Essential amino acids cannot be manufactured in the body (unlike the nonessential), they must be obtained from dietary proteins. There are about 28 known amino acids that combine in various ways to make a multitude of different types of protein. This process creates tailored proteins that are specific to the needs of your body.
If a diet is deficient in essential amino acids, then you will most certainly suffer. Your body will not be able to produce the proteins that it needs to heal, regenerate and grow. Thus, causing cells of vital organs to age prematurely.
● Fats – dietary fats are either saturated or unsaturated and each meal should be low in saturated fats (7 grams or fewer per serving, IMO). While the unsaturated fats could be much higher (twenty-eight grams or fewer per serving, IMO). Unsaturated fats are in a liquid state at room temperature and are primarily found in plant-based food.
Unsaturated fats are very unstable at normal body temperature and/or when exposed to oxygen. If the body is unable to remove any excess unsaturated fat circulating in the blood in a timely fashion, it will oxidize and turn rancid. As a result, free radicals can be easily created.
Free radicals can cause extensive damage in our body by prematurely aging body tissue. That said, unsaturated fats increase the levels of good cholesterol (HDL) and decrease the level of bad cholesterol (LDL). They also help us absorb certain vitamins (A, D, E, and K).
Saturated fats are primarily found in animal food and can also be found in a few plant-based foods. They are usually solid at room temperature and remain stable at normal body temperature. Saturated fats have a stronger chemical bond than unsaturated fats.
Thus, having the ability to resist oxidation, thereby providing the body with the time needed to carry any excess back to the liver to be metabolized (converted into usable energy). Saturated fats obtained from grass-fed animals and coconut oil have important antimicrobial properties. Meaning, they protect us against harmful bacteria in our digestive tract.
Saturated fats provide good insulation for our nerve fibers and are required for the production of hormones. Our bodies can produce its own saturated fats, therefore dietary saturated fats are considered to be a non-essential part of one’s diet. This is why having too much saturated fat in your diet can lead to health problems.
You see, the same strong chemical bond that resist oxidation also turns out to be responsible for increasing the levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) in the body. Even though both fats are required for our survival, what your body doesn’t require is a diet with more saturated fats than unsaturated.
● Complex Carbohydrates – each meal should be a good source of complex carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates are vegetables and a good source of insoluble fiber. The insoluble fiber is called cellulose and is the part of the vegetable found in the outer layer of plant foods.
It’s the part of the vegetable that is resistant to our body’s digestive enzymes, hence the word insoluble. It provides the bulk that contracting and relaxing muscles in your digestive tract need to grab onto. Like any muscle in your body, your digestive tract muscles work less efficiently without exercise.
The lack of insoluble fiber results in food moving more slowly through the small and large intestine. When things slow down, digestive health problems arise. Fortunately, this rhythmic contraction with the presence of insoluble fiber keeps the colon muscles toned and your stool (waste) moving more freely, thus decreasing the transit time of food through your digestive track.
Insoluble fiber (which is mildly abrasive) also gently scrubs your intestinal walls clean in the process. The only downside to increasing complex carbohydrates in your diet is that it may cause flatulence (the passing of unpleasant gas from one’s asshole. If this should happen, eating a smaller serving usually helps to eliminate the problem.