Proteins are the substance of the body, the actual building materials
from which muscle, connective tissue, the skin, hair, and other vital tissue are
constructed. The proteins we eat, which come primarily from meats, poultry, fish, dairy
products, eggs, and some vegetables, break down into amino acids once they are in our
bodies. It is essential that the digestive process reduce proteins to these acids, as the
amino acids have very specific function to perform in maintaining wellness. Proteins are
broken down by hydrochloric acid, produced by the stomach, and protease, an enzyme
produced by the pancreas gland, and these two substances must be present, or the proteins
will continue undigested through the tract, often causing problems. Incomplete digestion
of proteins can produce the polypeptides chains of incomplete amino acids that often lead
to allergic reactions and others disorders.
 | Amino Acids |
|
Ask the Expert about Amino Acids (click) |
|
Of the 22 known amino
acids, 14 can be manufactured by the body through processes called deamination,
transamination, and transmethylation, which occurs in the cells. Although the body does
the work of producing these particular amino acids, the basic materials that are combined
to create the end products must come from foods. The remaining eight amino acids are not
produced by the body itself and themselves must come from the foods we eat. These amino
acids, called "essential," are L-Methionine, Tryptophan, Phenylalanine, Lysine,
Leucine, Isoleucine, Threonine, and Valine. The roles of the eight essential
amino acids are many and varied, but in very important ways they are vital to the proper
functioning of the body. research now suggests that they may play a part in helping to
bolster the body's immune system the lymph glands and their interrelated system, which has
the role of protecting us against "invaders" from outside the body.
A number of clinics are now using combinations of
amino acids to enhance the health of their clients. This is expensive therapy, however,
and the same results can be achieved by improving the digestion and promoting the
efficient breakdown of proteins into amino acids. In specialized situations, such as body
building, amino acids assume a much greater important since research has shown that amino
acids taken appropriately can substitute for anabolic steroids. Amino acid supplementation
is considered essential for those athletes who wish to increase energy production and
stamina and hasten recovery time between extended training sessions. In sports medicine
there is a definite move away from drugs and a trend towards those nutrients. Arginine,
ornithine, lysine, and cysteine are precursor substances to muscular growth hormones that
increase strength and endurance in the athlete.
| Most of the new protein powders on the
market today use added amino acids such as these as a sales tactic. Nitrogen delivery,
Insulin secretion, Anabolic actions, Growth Hormone precursors, but there really isn't
enough of these added amino acids to make that much as a different, unless you increase
the amount of protein servings. Click here for Amino Acid Chart |
- Ask the Expert about
Amino Acids (click)
|
|
