Human Biology: I have a question about the small intestine and the large intestine

I have a Human Biology question about the small intestine and the large intestine. Functionally speaking, what is the basis of food needing to pass through the small intestine before it reaches the large intestine? In other words, why isn't it the other-way-around? Would it be cumbersome or unhealthy for our bodies to have one come above-the-other? Are there any human beings with organ-mutations that have their large intestine above their small-intestine?

I probably sound confusing. Anyway, speaking in regards to function and functionality, why isn't the large intestine on-top-of the small intestine?

I think this answer becomes pretty clear if you consider the functions of the small and large intestines. The small intestine is primarily for digestion - it's where your body takes up a lot of the important nutrients it needs. The large intestine, on the other hand, is largely for absorbing water from waste before it's expelled from the body. I think you can imagine how inconvenient it would be if the locations of the small and large intestines were reversed; digestive enzymes in the small intestine would definitely have a harder time working in a dehydrated post-large-intestine environment.

I haven't heard of any human conditions where the locations of the two are switched, but there are many primitive animals that don't have discrete 'small' or 'large' intestines - just one intestinal tract.

Hope that helps. :)

You are kidding right?

The movement is different... Small intestine is "fast" digestion, the movement is especially propulsive... so the food remains there for shorter time, this is also because of the small area to which the food is exposed...

Whereas large intestine has propulsive peristaltic and also a kind of propelling "spiral mixing" so you have like circular mixing of the "food" in there, which makes it stay there for longer times, say 8 hours?

Anyway this is because the large intestines has a higher area of contact for the food and this slows everything down... it is also the place where water is absorbed, so I don't know why I am answering this question?

Small Intestine= fast digestion

Big intestine=slow digestion...

So try and swap the two, you would probably throw up LOL, if you had the slow intestine on top joke.

It passes through he small intestine first cause the small intestine takes the useful substances from the food first and then the waste product travels to the large intestine to be released as a bowel movement

food doesn't pass through that it passes through the tummy