The Esophagus
We return to our north to south tour of the
digestive system. Next stop after the
mouth is the esophagus. Actually the
esophagus is more like a transit point. We do not want anything to stop
there! The esophagus is the passageway
from the mouth to the stomach.
It has upper and lower valves. The upper valve insures that food goes into
the esophagus and not the trachea (which is used for moving the air we breathe
into our lungs). The lower esophageal
valve prevents food from coming back up.
This valve can become incompetent and not stay completely shut. When this occurs you may experience “acid
reflux” – the “back up” of “stomach acid.”
Several factors contribute to the lower esophageal
valve becoming incompetent including a nervous system reaction, hormonal
control, and pressure from the stomach.
Eating too much food (filling the stomach beyond a reasonable capacity) can
press the valve back up. The capacity of
the average stomach is just one liter (approximately four cups).
Nicotine, caffeine, sugar, and alcohol have also
been shown to make the lower valve incompetent. Once the valve has become
incompetent you become more susceptible to experiencing acid reflux on a
regular basis. We will discuss acid
reflux in much more detail later.
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