Which organ sterilizes ingested food? Salivary glands, Stomach, Pancreas, or Liver Thank-you!
The organ that sterilizes ingested food is the stomach. The stomach plays a crucial role in the digestive system by producing stomach acid, also known as gastric acid or gastric juice. This acid helps in breaking down and sterilizing the food we ingest.
To understand this, let's break down the answer and look at each option:
- Salivary glands: Salivary glands produce saliva, which contains enzymes that start the digestive process by helping to break down food particles. However, they do not sterilize the food.
- Stomach: As mentioned earlier, the stomach is responsible for sterilizing the ingested food through the production of stomach acid. This acid has a low pH, usually around 1-2, which helps kill harmful bacteria and pathogens present in the food.
- Pancreas: The pancreas is primarily involved in producing enzymes and hormones to aid digestion. It secretes digestive enzymes into the small intestine to break down food further, but it does not sterilize the food.
- Liver: The liver has several functions in the body, such as producing bile, which is essential for the digestion and absorption of fats. However, sterilizing ingested food is not one of its roles.
In summary, out of the provided options, the stomach is the organ responsible for sterilizing ingested food. It achieves this by producing stomach acid, which kills harmful bacteria and pathogens in the food.