Amino acids are building blocks or chemical units present in the body that constitute proteins. Proteins form the muscles, glands, nails, tendons and hair of the body. The maintenance and growth of cells depend upon amino acids. Proteins compose the largest segment of our body weight, after water. Every
amino acid has separate chemical property which decides the biological function of the protein. There are two types of
amino acids, essential and non-essential amino acids. Essential amino acids must be taken from the diet while non-essential amino acids can be manufactured by the human body.
There are twenty amino acids out of which human beings can produce 10 essential amino acids. The rest must be obtained from diet. If you are unable to obtain even any one of the ten essential
amino acids, then your body faces degeneration and muscles become weak. The amino acids that human beings can produce are asparagine, aspartic acid, cysteine, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, proline, serine and tyrosine. Essential amino acids are arginine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine.
Histidine is an essential
amino acid found mostly in hemoglobin and used for treating arthritis, anemia and rheumatoid. Isoleucine is needed for formation of hemoglobin and is important for athletes in repairing and healing of muscle tissue. Leucine also helps in repairing muscle tissue and at the same time aids in lowering blood sugar levels. Correct nitrogen balance is maintained by lysine while methionine is strong antioxidant and an excellent source of sulphur. It helps in preventing
vitamin disorder of the skin, nails and hair. Phenylalanine is used by the human brain to form norepinephrine hat helps in passing signals between nerve cells in the brain and encourages alertness. Threonine is important for tooth enamel and helps forming elastin and collagen. Tryptophan lowers level of anxiety and depression among individuals while valine is required for muscle metabolism and tissue repair.
The non-essential
amino acids also play a major role in the functioning of the human body. Alanine transfers nitrogen to the liver and helps in glucose metabolism. Known as the “natural Viagra”, Arginine lowers the risk of tumors and cancer by protecting the immune system. If you have a younger looking skin, give the credit to aspartic acid. Cysteine is strong antioxidant preventing free radicals from destroying the liver and the brain. Glutamic acid is essential for the metabolism of fats and sugars while glutamine helps in building muscle tissue. Glycine prevents muscle degeneration while ornithine encourages the metabolism of excess body fat. The joints, cartilages and tendons are healed by proline. Serine is important for the functioning of RNA and DNA while Taurine is useful for people with edema, hypertension, and heart disorders. Tyrosine is important for the formation of melanin which is needed for hair and skin colour.
