Food Essay Draft

All humans are heterotrophic organisms (organisms that live off the organic compounds produced by autotrophic organisms (create their own organic compounds). We get these organic molecules from what we call food (a nutritious substance that is used or absorbed to maintain life and growth). We measure things based on 1000 calories (The energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius). In food we measure in Calories (which is a kilocalorie). The organic molecules (any member of a large class of chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon) that humans use are lipids, carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids. These organic molecules are used to produce ATP (Adenosine triphosphate). We break down these macromolecules (large biological molecule) by a process called digestion (when enzymes break down large molecules into smaller ones). This is also a catabolic reaction (a metabolic reaction that results in the breakdown of complex molecules) Humans use different process to break down these macromolecules. Carbohydrates (contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen and can be broken) are broken down through cellular respiration (The process in which a cell breaks down sugar or other organic compounds to release energy used for cellular work). This process includes glycolysis, pyruvate oxidation, the kreb cycle, and the electron transport chain. The theoretical ATP output by this process is 36 ATP per glucose (C6H1206). Lipids are broken down to fatty acid chains and through a process called beta oxidation; the fatty acid chain is broken down to many acetyl-Co A, which then enters cellular respiration at the Kreb cycle. Proteins are broken down to amino acids. Through a process called deamination (removing the amino group of an amino acid). The enzyme that causes this is called deaminases (enzyme that performs deamination). We then have pyruvate which enters at pyruvate oxidation. Last, nucleic acids turn into nucleotides and enter the Kreb