how do astronauts in space keep food from floating up out of their mouth in zero g especially when sleeping?

Question

Update:

i mean the food is in their stomach but what stops it from floating up their throat and out their mouths? i mean this wouldnt happen on earth with gravity

Answer 1

I just studied the function of swallowing food, once it enters your oesophagus, it is pushed down by digestive muscles all the way out the rear end.

only problem astronauts have is farting and burping, which is harder to expel due to zero gravity

Answer 2

muscular action of the digestive track?!?!

Sometimes even on Earth with gravity food does float up out of mouths from the stomach.  It is called vomiting. 

Answer 3

simple , because they swallow it dummy .who eats when there asleep .

Answer 4

Nothing will come up unless the are sick

Answer 5

They consume pasty type food in packets...  first of all... they don't make pots of soup on the stove...

Answer 6

Just a others have mentioned here, the body has "valves" that keep stuff INSEDE where it belongs---Some operate at will---Muscle control--Like taking care of body waste, while others are automatic operating on internal reflexes----The Food is also chosen because of it's consistency---sort of like Peanut butter, etc., that will stick to the plate or eating utensil so it does not go floating around as it is being eaten.

Answer 7

once you get past the mild seasick of weightless, you don't regurgitate anything.

Just the way the digestive system works.

Of course what goes in must come out and they have facilities to deal with weightless.

Answer 8

Wow, you know nothing about human anatomy and functions.

Once food goes into the stomach, the structure of the passages between the mouth and stomach don't allow for any easy passage of food back up.

That's why throwing up is so hard on the system, because that's not a normal function of the GI tract.

Answer 9

Food (stomach contents) DOES Not float up in zero gravity.

Answer 10

Why should it "float" anywhere ?  Do items left lying around float about at random?  Does the body of a sleeping astronaut "float" around in the cabin ?  Everything is in free fall.  There is no force to induce ANYTHING  to float anywhere.  So there is no need to "stop" anything floating.