Anybody who is serious about dieting will quickly begin to learn that our food is made of different groups, and that these different nutrients have different properties and sources. That nothing is so simple as being just a burger or simply a piece of fruit, but that rather everything falls into different groups, such as fats, proteins, and carbohydrates. In fact, the more one learns about these things the more one begins to realize that the world of nutrition is incredibly complex, and that we must in fact learn more and more each day in order to craft a healthy and wholesome diet. So today let’s begin with one of these food groups and take a closer look at protein. What are proteins? The word ‘protein’ comes from the ancient greek word meaning “the first” which is meant to demonstrate to us how important its role in our nutrition is. Our bodies cannot survive without protein, because not eating any results in cannibalizing our own muscle tissue and then eventually death. So what exactly is a protein? Protein is a name given to a wide array of different compounds called amino acids, which we consume about twenty in our diets. Only half of these are ‘essential’ to our diet, meaning that our bodies do not produce them naturally, such that we have to find them in our sources of nutrition. These amino acids are used by our body to build things, and as such it can be said that they have a structural role in our body. What parts of our body are made of protein? The most commonly understood part are our muscles, and that is because we all know that by eating the muscles of other animals we gain a large dose of protein, and that thus our own muscles must be high in exactly that. However our skin is also made of amino acids, as are our organs, hair, and many hormones. What’s interesting about protein is that unlike carbohydrates which can be stored as fat, protein cannot be stored anywhere. Either it is used to make structures in our bodies, or it floats about in miniscule amounts in our blood stream. We don’t have reserves of protein to draw on, which is why we often cannibalize our own muscles when protein is needed. Finally, there are about 4 calories per gram of protein, making it a very rich source of energy. Try the or the today!
What Are the Basics About Protein?
April 5th, 2011 § 0