process of swallowing is called
Swallowing involves roughly 50 muscles and many nerves, to move food and drink from the mouth into the stomach. Swallowing disorders, also called dysphagia, occur when nerve control or structures involved in the process are disrupted or not functioning properly. Many conditions can cause swallowing problems, among them: 1  Head, neck or chest injury. 2  Cancer of the head, neck, or food tube (esophagus) , or treatment of these cancers.