Stomach Acidity

Foods of various types have different ways of breaking down when in contact with the body’s stomach acid.

The digestive system is a series of organs that make up what is called the GI tract. The GI tract contains the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, anus, liver, pancreas, and gallbladder. The digestive system works as the food travels through each of the organs and uses bacteria to help with the digestion. The GI tract and bacteria help to break down and digest the food and liquids you eat and drink each day in order to get the nutrients. The digestive system breaks down each food into parts that are small enough to be absorbed and used by the body. Proteins are broken down by enzymes called pepsin.(NIDDK)

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Those that are credited with these findings are DeAnna E. Beasley, Amanda M. Koltz, Joanna E. Lambert, Noah Fierer, and Rob R. Dunn with their research paper on The Evolution of Stomach Acidity and Its Relevance to the Human Microbiome. It was also found in their findings that carnivores naturally had a higher pH so that lysis can start and break down the protein of their meat-based diets. Omnivores and piscivores had the most variables in their stomach acidities which is due to because of the varying species. Species that fed on fruit, leaves, and insects had the lowest pH levels. Insectivores were believed to use a different way of digesting chitin and the scientists working the experiment found that acid played a role in some of the cases for digestion of the chitin but not all of them. There was some confusion between the carrion feeders and the carnivores because of how the carrion feeders have higher acidity levels than the carnivores. In the discussion of The Evolution of Stomach Acidity and Its Relevance to the Human Microbiome is believed that they have the higher levels of acid because they need it to protect them from the colonization of foodborne

This depends on the amount of carbohydrates that is in a certain protein or fatty food. UCSB Science Line contributes to this by saying, “Generally speaking, carbohydrates tend to spend the least amount of time in the stomach, while protein stays in the stomach longer, and fats the longest. The time it takes to metabolize carbohydrates depends on the type. Simple sugars are metabolized much faster than more complex carbohydrates.” The slower digestion provides the body with a longer, more sustained energy rather than a quick burst of