Transcript

JAMES KINROSS

Here we go.

MICHAEL MOSLEY (VOICEOVER)

Surgeon and gut specialist James Kinross has brought along the intestine of an animal that was destined for the food chain.

JAMES KINROSS

So what we have here, this is a pig from mouth down to the anus at this end here.

MICHAEL MOSLEY

Right, so this is--

MICHAEL MOSLEY (VOICEOVER)

Although we don’t look much like pigs on the outside, their intestines are remarkably similar to ours.

JAMES KINROSS

And what you can see is that the gastrointestinal tract is basically a tube, and it runs literally from your mouth all the way down to your bottom.

MICHAEL MOSLEY

OK.

JAMES KINROSS

So what you have is the oesophagus at the top end. We can actually trace all of this bowel the whole way down.

MICHAEL MOSLEY (VOICEOVER)

The walls of the small intestine feel surprisingly delicate, and they are threaded with tiny capillaries.

JAMES KINROSS

What you’ll see is there’s a layer of connective tissue.

MICHAEL MOSLEY

Oh, yes.

JAMES KINROSS

So the bowel has this connective tissue which takes the blood supply, and you can see the blood supply here. So when you absorb a meal, obviously the nutrition you take out of it has to get into the blood supply.

MICHAEL MOSLEY

Yeah, and that’s what’s happening to me at the moment.

JAMES KINROSS

So let’s see how long this.

MICHAEL MOSLEY (VOICEOVER)

The human small intestine is roughly 4 metres, the length of this table. A pig’s is much longer.

JAMES KINROSS

Return journey.

MICHAEL MOSLEY

Keep going, and keep going.

MICHAEL MOSLEY (VOICEOVER)

Our intestines absorb about seven litres of food, fluid, and gut secretions every day.