Video narration
What really happens to a bite of lunch after you swallow it? First, your teeth crush it, and saliva starts digestion in your mouth. Muscular waves called peristalsis push the bite down the food pipe. In the stomach, your lunch is churned with acid and enzymes. Protein digestion begins here. But swallowing is not the end of eating. It starts a chemical journey: complex food is broken into smaller nutrients your body can absorb. In the small intestine, bile from the liver helps break fat into smaller droplets, while digestive juices and enzymes complete digestion. Villi, tiny projections, absorb nutrients into blood or lymph. The large intestine removes water, and waste leaves your body. So what happened to your lunch? It was chewed, chemically broken down, absorbed mainly in the small intestine, and its leftovers removed. The nutrients later help your cells make energy and body material.