Teeth chop food into small pieces, which Tongue
are moistened by saliva before the tongue
and other muscles push the food into the It is a fleshy and muscular sensory organ,
pharynx. and the very first sensory information is
received via the taste buds on its surface.
Teeth It also helps to push food toward the
posterior part of the mouth for
Teeth are made of a bone-like material swallowing.
called dentin, which is covered by the The outside of the tongue contains many
hardest tissue in the body enamel. rough papillae for gripping food as it is
The number of teeth in an adult person is moved by the tongue’s muscles.
32. The taste buds on the surface of the tongue
It designed for cutting and grinding food detect taste molecules in food and connect
into smaller pieces. to nerves in the tongue to send taste
information to the brain.
Salivary Glands
It produces a watery secretion known as
saliva.
It helps to moisten food and begins the
Incisors are the teeth in the very front. digestion of carbohydrates.
They’re the sharpest teeth, built to cut food The body also uses saliva to lubricate food
and shaped to shovel the food inward. as it passes through the mouth, pharynx,
and esophagus.
Canine teeth are in the corners of your mouth.
Because they’re meant for grasping and Pharynx (throat)
tearing food, they have very long roots.
It is a funnel shaped tube connected to the
Premolars are located just behind your posterior end of the mouth.
Canine teeth. Premolars have a more flat It helps in passing chewed food from the
chewing surface because they’re meant for mouth to the esophagus.
crushing food. Air from the nasal cavity passes through
the pharynx on its way to the larynx and
Molars are the last teeth towards the back of
eventually the lungs.
your mouth. Molars are much bigger than the
Premolars and have bigger, flatter chewing
surfaces because their job is to chew and grind
the food into smaller pieces.
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