Carbohydrates: What They Are, Types And Characteristics Of These Molecules
Carbohydrates, carbohydrates or carbohydrates are molecules of biological origin which owe their name to their chemical composition, since they are mainly composed of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen.
From a nutritional point of view, along with lipids and proteins, it is an essential macronutrient in any diet. To give us an idea of ​​its effectiveness, professional sports associations estimate that an athlete should ingest 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour of exercise. Of course, this is the most effective cellular fuel in nature.
Even so, the world of carbohydrates involves many more secrets than one might initially expect: from types, functions, pathologies due to lack of intake to certain statistical data, today we teach you everything you need to know about carbohydrates. carbon.
To begin, it is necessary to emphasize the importance of carbohydrates from an ecological and economic point of view. These biomolecules They make up more than 90% of the dry weight of vegetables, and are therefore the most abundant nutrients on Earth, representing approximately 75% of the total organic matter on our planet. This is why they are considered the most effective and essential components when it comes to storing energy and acting as intermediaries in metabolic reactions in living beings.
However, its functionality does not end here. The carbohydrates They are part of our own genetic code that defines us as a species and individuals Well, effectively, each of the pentoses that give rise to the nucleotides of DNA and RNA is a carbohydrate.
On the other hand, they are also part of the cell wall of many bacteria and plants or as the integral component of the exoskeleton of various groups of arthropods. The functionality of carbohydrates on living structures is practically infinite, since these also They associate with lipids and proteins, forming complex compounds that guarantee life on our planet.
An essential role in the global economy
Carbohydrates have functions beyond biological structures and our own genetic code, which is said soon. From an economic point of view, multiple benefits are also reported.
Giving a quick example, it is estimated that to produce half a kilo of lentils (20 grams of carbohydrates per 100 grams) a total of 25 liters of water is required, while the most expensive cereal, rice, requires 1,700 liters for production. same amount.
On the other hand, to make a portion of hamburger meat, about 2,400 liters are needed, and it does not contain any type of carbohydrate. Of course, each food has its own nutritional benefits, so we set aside topics of dietary choices and leave them for another time. We are simply documenting the cheap cost of production of this type of food.
Beyond the food field, carbohydrates They are present everywhere in human society as useful objects An example of this is cellulose, an essential component of most sheets of paper with which we work. We can also use cellulose nitrate as an example, which is used in the synthesis of plates and cements, among many other things. We believe that with all these applications, the essentiality of carbohydrates in modern society is more than clear.
Types of carbohydrates
From a biochemical point of view, carbohydrates They can be divided into monosaccharides, disaccharides, oligosaccharides and polysaccharides The essential difference between these types of molecules is the number of monosaccharides that form them. Although it may sound redundant, it is necessary to note that the monosaccharide is the basic functional unit and cannot be hydrolyzed into simpler compounds.
On the other hand, polysaccharides are composed of 10 or more monosaccharides and can present complex structures in the form of branches. Beyond chemical formulas, we find it more useful to classify carbohydrates according to their nutritional functionality. Let’s get to it.
Sugars are generally monosaccharides or disaccharides, since we find among them glucose, fructose or sucrose, for example. This type of carbohydrate is normally found in fruits and milk, but it can also be added to desserts and other recipes by humans, since it is manufactured in grain.
Despite their nutritional importance, excessive intake of simple sugars in the diet is not recommended, since during their processing at the cellular level, free radicals are generated that can adhere to DNA, lipids and proteins, damaging them (this is known as oxidation). Thus, excessive glucose intake has been correlated with faster cellular aging.
Starches, on the other hand, are complex polysaccharides formed from many monomers or sugars They are found in plants, since their essential function is the storage of energy in the plant world within specific organelles, the amyloplasts. It may be surprising to know that starch is the main carbohydrate in the human diet, as it is found in bread, corn, cereals, potatoes, certain legumes, fruits, rice and dairy products.
Lastly we have fiber, a food substance formed by a set of heterogeneous biological compounds (polysaccharides, oligosaccharides, lignin and other analogous compounds). It is interesting to know that humans cannot digest this carbohydrate, for this reason it undergoes total or partial fermentation in the large intestine thanks to the intestinal flora (symbiotic bacteria).
On the other hand, fiber cannot be considered a nutrient in the strict sense, since it does not participate directly in human metabolic processes. Even so, it is an essential part of the physiological well-being of the individual, since it promotes peristaltic movements of the intestine, favors the growth and maintenance of intestinal flora, and can act as a physical barrier when mixed with water, since it forms a protective layer of the intestinal wall. For all these reasons, it is recommended that a human being consume at least 5-10 grams of soluble fiber per day.
Nutritional functions
At this point, we believe that the functionality of carbohydrates is almost self-explanatory, but we still provide some final data that puts their role in the modern diet into perspective.
It is estimated that carbohydrates They are the main source of energy in humans, as they usually correspond to 60% of a person’s daily energy expenditure On the other hand, the concentration of carbohydrates in our own tissues is usually about 10 grams per kilogram of body weight.
The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) and the WHO (World Health Organization), for their part, recommend that 55-75% of the energy in the diet come from carbohydrates, but be careful: only 10% can correspond to the intake of free sugars, since their previously mentioned oxidative potential is something to take into account.
Carbohydrate metabolism disorders
Finally, we see it as essential to close this entire terminological conglomerate with some information regarding diseases related to carbohydrates. Those who suffer from this type of pathology generally lack the adequate amount of enzymes necessary to break down polysaccharides into the most basic monomer: glucose which can be transported in blood and stored in the liver in the form of glycogen.
Yes, you guessed it. In this group we find the infamous diabetes, a disease characterized by the lack of production or poor functioning of insulin. This hormone helps the monosaccharide enter the cells so that they can use it as a source of energy, so its ineffectiveness results in atypical blood glucose levels. 1 in 11 adults in the world has some type of diabetes so we can affirm that carbohydrate metabolism disorders are the order of the day.
Summary
As we have seen in this space, carbohydrates They go far beyond bread and cereals These biomolecules make up a large part of the organic matter on earth, they are part of the genetic code of all living beings, they are an excellent food with high economic profitability and they make up a non-negligible portion of our physical structure.
Therefore, when talking about these biomolecules we have to keep in mind that even the sheets of paper we use to work are partly composed of them. These substances surround us at all times and make us up, which is why we cannot conceive life without them.
