The Role Of Carbohydrates In The Body: Essay On Composition, Function, And Dietary Sources.

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Composition of Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates refer to a set of organic compounds found in living tissues and foods (Harmon, 2018). Carbohydrates release energy to the body of an animal when broken down. They include cellulose, starch and sugars. The fact that they are macronutrients makes them one of the main three main sources of calories and energy for the body. Carbohydrates are made up of oxygen and hydrogen in the ratio of (1:2) (Sluiter et al.,2008).Thuis report will focus on this category of micronutrients specifically on its composition, biological function, dietary sources, recciomneded daily intake, factors that lead to a state of excess and factors that lead to deficiency and insufficiency.

The composition of the Macronutrient

Carbohydrates are composed of three elements namely oxygen, hydrogen and carbon. All carbohydrates are made up of these elements with different arrangements existing for different units of carbohydrates. Disaccharides and monosaccharides for example are made up of smaller molecules. A monosaccharide like glucose is a single unit carbohydrate made up of six oxygen atoms, 12 hydrogen atoms and six carbon atoms (Oakes, Eyre, Middelburg& Boschker, 2010)

The macronutrient’s biological function

Carbohydrates have multiple functions in the body. One of their primary functions is energy supply to body cells. Glucose is used as a source of energy by many cells as compared to compounds such as fatty acids. The brain and red blood cells primarily use glucose to produce cellular energy unless under extreme cases of starvation. More than 70% of glucose form digestion is redistributed to other body tissues by the blood. This energy comes from the chemical bonds between the carbon atoms (Burke,Hawley, Wong & Jeukendrup,2011)

Carbohydrates are also used as store of energy for the body. When the body has had enough energy to meet its current needs the excess glucose is stored to be used later. Glycogen is the name for the stored glucose which is majorly found in the muscles and the liver. While glycogen stored in the muscles is only used by muscle cells liver glycogen is released into the bloodstream use by the entire body(Burke et al., 2011).

Carbohydrates are also used in the making of macromolecules such as ATP, DNA and RNA. Deoxyribose and ribose are the building blocks for these macronutrients. Glucose is also used in building NADPH used for multiple chemical reactions excess glucose is also stored as energy after all the body needs have been met(Preiss et al.,2014).

Carbohydrates also play a role in averting the breakdown of proteins for energy. The presence of enough glucose in the body removes the needs for proteins to be broken down for energy purposes. In addition enough glucose in the body inhibits lipids metabolism by stimulating the release of Insulin hormonewhich leads Cells to use shift from using lipids to glucose for energy purposes (Pomeranz,2014).

Dietary sources of Carbohydrates

Most dietary sources of carbohydrates are plants.However; this does not mean that they are the only sources of carbohydrates.

Grain products sources

These are the main sources of carbohydrates and include cornmeal, barley, rice, oats, sorghum, millet and buckwheat and wheat. These are naturally made up of high concentration of starch broken down into sugars by the body (Lutz,Mazur& Litch,2014).

Biological Function of Carbohydrates

Beans and starch vegetables

Carbohydrates are also found in beans and starchy vegetables such as green peas, yams, potatoes and Corn which have complex carbohydrates in high levels. Apart from being sources of carbohydrates, these also produce fibre, minerals and vitamins.

Sweets and added sugar

Deserts and candy are also remarkable sources of dietary carbohydrates. These include cherry pie and milk chocolate(Peckenpaugh, 2013). Sugar added to processed foods also contains high levels of dietary Carbohydrates. These are found in foods such as sandwich bread and salad dressings.

Beverages

Products are not only derived from plant sources but also other sources such as dairy milk. A cup of milk can contain between 11 to 12 carbohydrates grams. This amount can be double in chocolate milk. Other beverages such as sugar sweetened soda energy drinks and fruits drinks are also sources of dietary carbohydrates. These are also found in Liquors, beer and wine (Peckenpaugh, 2013).

Fruit

In addition fruits also contain dietary carbohydrates stored in natural sugar form. These include fructose and glucose .Nearly all the calories found in these foods come from fruit sugars(Harmon, 2018).

Recommended Daily Intake (RDI)

The recommended daily intake for carbohydrates among children and adults is about 130 grams .This represents about 45 to 65 percent daily calorie intake. The intake of carbohydrates can be however higher depending on the body activity. Athletes for example may require 70% of their daily calorie intake to be from carbohydrates. The recommended daily calorie intake for men is between 2000 and 3000 while for women it should be between 1600 and 2400 Calories (Friedman et al.,2012).

Factors contributing to states of excess

 As the state of excess can be caused by multiple factors, these includethe intake of more than the daily recommendedcarbohydrate intake and lack of physical exercise. Intake of more than what the body requires can lead to a state of excess. The body uses carbohydrates to produce the energy required during physical exercises. Lack of these can therefore lead to a state of excess. In addition overconsumption of foods rich in carbohydrates as well as poor body metabolism can also cause a state of excess(Friedman et al.,2012).

Factors contributing to states of insufficiency and deficiency

Insufficiency or deficiency of carbohydrates occurs when the daily carbohydrate intake falls below the daily intake requirements. It also arrises after the depletion of glycogen stored in the liver. It is also caused by the consumption of foods with low starchy vegetables and carbohydrates(Harmon, 2018).

Signs and symptoms

Tiredness: This is one of the most common deficiency symptoms for lack of carbohydrates. Due to the fact that carbohydrates are the primary source of energy, insufficiencycauses the body to become weak and tired(Harmon, 2018).

Hypoglycemia: Deficiency of Carbohydrates can also lead to hypoglycemia a condition which occurs when the blood glucose levels become low.This can lead to light-heartedness, tiredness and confusion(Friedman et al.,2012).

Conclusion

In conclusion, carbohydrates are one of the main macronutrients required by the body for effective functioning. The Macronutrient is made up of three elements i.e. hydrogen carbon and oxygen. Its biological functions include the supply of energy to the cells, storage of energy, averting the breakdown of proteins and making of macromolecules such as ATP, DNA and RNA. Its dietary sources include grain products, beverages, added sugar, sweets, beans, fruit and starchy vegetables. The recommended daily intake is at least 150 grams. Possible signs and symptoms of carbohydrate deficiency include tiredness and hypoglycemia.

References

Burke, L. M., Hawley, J. A., Wong, S. H., &Jeukendrup, A. E. (2011).Carbohydrates for training and competition. Journal of sports sciences, 29(sup1), S17-S27.

Friedman, A. N., Ogden, L. G., Foster, G. D., Klein, S., Stein, R., Miller, B., & Wyatt, H. R. (2012).Comparative effects of low-carbohydrate high-protein versus low-fat diets on the kidney. Clinical journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 7(7), 1103-1111.

Harmon, D. (2018). What Are Carbohydrates?. Chicago, IL: Britannica Educational Publishing.

Lutz, C. A., Mazur, E., &Litch, N. (2014). Nutrition and diet therapy. FA Davis.

Oakes, J. M., Eyre, B. D., Middelburg, J. J., & Boschker, H. T. (2010). Composition, production, and loss of carbohydrates in subtropical shallow subtidal sandy sediments: Rapid processing and long?term retention revealed by 13C?labeling. Limnology and Oceanography, 55(5), 2126-2138.

Peckenpaugh, N. J. (2013). Nutrition Essentials and Diet Therapy-E-Book.Elsevier Health Sciences.

Pomeranz, Y. (2014). Functional Properties of Food Components. Saint Louis: Elsevier Science.

Preiss, J. (2014). Carbohydrates: The Biochemistry of Plants. Saint Louis: Elsevier Science.

Sluiter, A., Hames, B., Ruiz, R., Scarlata, C., Sluiter, J., Templeton, D., & Crocker, D. (2008).Determination of structural carbohydrates and lignin in biomass. Laboratory analytical procedure, 1617, 1-16.