The digestive system is sometimes called the gastrointestinal system, but neither name fully describes the system's functions or components. The organs of the digestive system also produce clotting factors and hormones unrelated to digestion, help remove toxic substances from the blood, and chemically alter (metabolize) drugs.
The digestive system, which extends from the mouth to the anus, is responsible for receiving food, breaking it down into nutrients, absorbing the nutrients into the bloodstream, and eliminating the indigestible parts of food from the body. The digestive tract consists of the mouth, throat, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, rectum, and anus. The digestive system also includes organs that lie outside the digestive tract: the pancreas, the liver, and the gallbladder.
