How many layers of the stomach does food pass through to reach the liver and the blood?

Do you know? How many layers of the stomach does food pass through to reach the liver and the blood?

Do you think food goes straight into the blood?

Wrong!

Know the 'secret' route of your food!

Lumen → Mucosa (Villi) → Submucosa vessels → Portal vein → Liver→ Blood →

We think I ate food, it went into my stomach, and I got energy right away!

But the truth is much more interesting and complicated.

The breakfast you wake up and eat, or the fruit you eat, does not go straight to your brain or muscles.

It first has to pass a high-security 'quality control' (QC) gate, and the 'main boss' of that gate is the liver!

Let's see today what this 'secret tunnel' or 'VIP journey' of food digestion actually looks like.

From Food to Liver: The Main 5 Steps

Let's see the 5-step journey of food absorption to the liver in a very simple way.

Step 1: Food → Inside the Small Intestine (Lumen)

First, our food passes through the stomach and enters the Small Intestine. The empty passage or tunnel inside this intestine is called the 'Lumen'. It is in this lumen that food is broken down and digested to form very small nutrient particles (such as glucose, amino acids).

Step 2: Absorption through Villi

The inner wall of the small intestine (called the mucosa layer) has millions of finger-like folds. These are called 'Villi'. These are the 'main doors' of nutrient absorption. All the digested nutrients are absorbed through these villi and enter the intestinal wall.

Step 3: Entering the Submucosa Blood Vessels

Right after the nutrients are absorbed through the villi, they move to the next layer of the intestinal wall (the submucosa). This layer contains numerous capillary networks or tiny blood vessels. The nutrient particles enter directly into these blood vessels.

Step 4: Journey to the Portal Vein

These thousands of tiny blood vessels in the intestine join together to form a special and large vein or blood vessel. It is called the 'Portal Vein'. All the nutrients absorbed from the intestine come and accumulate in the portal vein.

Step 5: Destination → Liver or Central Processing Hub

This portal vein has only one destination—the liver. It delivers all the nutrient-rich blood straight to our liver.

Almost everything absorbed in the body goes to the liver first. The liver examines those nutrients, processes them, filters out any harmful ones, and then delivers them to the rest of the body as needed.

As the liver asks:-

Is this toxic? Filter it!

Is this glucose? Does the body need it now? Okay, send it to the blood.

Is glucose too much? Okay, you need it later. Store it as 'glycogen'.

Store this vitamin.

A fun twist! (Updated information):

Not everyone uses this 'portal vein' highway!

The fat you eat (e.g., ghee, oil) is a bit more 'VIP'. Instead of going through this blood vessel, it travels through a separate 'luxury lane' (the lymphatic system).