Preksha Dhyana Human Body Part 2

SR No.: 006550
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Jethalal S Zaveri
Publisher: Jain Vishva Bharati
Publication Year: 1993
Total Pages: 118
Language: English
Classification: Book_English & Yoga
File Size: 6 MB

Page 46

Metabolism of Food
We, human beings, like the other living things on planet Earth, are chemical beings, whose bodies are made up mainly of carbon compounds. We are active organisms and we get the energy to power our activities from chemical compounds contained in the foods and drinks consumed by us. Building materials for growth and repair are also obtained from foods, but they rarely come in ready-to-use forms. Carbohydrates, proteins and fats in the foods must be first broken down into simpler components (by digestive processes) in order to pass through cell-membranes and enter the body-cells; within the cells the products of digestion are subjected to further chemical reactions. In catabolic reactions, food materials are torn down into smaller units or oxidized to release the energy stored in their chemical bonds. In anabolic reactions, substances are built up into more complicated compounds--the characteristic chemicals of the body. Both breakdown and building up-or synthetic reactions-go on constantly in the body cells. The term metabolism refers to the sum total of all the anabolic and catabolic reactions of the body.
The catabolic reactions supply energy for activities such as muscle-contractions, transmission of nerve-impulses etc. The chemical energy stored in foodstuffs is also converted to other energy-forms such as heat and electricity. The energy is temporarily stored in convenient units in the ATP molecules. This “energy currency" permits a controlled release of energy as it is needed; if the energy were released all at once, as in a fire, it might destroy the cells.
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