What continues to break down food once it has entered the stomach?

What continues to break down food once it has entered the stomach?

• A. Bile
• B. Saliva
• C. Hydrochloric acid
• D. Digestive enzymes

Answer: (C)

In the stomach, digestion continues through the action of gastric juice, with the acidic environment playing a central role. Hydrochloric acid lowers the pH of the stomach contents, which denatures proteins and activates the enzyme pepsin from its inactive form pepsinogen. Pepsin then begins breaking proteins into smaller peptides, so the acid conditions are essential for ongoing protein digestion in the stomach. Bile works in the small intestine to emulsify fats, saliva starts carbohydrate digestion in the mouth and is largely neutralized in the stomach, and while digestive enzymes like pepsin are the actual proteins that break bonds, they require the acidic environment created by hydrochloric acid to function.

In the stomach, digestion continues through the action of gastric juice, with the acidic environment playing a central role. Hydrochloric acid lowers the pH of the stomach contents, which denatures proteins and activates the enzyme pepsin from its inactive form pepsinogen. Pepsin then begins breaking proteins into smaller peptides, so the acid conditions are essential for ongoing protein digestion in the stomach. Bile works in the small intestine to emulsify fats, saliva starts carbohydrate digestion in the mouth and is largely neutralized in the stomach, and while digestive enzymes like pepsin are the actual proteins that break bonds, they require the acidic environment created by hydrochloric acid to function.