Your esophagus is a hollow, muscular tube that connects your throat to your stomach and transports food and liquid. Food and fluids flow from your lips to your throat first when you swallow (pharynx). The epiglottis is a tiny muscle flap that shuts to keep food and drink from flowing down the “wrong pipe” – your windpipe (trachea).

The stomach feeds into the duodenum, which is the initial segment of the small intestine. It’s a 10-inch-long descending funnel that curves in a “C” form around the pancreas before joining to the remainder of the coiled intestines.

The liver filters all of the blood that passes the stomach and intestines. The liver processes blood, breaking down, balancing, and creating nutrients, as well as metabolizing medications into forms that are easier to use or harmless for the rest of the body.