Digestive System Diseases and Disorders the Digestive

Digestive System Diseases and Disorders

The digestive system is made up of the "digestive tract" -- which is, according to the National Institutes of Health, a "series of hollow organs joined in a long, twisting tube from the mouth to the anus" -- and additional organs that are part of the system that helps humans "break down and absorb food" (National Institutes of Health -- NIH, 2009). If something goes wrong in the digestive system it can have serious consequences for the individual. This paper identifies some of the disorders that are associated with the digestive system. The organs that are part of the digestive system include the mouth, the esophagus, the stomach, the small and large intestines (the large intestine is also called the "colon"), the rectum and the anus (NIH, p. 1).

The digestive system is one of the most important parts of the human body because food intake is what gives the body the nourishment to function properly. The digestive system is a key part of the functioning body because, as the NIH writes, "When you eat foods -- like bread, meat, and vegetables -- they are not in the form that the body can use as nourishment" (p. 1). The food and liquids that humans take in have to be "changed into smaller molecules of nutrients before they can be absorbed into the blood" (NIH, p. 1). Once the molecules of nutrients are absorbed into the blood system, they are then circulated throughout the body and give the person the energy to function well.

Disorders and Diseases in the Digestive System

The list of disorders and diseases that can afflict a person in the digestive system is long; for the purposes of this paper a few will be mentioned: Acid Reflux, Appendicitis, Bile Duct Diseases, Intestinal Obstruction, Esophagus Disorders, Cirrhosis, Colon Cancer, Chron's Disease, Diabetes, Diarrhea, Duodenal Ulcer, Foodborne Illness, Gallstones, Gastrointestinal Bleeding, Hemorrhoids, Hepatitis A, B, C, Hernia, Jaundice, Liver Cancer, and Gastroenteritis.

Meanwhile one of the most common disorders of the digestive system is Foodborne illness; the National Library of Medicine, part of the Institutes of Health, explains that about 76 million Americans get sick from contaminated food each year (nlm.nih.gov). The "common culprits" that make people sick from food are bacteria, parasites and viruses. Getting Foodborne sickness is most often the result of "harmful bacteria," the NLM reports. There may be bacteria on the food that is bought at the store or the farmer's market (which is it why it's important to wash produce thoroughly); and in terms of raw meat, it may have become contaminated when it was slaughtered or it may have been left out at room temperature once it was brought home to the kitchen, the NLM information continues.