Mechanical food breakdown occurs primarily in the mouth and stomach. The mouth starts the process through chewing, which mixes food with saliva, while the stomach further breaks down food via muscular contractions, leading to the formation of chyme.

Step-by-step explanation:

The two regions of the digestive tract where mechanical food breakdown occurs are the mouth and the stomach. In the mouth, mechanical digestion begins with mastication, or chewing, where the food is broken into smaller pieces and mixed with saliva to form a bolus. This process not only reduces the size of the food particles but also increases their surface area to enhance further digestion.

Once the food reaches the stomach, mechanical digestion continues through the churning actions of the stomach muscles. These contractions further break apart the food, creating a mixture known as chyme, which is then ready for chemical digestion and eventual absorption in the intestines.

Answer 2

The answer is mouth and stomach. In the mouth, teeth are responsible for the mastication of the food into small particles before swallowing. In the stomach, the food is continuously churned by the stomach wall muscles as it mixes with enzymes and HCl hence breaking down the food both mechanically and chemically.