Several minerals are involved in energy metabolism. The role of iodine, chromium, manganese and sulfur are listed below. Iodine: Use to make thyroid hormones. Thyroid hormones in turn regulates metabolism in cells. That is, they tell cells when to increase or decrease breakdown of nutrients to release energy Sulfur: A part of thiamin, biotin and […]
Protein is an important body-building raw material. The body prefers to use it for that purpose rather than to “cash it in” to make energy. It has glucose and fats to do that. However a small percentage (about 10%) is used to make energy and even more in times of starvation. So far you have […]
Body cells can suffer damage due to oxidation. This happens when atoms in the body loses an electron from its outer shell. This makes the atom highly unstable. In this unstable form (free radical), they try to regain stability by robbing an electron from nearby molecules thus causing them to become unstable. This can set […]
Parts of the Immune System Every moment we are under attack by various disease-causing agents that could make us sick. Hence to stay alive and to thrive, the body is equipped with an immune system. The immune system consists of many parts including white blood cells (leukocytes), antibodies, bone marrow, lymph nodes, spleen, thymus and […]
This week we are studying how nutrients affect fluid balance. We can’t live without fluid. The human body is about 70% water. That means every chemical reaction that takes place in our body takes place in the presence of water. Without adequate water, chemical reactions necessary for life is slowed down or stopped. The amount […]
Electrolytes like sodium (Na+) and potassium (K+) play a key role in the transfer of nerve impulses. Nerve impulses are created by stimuli in the environment such as sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. If the stimulus is strong enough, reaching a threshold of -55 mV, an action potential is triggered. In other words, the […]
Protein is an important body-building raw material. The body prefers to use it for that purpose rather than to “cash it in” to make energy. It has glucose and fats to do that. However a small percentage (about 10%) is used to make energy and even more in times of starvation. So far you have […]
So far you have learned that following digestion of fatty acids, they are packaged in the form of triglycerides and transported to cells via chylomicrons or stored in adipose (fat) cells until they are ready for use. From chylomicrons or adipose tissue, triglycerides are broken down by lipase enzymes by a process called lipolysis to release glycerol […]
Carbohydrates in the form of glucose is the main source of energy for the body. Energy is needed for two types of metabolic processes; anabolism and catabolism. Anabolism is the process of making larger molecules using smaller molecules e.g. using fatty acids to make fats, or amino acids to make protein. Catabolism accomplishes the opposite i.e. break down of […]
