QuickCheck: Can we live without a stomach?

WE can survive without certain organs in our body like our appendix.

Is the stomach another organ that we can get by without?

Verdict:

TRUE

Yes, people have had their whole stomachs removed and continued to live.

Here's some information for you to digest:

A surgery to remove all or part of the stomach is called a gastrectomy.

It’s usually done to treat stomach cancer and in some cases, life-threatening obesity.

After the procedure, a person will still have a working digestive system, but it will not function as well as it did before, based on information from the National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom.

"You'll eventually be able to digest most foods and liquids.

"However, you may need to make changes to your diet, such as eating frequent small meals instead of three large meals a day," read an explanation from the NHS website.

Vitamin supplements may also be needed to ensure the person gets sufficient nutrition.

This is because one of the stomach's functions is to absorb vitamins – particularly vitamins B12, C and D.

"If your entire stomach has been removed, you may not get all the vitamins your body needs from your diet," said the NHS.

Reference:

1. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/gastrectomy/