8. What is our stomach made of?
Our stomach is bag shaped with a capacity of about one litre. It
receives the food from the oesophagus and mixes and churns the
food with enzymes and acid. Food remains in the stomach for three
to four hours and then passes to intestine for further digestion.
The stomach wall has three layers of muscles lengthwise, circular
and slanting. These muscles help in churning the food.
It has a rich supply of blood vessels which bring nutrients and
oxygen to the stomach. The stomach wall contains glands which
secrete gastric juice, a liquid containing acid and enzymes to digest
the food.
The stomach wall is protected from the corrosive action of the acid as
it is lined with thick mucus. If due to some reason, the wall comes in
contact with the acid, painful ulcers are formed inside.
