An essential amino acid cannot be synthesized newly by the organism at a rate equal to its demand. This means that the required amino acids must come from the proper diet, which gives the body its necessary nutrients. There are 21 amino acids that are common to all living creatures. However, there are nine amino acids that humans cannot synthesize, that is; phenylalanine, valine, threonine, tryptophan, methionine, leucine, isoleucine, lysine, and histidine.
Related topics to Amino Acids include:
- Protein
- Nutrient
- Mineral
- Urea Cycle
- Trans Fat
- Reference Daily Intake
- Transamination
- Dietary Reference Intake
- Dietary fibre
- Protein quality
What is the Essentiality of Amino Acids in Humans?
Amino acids are compounds that form to create essential proteins to the body. When proteins are ingested, it leaves amino acids. These proteins, as provided by the amino acids, help the body break down food, repair body tissue, as well as many other means that help the body function.
Amino acids are also a source of energy, and we can classify them into these three groups:
Essential amino acids (the body cannot produce these acids, so it must come from a person’s diet)
Nonessential amino acids (this, the body can produce, and includes amino acids such as alanine, arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, cysteine, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, proline, serine, and tyrosine).
Conditional amino acids (generally, these acids are not necessary except when the body is under a lot of stress. These amino acids include: arginine, cysteine, glutamine, tyrosine, glycine, ornithine, proline, and serine).
Recommended daily intake:
It is unnecessary to eat each meal with a focus on a specific consumption of amino acids, but rather ensuring that you are eating balanced and nutritious meals overall, with a variety of vegetables, and other foods, well spread throughout the day. The chart below provides the necessary intake of each essential amino acid:
The chart is sourced from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
Effects of Deficiency:
Amino acid deficiency can cause numerous issues of the body, such as; nutritional deficiencies, chronic fatigue, premature ageing or death, as well as a depleted immune system, loss of weight, diarrhea, and muscle weakness.
How Do Amino Acids Affect Your Performance?
Amino acids can enhance your performance in ways such as; increasing the secretion of anabolic hormones, modifying fuel use during exercise, preventing adverse effects of overtraining and preventing mental fatigue. This is if you are intaking the proper amount of amino acids.
As mentioned, having a deficiency of Amino Acids can cause a tremendous strain on the body, which would not give you the energy you need to perform at a high level.
