Swallowing is a four-stage process, from taking a bite to the food arriving in your stomach.
- Oral preparatory stage — this stage takes place in the mouth. It involves biting and chewing to break down food into smaller pieces that mix with saliva.
- Oral stage — in this stage, the tongue pushes the food or liquid to the back of the mouth and positions it to pass into the pharynx (your upper throat).
- Pharyngeal stage — the palate, the soft structure that hangs in the back of the throat, raises to prevent food or liquid from entering the nose. Muscles in your larynx (the “voice box”) close to prevent food from entering the airway. A muscle at the top of the esophagus (the “food tube”) relaxes to allow food to enter.
- Esophageal stage — a series of coordinated muscle contractions pushes the food down the esophagus and into the stomach, where it is digested.