Amino acid deficiency symptoms
5 Signs of Amino Acid Deficiency and How to Treat It – The Amino Company
You probably know that between 60% and 70% of the average human body is composed of water. But did you know that protein makes up approximately 66% of the non-water components of your body? As you may remember from biology class, amino acids form the building blocks of protein. In the same way that it’s vital to drink water to stay hydrated, it’s also absolutely necessary to provide our bodies with an ongoing supply of amino acids to make up for those used up rebuilding our tissues and carrying out other important bodily functions. Without an adequate intake of amino-rich foods, you’re likely to develop an amino acid deficiency.
Amino acid deficiency often gets overlooked, and when left untreated it makes it more likely you’ll develop a whole host of serious disorders. In this article, we’ll go over some basic facts about amino acids and then share five signs of amino acid deficiency as well as how to correct amino acid deficiency.
What Are Amino Acids?
Scientists have found that when we select food, our first instinctive priority is to meet our short-term energy needs. And right behind that comes the maintenance of our essential amino acids balance. When you eat food that contains protein, your body then breaks it down in order to access and utilize the amino acids.
Amino acids carry out a wide variety of vital functions inside the human body, from building muscles to generating neurotransmitters like dopamine. We need a steady supply of a balanced ratio of amino acids to maintain optimal levels inside our bodies. When we’re under stress, or dealing with illness or injury, we require an even higher intake to meet the increased demand.
There are 20 proteinogenic amino acids—”proteinogenic” means “protein creating,” and as you might be able to intuit, these amino acids form all biological proteins and all contribute to our overall health and well-being in different ways. For instance, research reveals that leucine, isoleucine, and valine, the three branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), work to build and repair muscle tissue. While there’s understandably a great deal of interest in determining the role of each individual amino acid, it’s important to keep in mind that they can only carry out those roles effectively when the proper balance and concentration of all the amino acids is in place.
Eleven of the proteinogenic amino acids are deemed nonessential. Since your body can produce these nonessential amino acids, it’s not essential that you derive them from your diet. The nonessential amino acids are alanine, arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, cysteine, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, proline, serine, and tyrosine.
The remaining nine are essential amino acids that you must obtain either from the food you eat or supplements you take since your body cannot independently create them. The essential amino acids are histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine.
Some amino acids are considered conditionally essential. This category can be a bit confusing. Basically, when everything is going smoothly, your body can make these amino acids on its own without any difficulty. But if your health is compromised in some way, for instance, if your liver is functioning less than ideally, that can get in the way of amino acid synthesis. Poor diet can also cause problems, since certain minerals and vitamins play important roles in the amino acid creation process. Under those circumstances, your body can greatly benefit from an increased intake of the seven conditionally essential amino acids: arginine, cysteine, glutamine, glycine, proline, serine, and tyrosine.
How Do Amino Acids Work?
As we touched on in the previous section, amino acids do not work in isolation. It’s true that each has a specific function, but simply increasing your intake of one particular amino acid will not necessarily make that function happen more efficiently.
Take arginine. Research shows that arginine stimulates the production of nitric oxide, a signaling molecule that’s especially important for vasodilation. In simple terms, nitric oxide allows the inner muscles of your blood vessels to relax, which improves your circulation. You might think that the best way to boost your nitric oxide levels would be to take more arginine. But studies make it clear that taking arginine supplements doesn’t lead to significantly increased arginine concentrations. What’s more effective is to increase your intake of citrulline, which your body then converts to arginine your body can readily use for nitric oxide production and other purposes.
As you can see, amino acids work together to maintain your health and well-being. It’s very rare to develop a deficiency of just one amino acid. The most effective strategy is to focus on keeping your amino acid levels in balance by eating a protein-rich diet and supplementing with well-formulated amino acid supplements if necessary.
5 Signs of Amino Acid Deficiency
1. Muscle Loss
Our bodies have systems in place to compensate for a lack of dietary amino acid intake. One of the first things that happens is the breakdown of muscle tissues, which are assembled from amino acids. Amino acids are then sent where they’re most needed, for instance, to maintain heart function. As you may be able to guess, eating away at your muscle to fuel your heart is not a sustainable strategy and can have serious consequences.
No matter what, some degree of muscle loss, often (incorrectly) called sarcopenia, will accompany the aging process. A lack of amino acids, however, speeds up that process, which can begin as early as your 30s.
2. Increased Anxiety and Depression
There’s an intimate connection between your amino acid intake and your mental health. We rely on amino acids to produce brain chemicals like serotonin that balance our moods and emotions.
Tryptophan, an essential amino acid, is a precursor to serotonin. When serotonin levels drop, symptoms of depression increase. A 2016 study found that without an adequate supply of tryptophan, serotonin production is compromised, which can, in turn, compromise your mental health.
3. Difficulty Concentrating
If you’re feeling unmotivated, struggling to concentrate, finding it difficult to learn new information, or dealing with “brain fog,” you may have low amino acid levels. As we touched on above, you need amino acids to produce neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine.
Without enough tyrosine, a conditionally essential amino acid, your brain struggles to produce dopamine. And without enough dopamine, your energy levels will flag and your overall cognitive function will decline.
4. Digestive Disturbances
In order for the digestive system to operate smoothly, we need a balanced intake of amino acids, which play crucial roles in enzyme production as well as muscle contractions in your gastrointestinal tract.
Amino acids have such a pronounced impact on digestion that they may even be used to treat certain gut-related diseases, according to a study.
5. Slowed Healing Time
Amino acids help our muscles recover from exertion, maintain the strength of our bones, and keep our immune systems running at peak capacity.
A 2009 study showed that amino acids help bone fractures heal more quickly, and findings published in the British Journal of Nutrition show that a deficiency in amino acids impairs immune function and increases your susceptibility to illness.
The Best Way to Correct Amino Acid Deficiency
Once you’ve realized you have an amino acid deficiency, there’s likely only one question on your mind: how to correct an amino acid deficiency. To stabilize your amino acid levels, you need to increase the amount of amino acids you’re consuming. It can be difficult to do this in a balanced way through diet alone, especially if you aren’t inclined to eat a diet high in animal protein.
And balance is absolutely key. The amino acid that we consume the least of, proportionate to recommended consumption levels, determines the degree to which our bodies can utilize the rest of the amino acids we take in.
Essential amino acid (EAA) supplements can help to fill any gaps you might have in your diet. If you’re already experiencing any of the signs of amino acid deficiency listed above, it can be highly beneficial to augment your amino acid intake with a high-quality EAA supplement.
The Amino Company is dedicate to developing the highest quality EAA blends for your targeted health needs: muscle health, liver health, kidney health, heart health, immune system health, weight loss, mental health, and energy. To protect against or correct an amino acid deficiency, shop Amino Co EAAs today.
Feeling Old? 9 Signs You Have an Amino Acid Deficiency
Feeling old? Off your game? As I write about here, certain symptoms—joint pain, hearing loss, skin changes—can be indicators of fast aging. While there’s no way to know exactly how much longer you’ll live, there are clues that give you an idea of how your health is faring as you get older. One of the things your body could be telling you is that you’re lacking sufficient amounts of amino acids. These organic compounds are the building blocks of protein, and they play a role in all of the body’s cellular processes. Here are nine signs you have an amino acid deficiency.
Trouble Focusing
Tyrosine is an essential amino acid found in protein-rich foods like dairy products, meat, and eggs. As LIVESTRONG explains, tyrosine helps boost your body’s production of neurotransmitters like dopamine and epinephrine that help you focus, and insufficient tyrosine may cause you to have trouble concentrating.
Fatigue
We all have days where we feel like we’re dragging. But if you find yourself constantly struggling with exhaustion, you may not be getting the amino acids you need to fuel your body.
Memory Loss
In addition to its role in energy production, acetyl-L-carnitine has been shown to improve cognition and memory—which is why it’s on my list of top supplements for brain health. According to the website healingwithnutrition.com, one study found that elderly patients with mild memory deterioration who supplemented with acetyl-L-carnitine experienced significantly improved mental function. Just make sure it is the acetyl form, as plain l-carnitine doesn’t cross the blood-brain barrier.
Slow Illness Recovery
SF Gate reports that insufficient amino acid intake can compromise your body’s ability to recover from infection by slowing the process.
Muscle Loss
Bodybuilding.com explains that, in the absence of sufficient energy produced by amino acids, your body may break down muscle tissue in order to fuel itself during intense exercise. And science suggests that long-term supplementation with amino acids may help prevent and treat age-related muscle loss (sarcopenia). In general, your body will break down muscle tissue if it’s not getting enough of even one of the amino acids it needs.
Craving Unhealthy Foods
Do you have an insatiable sweet tooth? Are you crazy for carbs? Your brain might not be getting the amino acids it needs to help you feel satisfied, according to Psychology Today. Neurotransmitters that help control your appetite are made from amino acids.
Weakness
If you can’t run as fast or lift as much weight as you used to, you might want to evaluate your intake of amino acids from protein. As reported by Men’s Journal, inadequate protein intake can lead to muscle weakness.
Depressed Mood
Research shows that some amino acids are precursors to neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine that are associated with depression.
Oversleeping
Can’t seem to drag yourself out of bed? If you feel like all you want to do is sleep, you could be lacking amino acids needed to energize you.
Experiencing any or all of these symptoms? There are steps you can take. Of the twenty total amino acids, nine are essential, meaning your body can’t produce them and so they must be obtained through food. To make sure you’re getting enough, Greatist recommends eating a wide variety of protein sources every day.
Signs of lack of protein in the body – Clinic VALMED
Valmed ADMIN
This post will be dedicated to the main building material of our body. All tissues, organs and cells of the human body have a protein nature. Muscles, joints, hair, nails, skin, immunity are PROTEIN, so the role of proteins in the life of each of us is simply huge.
Protein is a helical molecule made up of amino acids. 22 amino acids play the greatest role in the body, of which 12 are non-essential amino acids and 10 are essential.
It should be understood that the reference values (norms) when determining blood protein, as well as many of the tests, are not optimal values.
The optimal blood protein in a woman is 75-80 g/l, in a man - 78-85.
The level of blood protein depends on your diet and the work of the digestive tract.
Complete protein is primarily animal proteins and soy.
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muscle weakness,
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dry, weak hair,
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Advanced to Sweet,
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Emotional lability,
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Hormonal imbalance, in women - irregular menstrual cycle,
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Witting attention, forgetfulness,
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DECOMS in the field and stop,
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decreased immunity,
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Increased fragility of nails. Nails, like hair, include the protein keratin.
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Joint pain, progressive osteochondrosis and osteoarthritis.
⠀Do you know your total protein level?
Be beautiful and healthy ️️️️️️️!
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What are essential amino acids, how to replenish their supply in the body?
February 21, 2020
May 3, 2020
3 minutes
14483
ProWellness
Contents
- Essential amino acid group
- What are they for?
- Deficiency symptoms
- How to make up for the deficiency
Disclaimer
Please note that all information posted on the site Prowellness is provided for informational purposes only and is not a personal program, a direct recommendation for action, or medical advice. Do not use these materials for diagnosis, treatment, or any medical procedure. Consult your physician before using any technique or using any product. This site is not a specialized medical portal and does not replace the professional advice of a specialist. The Site Owner is not liable to any party who has suffered indirect or direct damage as a result of misuse of materials posted on this resource.
What are essential amino acids, how to replenish their supply in the body?
Amino acids are an important building material in the human body. All amino acids are divided into 3 groups: nonessential, conditionally nonessential and irreplaceable. Classification depends on the body's ability to produce these substances on its own. Those that are not produced on their own play a big role in the formation of hormones, the construction of protein chains.
Essential amino acid group
These are compounds that are made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. Of the total, only 9 structural parts of the protein are considered essential. These are substances that cannot be synthesized by the body, and a person receives them exclusively from food.
Essential amino acids include:
- isoleucine;
- lysine;
- leucine;
- histidine;
- tryptophan;
- phenylalanine;
- valine;
- threonine;
- methionine.
Attention! Each of the known acids is necessary for the smooth operation of all systems. The diet should be balanced and contain all substances. They provide a full healthy life, keep youth and muscle strength.
What are they for?
Without essential amino acids, not a single process in the body takes place. The main ones include:
- responsible for the structure and function of the protein;
- stimulation of muscle growth and responsibility for their recovery;
- participation in normal metabolism;
- inclusion in the composition of collagen and elastin;
- regulation of appetite, sleep and mood;
- help in the formation of a protective sheath around nerve cells.
Therefore, a regular and sufficient intake of amino acids of this group is mandatory.
Deficiency symptoms
If the norms of essential amino acids are not supplied with food, then there is a deficiency of these substances. Its symptoms:
- constant feeling of tiredness and drowsiness;
- anemia accompanied by dizziness and other characteristic symptoms;
- significantly weakens the immune system;
- hair starts to fall out.
At the same time, there are troubles with excessive consumption of these substances. Pathologies of the thyroid gland may begin, the work of the joints is disrupted. Therefore, in order to consume the daily norm of essential amino acids, it is necessary to properly form a diet, as well as consult a nutritionist.
How to fill the gap
To provide the body with essential amino acids, you need to follow only a few rules of reasonable nutrition:
- Dairy and sour-milk food should be present in the diet daily;
- meat and fish should also be consumed daily, but it is better to cook them for a couple, bake or stew, serve with herbs;
- 50 grams of nuts and seeds per day contribute to enrichment with essential amino acids at any age;
- should eat legumes and grains with greens.
With regular adherence to such recommendations, a dangerous deficiency of essential amino acids will not occur, and a person will retain youth and health.
Attention! It is especially important to replenish the diet with amino acids with regular visits to the gym or professional sports. Then the consumption of amino acids increases significantly, and proper nutrition should be given special attention. It will contribute not only to replenishing the supply of useful elements, but also to natural weight loss and muscle building.
Disclaimer
Please note that all information posted on the site Prowellness is provided for informational purposes only and is not a personal program, a direct recommendation for action, or medical advice. Do not use these materials for diagnosis, treatment, or any medical procedure. Consult your physician before using any technique or using any product.