Digestion and Absorption: Introduction

Digestion and Absorption

We all eat food. If you do not take breakfast in the morning how do you feel by noon? The food we eat provides energy and organic substances for growth and for replacement of worn and damaged tissues. It also regulates and coordinates the various activities that take place in our body. The components of our food are carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, vitamins, minerals, fibre and water. We obtain food from plant and animal sources. The food, we eat are macromolecules, and cannot directly enter into our cells. These have to be broken into smaller micromolecules in absorbable forms, for which we need a digestive system. Plants however are autotrophs and synthesize their food, hence they do not require a digestive system. The primary function of the digestive system in the animals is to bring the nutrients, water and electrolytes from the external environment into every cell in the body through the circulatory system.