What is the function of the salivary gland?

Answer 1

The function of the salivary glands is to make saliva and help the bolus (soft mass of chewed food) go down the esophagus easily. Saliva contains enzymes which help break down food to a form which the body can use.
It is to secrete saliva to help digestion...
the salivary glands produce saliva
to produce saliva. it contains water, mineral ions, amylase etc.

Saliva is the primary reaction to the break down of food. It contains enzymes, as stated above, that start the process of breakdown when you start to eat your food. It also aids in the swallowing of the chewed food product. Try swallowing a pill without water and a dry throat, it hurts and will have a really hard time going down.

Answer 2

The major function OS salivary glands is to secrete saliva.

FUNCTIONS OF SALIVA

- Lubrication: the mucus in saliva is extremely effective in binding masticated food into a slippery bolus that usually slides easily thought the esophagus without inflicting damage to the mucosa. Saliva also coats the oral cavity and esophagus, and food basically never directly touches the epithelial cells of those tissues.

- Solubilizes dry food: in order to be tasted, the molecules in food must be solubilized.

- Oral hygiene: the oral cavity is almost constantly flushed with saliva, which floats away food debris and keeps the mouth clean. Flow of saliva diminishes considerably during sleep, allow populations of bacteria to build up in the mouth - the result of bad breath in the morning. Saliva also contains lysozyme, an enzyme that lyses many bacteria and prevents overgrowth of oral microbial populations.

- Initiates starch digestion: in most species, the serous acinar cells secrete and alpha-amylase which can begin to digest dietary starch into maltose. Amylase is not present or is present only in very small quantities, in the saliva of carnivores or cattle.

- Provides alkaline buffering and fluid this is of great importance in ruminants which have non-secretory forestomachs.

- Evaporative cooling: clearly of importance in dogs, which have poorly developed sweat glands.

- Source of calcium and phosphate ions essential for normal tooth maintenance.

- Provides a medium for dissolved and suspended food materials that chemically stimulate taste buds.

- Buffering of the contents of the oral cavity through its high concentration of bicarbonate ion.
To produce saliva

Salivary amylase in saliva breaks down some of the food in the mouth.


More accurately, amylase breaks down starch into sugars.

Answer 3

it secretes saliva