Poop Hips

So we begin with input too big to swallow. Teeth & chewing also fold in some enzymes from saliva that get a head start breaking down food substances. Much of that substance is, at the molecular level, made of long strings of repeating units. Some are like pearl necklaces of main units connected by links. Most are more like strings of close line clips clipped head to tail in long sequences. Some of those protein and starchy connections are disconnected by the salivary enzymes. Many are burst by the stomach hydrochloric acid. Nasty stuff. That section of the long tube called the ‘stomach’ doesn’t just hold chewed food. It does the bulk of acid type disconnection but requires an inner structure and processes to not dissolve itself. A valve-like stomach entry prevents this acid from touching the less protected tube from teeth to stomach. The tube section going from mouth to the stomach is the esophagus ( Greek: to carry to the gut [phagus = to eat]). A valve at the far side of the stomach area helps retain the food in the acid bath long enough to be effective. There is a serious complexity en route to the stomach. These “valves” are rings of muscle that simply squeeze the tube tight in specific places. They must – quickly – respond so as to not block entry into the stomach nor loosen too much and thus allow acid to go into the less protected intestinal tubing faster than that section can buffer the acid. When acid flows into esophagus, it burns. There are names of postures that are seen and noted to tell us when a nonverbal person has such burning in the esophagus.