There is no definite time for the overall digestion of food as it is influenced by several factors that make it vary. However, the best answer that can be given is a time frame. On that note, digestion from the point of – salivating, swallowing, passing through the digestive tract, until final excretion; takes between 1 to 3 days.
Some health resource bodies claim the process can take as long as 5 days. This is understandable as some factors can necessitate this. Read on to find out more about how long it takes to digest food and some other related subjects.
Summary
Which Digestive Channels Are Involved in Food Digestion?
Digestive channels like the mouth, esophagus, liver, small intestine, large intestine, colon, pancreas, gallbladder, and a few others are largely involved in the process of digestion and excretion of food in the body. Bowel activities happen in these digestive channels. The bowel activities that take place in the digestive tract (for healthy digestion and excretion) happen largely in the stomach.
Foods spend the least amount of time in the mouth where chewing and/or swallowing occur. The next part of the gut system at work is the esophagus. Subsequently, food ends up in the stomach.
Here, the breaking down of food particles occurs and this will take a long while. This is at least compared to what has unfolded before this point. It takes the activities of digestive acid (enzymes) and other things to break down food in the stomach and this happens for hours.
Next, the walls of the small intestine (also known as the small bowel), takes the nutrients of the food you eat. This is before the remaining foods consumed in the eating process are led into the large intestine (also known as the large bowel). In the large intestine, parts like the colon play a very important role in the final excretion process (feces formation and ejection).
Factors that Influence How Long Digestion and Excretion Takes
Giving a definite time food will be digested and excreted is near impossible. It does not work that way as many factors are involved. These factors do not play out the same way all the time. To put things in perspective, some of the factors at work include:
- The type and quantity of food consumed
- Rate of Metabolism
- Possible Conditions Affecting and Influencing the Digestive Tract
- Gender
- Medications that You Take
- Level of Physical Activity
These and a lot more are some of the factors responsible for how long food digestion and excretion will take. In no particular order, let’s go through just a few of them:
Diet Consumed and Quantity
The process of digestion and excretion is one important reason you need to pay attention to your diet. Certain food classes digest and are excreted easily. Water and many other liquids are perfect examples.
On the other hand, some foods even cause bowel complications like constipation. Consuming a proper diet is also important for effective weight management. This is why some experts advise indulging in intermittent fasting.
Protein, fat, fiber, vegetables, carbs, vitamins, and other food options do not digest at the same pace. For example, foods high in fiber do not take too long to digest. This is especially when compared to a diet high in food classes like protein and fat. Little wonder, fiber has been proven to help with weight loss.
Rate of Metabolism
The pace of metabolic activities is not the same for everyone. Depending on several factors; it is fast, moderate, and slow for certain people.
The faster the rate of metabolism, the quicker food digests, converts to energy, and even gets excreted. This is why it is hard (although possible) to gain weight if you have a fast metabolism.
Conclusion
Seeing how important food digestion and excretion are, eating the right diet for healthy living is strongly advised. Other than that, make out time for regular checkups with your doctor. This is to detect symptoms of digestive problems before they become a full-scale disease and cause you so much pain. You can see the Nutrition section of the Alzdem Health website for more information.
