Our organism presents a dynamic that in part resembles a machine. However, unlike machines, our body has the ability to recycle itself. So be sure that your body is not the same as a year ago, and it won’t be the same next year!
This relationship of constant renewal and its organic implications can be considered the main factor for what we recognize as life!
Every living being expends energy at all times to maintain the various activities performed by the organism. Our cells are continually exchanging their atoms and molecular components. Most cellular substances are degraded so that new ones can be synthesized. This intense activity of building and deconstructing substances is done using energy obtained through the degradation of organic nutrients. This bodily dynamic that occurs within each cell constitutes metabolism, which in Greek means change.
This metabolic action can be divided into two parts:
The production of new substances from other simpler substances, such as the synthesis of proteins, formed by amino acids and the reactions that lead to the storage of energy, is known as anabolism. An example of this anabolic process resides in the synthesis of proteins within muscle tissue from amino acids, and in the formation of glycogen stores through the assembling of glucose molecules.
Anabolism needs in its construction process an offer of energy and substrates (smaller molecules) suitable for the speed of its reactions. In this way, anabolism would be the process responsible for the growth, regeneration and maintenance of the various tissues and organs present in the body.
The process of degrading complex substances into simpler ones, such as the breakdown of the glucose molecule and its transformation into energy, water and carbon gas, is known as catabolism. The digestive process is an example of catabolism, as it transforms macronutrients present in food into absorbable micronutrients. Catabolism also occurs when the body is without enough energy and seeks the destruction of its own tissues and reserves, the release of amino acids and glucose that will be converted into energy.
Metabolism is regulated by the hormonal system, and the main catabolic hormones are adrenocorticotropin (ACTH), which causes the secretion of glucocorticoid hormones, including cortisol. The main anabolic hormones are growth hormone (GH), testosterone and insulin.
It’s worth a tip: The danger of certain fast diets is that the person doesn’t just lose fat, they lose muscle mass and, losing muscle mass, they alter their metabolism, staying in the accordion effect. For correct weight loss, there is a need to decrease caloric intake and increase physical activity. After some time, the organism gets used to this new reality, requiring less energy for its vital functions, and thus, naturally, the metabolism stabilizes.
