Decomposition begins at the moment of death, caused by two factors: autolysis, the breaking down of tissues by the body’s own internal chemicals and enzymes; and putrefaction, the breakdown of tissues by bacteria. These processes release gases that are the chief source of the characteristic odor of dead bodies. These gases swell the body.

Scavengers play an important role in decomposition. Insects and other animals are typically the next agent of decomposition, if the body is accessible to them. The most important insects that are typically involved in the process include the fleshflies (Sarcophagidae) and blowflies (Calliphoridae). The green-bottle fly seen in the summer is a blowfly. Larger scavengers, including coyotes, dogs, wolves, foxes, rats, and mice may eat a body if it is accessible to them. Some of these animals also remove and scatter bones.

The body of a living organism begins to decompose (as part of a succession) shortly after death. Such decomposition can be simplified in two stages: In the first stage, it is limited to the production of vapors. In the second stage, liquid materials form and the flesh or plant matter begins to decompose. The science which studies such decomposition generally is called taphonomy.

Historically, the progression of decomposition of a living organism has been described as taking place in four stages: fresh (autolysis), bloat (putrefaction), decay (putrefaction and carnivores) and dry (diagenesis).

Decomposition begins at the moment of death, caused by two factors: autolysis, the breaking down of tissues by the body’s own internal chemicals and enzymes; and putrefaction, the breakdown of tissues by bacteria. These processes release gases that are the chief source of the characteristic odor of dead bodies. These gases swell the body.

Scavengers play an important role in decomposition. Insects and other animals are typically the next agent of decomposition, if the body is accessible to them. The most important insects that are typically involved in the process include the fleshflies (Sarcophagidae) and blowflies (Calliphoridae). The green-bottle fly seen in the summer is a blowfly. Larger scavengers, including coyotes, dogs, wolves, foxes, rats, and mice may eat a body if it is accessible to them. Some of these animals also remove and scatter bones.

The rate and the manner in which an animal body decomposes is strongly affected by a number of factors. In a roughly descending degree of importance, those factors include:

Temperature

The availability of oxygen

Prior embalming

Cause of death

Burial, and depth of burial

Access by scavengers

Trauma, including wounds and crushing blows

Humidity, or wetness

Rainfall

Body size and weight

Clothing

The surface on which the body rests

Foods/objects inside the specimens digestive tract (bacon compared to lettuce)

The speed with which decomposition occurs varies greatly. Factors such as temperature, humidity, and the season of death all determine how fast a fresh body will skeletonize or mummify. A basic guide for the effect of environment on decomposition is given as Casper’s Law (or Ratio): when there is free access of air a body decomposes twice as fast than if immersed in water and eight times faster than if buried in earth.

Your body is made mostly of water. When you die, all the cells, veins, arteries and tissues start to dissolve in their own water. The heart is no longer pumping blood to the body and the lungs have stopped producing oxygen for the gaseous exchange in the blood. All the gases are released from the cells, and the body starts to swell and deteriorate. The process starts at the cellular level, and the areas in the body most saturated with water…veins, stomach…the bacteria in the lining of the intestines, etc. The water has no where to go, so it starts breaking down the tissues of the body into their simplest forms – carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. The body is then food for the bacteria and such. This process is sped up due to external factors such as temperature, exposure to the elements, and of course, water. Intrinsic factors, such as body weight, medicines and other internal factors are also related.

If your talking about human bodies? You should check out this professor’s research in the South. He has a body farm and lays out corpses in the forest and visits them every day to check on insect activity and decomposition. It’s very gross but interesting. Check it out on the internet.

The absence of health given properties like oxygen, releasings toxins that break down healthy tissue, so that it decomposes.

In the bowl’s

try it and find out!