Food breakdown

Food which is ingested moves through the digestive tract. It is both mechanically (chewing, churning) and chemically (digestive juices) broken down. Part of it is transformed into soluble nutrients which are absorbed into the blood in the small intestine and then carried to the organs. In the bowel, undigested food is eliminated as excrement.

The animation presents a view of the dissection of the digestive tract of the rabbit, and of the state of the food being digested at each major step along the way.