A potato is bad when it has shriveled up or is soft. When it is really bad, it will be mushy. A potato is bad when it has shriveled up or is soft. When it is really bad, it will be mushy.
Food and liquid both go down the esophagus to the stomach, while air goes down the windpipe or bronchial tubes to the lungs. Both the esophagus and windpipe are connected. Occasionally, a small amount of food or liquid may start to go down the windpipe. Typical involuntary responses would include gagging, coughing, and choking. Difficulty in coughing up the food or liquid may cause a person to panic, while food lodged in the bronchial valve may quickly cause unconsciousness caused by the person being unable to cough out blockage, leading to a lack of of oxygen to the brain.
The food then enters the esophagus. The esophagus is a muscular tube extending from the pharynx and behind the trachea to the stomach. Food is pushed through the esophagus and into the stomach by means of a series of contractions called peristalsis.Just before the opening to the stomach is an important ring-shaped muscle called the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). This sphincter opens to let food pass into the stomach and closes to keep it there.ood's Journey Through the Digestive System continued... The act of swallowing takes place in the pharynx partly as a reflex and partly under voluntary control. The tongue and soft palate -- the soft part of the roof of the mouth -- push food into the pharynx, which closes off the trachea.