Amino Acids;
the Building Blocks of Protein
 Proteins provide the structure for all living things.
Proteins are chains of amino acids linked together by peptide bonds. There are approximately 28 commonly known amino acids, which are combined in various ways to form hundreds of different types of proteins. Every living organism is composed of protein and proteins are a part of every living cell. It makes up the greatest part of our body weight after water. Also the enzymes and hormones that catalyze and regulate the body's water balance and maintain the proper internal pH are made of amino acids. Some proteins act as neurotransmitters or as precursors of neurotransmitters. These are the chemicals that carry the information from the nerve cell to another. Amino acids also enable the vitamins and minerals to perform their purpose properly and they can not be effective without necessary proteins. Amino acids are divided into two groups; essential and nonessential amino acids. Essential amino acids we have to get from our diet. These are histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine. Nonessential amino acids are not needed any less, but the liver can manufacture these as needed by the body.
The liver produces about 80 percent of the amino acids we need. Nonessential amino acids are alanine, arginine, asparagnine, aspartic acid, citrulline, cysteine, cystine, gamma-aminobutyric acid, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, ornithine, praline, serine, taurine, and tyrosine. Many things can lead to deficiency of amino acids. Even if you eat a well balanced diet, infections, stress, drugs, age, and imbalances of other nutrients can affect the availability of essential amino acids. If even one of the essential amino acids is missing, the proper protein synthesis can not continue. This can cause problems from indigestion and depression to stunted growth.
The quality of the amino acids in the diet is a more important factor than the quantity. It is not necessary to get amino acids from meat, but vegetarians and especially vegans need to make sure they have a proper amount of amino acids in their diet. It is sometimes hard to keep the diet well balanced when there is not enough variety of vegetarian food at the food stores. Sometimes protein supplements are a good way to make sure the proper requirements are met.
–To your health.
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